Lotus Temple Delhi, Location, Timings, Entry, Architecture, Tour, Guide, Interesting Facts, Best time to visit, How to Reach, Accommodation, About Lotus Temple Complete detail Updated.
About Lotus Temple
Location: Near Kalkaji Temple, East of Nehru Place
Nearest Metro Station: Kalkaji Mandir
Open: Tue-Sun; Mondays closed
Timings: In Winter – 9:30 AM – 5:00 PM
In Summer – 9:30 AM – 7:00 PM
Entry: Free
Photography: Permission required
Prayer timings are 10 am, 12 pm, 3 pm and 5 pm. Each prayer spans for five minutes and each prayer indicates a different religion.
East of Nehru place, this temple is built in the shape of a lotus flower and is the last of seven Major Bahai’s temples built around the world. Completed in1986 it is set among the lush green landscaped gardens.
The structure is made up of pure white marble The architect Furiburz Sabha chose the lotus as the symbol common to Hinduism, Buddhism, Bhai TempleJainism and Islam. Adherents of any faith are free to visit the temple and pray or meditate.
Around the blooming petals there are nine pools of water, which light up, in natural light. It looks spectacular at dusk when it is flood lit.
Lotus Temple is one of the prominent attractions of New Delhi. It is close to Nehru Place, one of the busiest commercial hubs in the city. The temple is built in the shape of a lotus flower amidst the lush green landscape that turn up to a pleasant and tranquil ambience. It is a Bahai House of Worship and is open to people from all religions. The Bahaí Faith is a world religion whose purpose is to unite all races and peoples in one universal Cause and one common Faith.
Lotus Temple is one of the prominent attractions of New Delhi. It is close to Nehru Place, one of the busiest commercial hubs in the city. The temple is built in the shape of a lotus flower amidst the lush green landscape that turn up to a pleasant and tranquil ambience. It is a Bahai House of Worship and is open to people from all religions. The Bahaí Faith is a world religion whose purpose is to unite all races and peoples in one universal Cause and one common Faith.
The temple is made of white marbles, cement, dolomite and sand with around nine crystal clear pools dotted all over it. The approximate 40 metre tall sanctum in the form of 27 blooming petals can accommodate as much as 2000 people at a time. Lotus Temple, one of the seven Bahai Houses of Worship has won laurels and applauds from all over the world for its impressive architectural design and rationale behind it. There are nine doors of the Lotus Temple which opens onto a central hall. Its vicinity comprises of gardens decorated with towering trees, short bushes and colourful flowers.
Architecture of Lotus Temple
The temple is built of Greek white marble in the shape of Lotus flower. Lotus was chosen as the symbol as it was common to religions like Jainism, Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam. The structure for the House of Worship in New Delhi is composed of 27 free-standing marble-made “petals” organized in bunches of three to form nine sides. The nine doors of the Lotus Temple open onto a central hall, that has the capacity of holding up to 2,500 people. The Temple is designed in such a way that no external lighting is required to light up the huge prayer hall. The light filters through the inner folds of the Lotus and diffuses through the entire hall of the temple, functioning as a skylight. With its nine surrounding ponds and the gardens, the Lotus Temple property is spread over 26 acres.
Lotus Temple Guided Tour
A short film on “An outline of the Baha’i – Faith” in English is showcased in the temple. If you are visiting in a group, you may approach their volunteers for an escort to the Conference Hall, where they will give you a briefing for about 5 minutes. Short films are showcased every 20 minutes, from 10:30 AM to 5:30 PM.
Things to do
The Lotus Temple offers four main or ‘core’ activities to anyone who might be interested in pursuing them. These include:-
1. Children’s Classes: These classes aim at imbibing values such as generosity, justice, kindness, unity, courage, truthfulness, reliance on God and service to humanity through Baha’i teachings.
2. Junior Youth Classes: These classes seek to develop spiritual and intellectual capacities in children aged 11-14 years.
3. Devotional Meetings: These sessions are aimed at creating a loving and harmonious environment within the community.
4. Study Circles: These meetings are aimed at making a comprehensive study of Bahá’í Writings, Prayer, and Life and Death, and hence create a spiritual consciousness among the people.
In addition to these core activities, Lotus Temple also hosts the One Ocean Events, which is a performing arts series celebrating the unity and diversity of humankind.
Interesting Facts
1. The Bahai Lotus temple was designed by Iranian architect Fariborz Sahba in the shape of a lotus as it is common to several religions including Hinduism and Buddhism. He has won several international awards for this brilliant piece of work including the awards from the GlobArt Academy, Institution of Structural Engineers and more. It also gained recognition in several publications in the world like the Encyclopedia Britannia and Guinness World Records. There have been stamps of the Lotus Temple, books and even musical compositions created to showcase its beauty and grandeur.
2. The temple was completed in 1986 and is one of the most visited places in the world. There are nine sides to the temple formed by 27 marble petals, arranged in groups of three. The nine doors lead to a central prayer hall that has a capacity of 2500 people and is about 40m high. The floor inside the central hall is also made of marble. The marble used comes from Greece, from the Penteli Mountain. Many other Bahai Houses of Worship were built using the same marble. The entrance of the Lotus Temple is also very enchanting with ponds and gardens welcoming you to the gates of the temple. The total area of the place is 26 acres.
3. It is in line with the teachings of the Bahai faith believing in the Oneness of God, the Oneness of Religions, and the Oneness of Mankind. As such, people of all religions and races are welcome in the temple as it is a place to worship the creator of the universe and not one particular deity. There is no idol to be worshipped and people of any faith, case, creed are welcome inside. Even though everyone is welcome, no ritualistic ceremonies can be performed inside the Lotus Temple nor can anyone deliver sermons. However, you can chant or read scriptures of Bahai and other faiths too, in any language. You can even set them to music by choirs but you cannot play any musical instrument inside the temple. The Bahai community offers four activities called the core activities for those who are interested in the Bahai way of life. These activities are Children’s’ Classes, Junior Youth Classes, Devotional Meetings and Study Circles.
4. The temple is visited by more than four million people every year with an average of more than 10,000 visitors daily. According to Bahai scripture, the House of Worship cannot have any pictures, statues or images displayed inside. However, the lotus is not an essential part of Bahai scripture as it states that all Bahai structures should have a nine-sided circular shaped structure. Even so, most of Bahai temples have a lotus-shaped structure. The Bahai House of Worship in Delhi is one of seven such houses of worship. The other six are at Sydney in Australia, Panama City in Panama, Apia inWestern Samoa, Kampala in Uganda, Frankfurt in Germany and Wilmette in USA.
5. It is interesting to learn a few facts about the history of how this temple was constructed. The area on which the temple is constructed was bought from the money donated by Ardishir Rustampur of Hyderabad. He gave away all his life-savings in 1953 for the temple to be constructed. But it was not until 1976 that Iranian architect Fariborz Sahba was approached for designing it. A UK-based firm named Flint and Neil was given the structural design project while the construction project was undertaken by ECC Construction Group. The Lotus Temple is one of the first temples in Delhi to use solar power. Its total electric use is 500 KW of which 120 KW is provided by solar power. When you visit the Lotus Temple, also visit the Information Centre which houses a lot of details of the Bahai faith in the form of texts, photographs, film, scriptures, etc. There is also an audio-visual room and a library where religious books are kept for visitors. You can browse through them if you like.
Best time to visit
Dusk and evening hours are the best time to visit this temple, as its beauty is even more enhanced by the floodlights during this hour.
How to Reach
Being situated in the capital of India, Delhi, Lotus Temple is well connected by the bus and Metro. The nearest metro station is the violet line, Nehru Place station. One can take hail an auto or even walk down for 20 minutes.
The temple is located close to Kalkaji Mandir metro station and Nehru Place. You can find many private and public transportations from various parts of the city to reach the temple. Since it is an iconic attraction of Delhi, you can easily find drivers who are aware of the location of the temple. If choosing the metro, you need to cover 500 m on foot or hire auto from the station to the temple.
Accommodation
Delhi is one of the India’s busiest entry points. It has a wide range of accommodation available from deluxe five star luxury hotels, with top-notch restaurants, 24-hour coffee shops, swimming pools, travel agents and shopping arcades, to middle-range hotels and guest houses offering good services and a comfortable stay, down to economical tourist lodges. There are a few Tourist Hostels, Working women’s Hostels, Service Apartments, Camping Sites and Dharmashalas as well.
If you plan on getting an accommodation near the Lotus Temple, you might want to try out FabHotel Conclave Inn, Oodles Residency, FabHotel Conclave Comfort, Basil the Residency Hotel and Eros Hotel among the others.
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