The Swami Narayan Akshardham is a Hindu religious and spiritual temple complex housing shrines dedicated in tribute to Pramukh Swami, the head of the BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha, his life and his teachings. The Swaminarayan Akshardham is worshipped by people and revered as a form of God himself. In accordance with the Swami Narayan's principles and teachings, the main temple complex has been classified as the Swaminarayan Akshardham Complex with reference to main Akshardham temple within the complex. It is believed in the Hindu mythology and by the followers of Swaminarayan that after attaining liberation or moksha all souls reside in Akshardham temple.
Swaminarayan Akshardham Temple was built in five years and the colossal devotional efforts of 11,000 artisans and thousands of BAPS volunteers. The Swaminarayan Akshardham Temple is declared the Guinness World Record as the World's Largest Comprehensive Hindu Temple and temple complex was inaugurated on 6 November, 2005 (Constructed between from 2000 to 2005).
Swaminarayan Akshardham one of the "Must Visit" places in Delhi. It is one among the top 5 tourist spots in New Delhi.
Attractions within the Swaminarayan Akshardham Temple includes Sahaj Anand water show, Abhisheka Mandap, the thematic garden and three exhibitions namely Sahajanand Darshan (hall of values), Sanskruti Darshan (cultural boat ride) and Neelkanth Darshan (an IMAX film on the early life of Swaminarayan as the teenage yogi, Neelkanth).
History of Akshardham Temple Delhi
Akshardham Mandir Delhi was officially opened to public on 6th November 2005. It was inaugurated by president of India late Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. It took around 5 years of time to build the entire Swaminarayan Akshardham complex as per the ancient methods such as Vastu shastra and Pancharatra shastra.
Located on the banks of River Yamuna, this temple is close to the 2010 Commonwealth Games village. The idea of temple complex was conceived by Yogiji Maharaj around 1968, the then spiritual head of BAPS. Later in 1982, his successor Pramukh Swami Maharaj started the work towards the construction of Akshardham complex.
In 2000, 60 acres and 30 acres of land were offered by Delhi Development Authority and Uttar Pradesh government respectively for the project. In the month of November 2000, the construction for the temple complex was started which was completed in about 5 years. It was then officially opened in November 2005. The inauguration function was attended by the then Prime Minister of India Mr. Manmohan Singh and leader of opposition Mr. L.K Advani as well.
Architecture of Akshardham Delhi
Constructed with pink sandstone and marble, Akshardham Mandir is the centre of the Swaminarayan Akshardham complex. The vast complex of Swaminarayan Akshardham Delhi comprises of the main temple, beautifully laid out gardens, exhibitions, open courtyards and water bodies, each section presenting an intriguing aspect of Hindu religion and spirituality.
Built in the traditional Hindu architectural style, Akshardham Delhi has been built as per ancient Indian architecture. It follows the traditional Vastu shastra as well as Pancharatra Shastra. Mandir and the entire complex display intricate carvings of flowers, animals, musicians, dancers and Hindu deities. The material used in constructing the temple – red sandstone from Rajasthan and the Italian Carrara marble, presents an alluring contrast which adds to the overall beauty of the structure. For the construction, more than 6,000 tons of pink sandstone was brought from Rajasthan.
Akshardham Temple- It stands majestically with a height of 141.3 feet and is spread with a width of 316 feet. It comprises of around 234 pillars that have been carved beautifully. It has 9 elaborately adorned domes along with 20 quadrangle peaks. There are around 20,000 idols related to Hinduism at the temple. The main statue of Swaminarayan is 11 foot long, and is placed under the central dome. The main deity is surrounded by statutes of other great sages. There are also statues of other Hindu Gods and Goddess. Each statue at the Akshardham Mandir has been constructed with five metals known as panch dhaatu.
