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| Places To Visit In Delhi - Swaminarayan Akshardham |
Swaminarayan Akshardham is a Hindu temple and spiritual-cultural campus in Delhi, India. The temple is near the Noida border. Also known as Akshardham Temple or Akshardham Delhi, the complex showcases millennia of traditional and modern Hindu culture, spirituality and architecture. Wikipedia
Places To Visit In Delhi - Swaminarayan Akshardham
Swaminarayan Akshardham is a Hindu temple and spiritual-cultural campus in Delhi, India. The temple is near the Noida border. Also known as Akshardham Temple or Akshardham Delhi, the complex showcases millennia of traditional and modern Hindu culture, spirituality and architecture. Inspired by Yogiji Maharaj and created by Pramukh Swami Maharaj, it was built by BAPS. It is the second largest BAPS Hindu temple in the world, after Akshardham, New Jersey, in the United States.
The temple was officially inaugurated on November 6, 2005 by Pramukh Swami Maharaj in the presence of A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, Manmohan Singh, L.K Advani and B.L Joshi. The temple, in the center of the complex, was built according to Vastu shastra and Pancharatra shastra.
At Swaminarayan Akshardham, similar to its predecessor Swaminarayan Akshardham in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, the main shrine is the focal point and maintains the central position of the entire complex. There are several exhibition halls that provide information about the life and work of Swaminarayan. The complex's designers have adopted contemporary modes of communication and technology to create the various exhibition halls.
The complex features an abhishek mandap, a water show by Sahaj Anand, a theme garden and three exhibitions: Sahajanand Darshan (Hall of Values), Neelkanth Darshan (an IMAX film on Swaminarayan's early years as the teenage yogi, Nilkanth) and Sanskruti. Darshan (cultural boat ride). According to Swaminarayan Hinduism, the word Akshardham means the abode of Swaminarayan and is considered the temporary home of God on earth by his followers.
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| Places To Visit In Delhi - Swaminarayan Akshardham |
Features - Akshardham Mandir
The main attraction of the Swaminarayan Akshardham complex is the Akshardham Mandir. It stands 43 meters (141 ft) high, spans 96 meters (316 ft) wide, and stretches 109 meters (356 ft) long. It is intricately carved with flora, fauna, dancers, musicians and deities. [citation needed] It is located on the banks of the Yamuna River.
The Akshardham Mandir was designed by BAPS Swamis and Virendra Trivedi, a member of the Sompura family. It is constructed entirely of pink Rajasthani sandstone and Italian Carrara marble. Based on traditional Hindu architectural guidelines (Shilpa shastras) on maximum temple life, it does not use ferrous metals. Therefore, it has no steel or concrete support.The architecture is inspired by the Māru-Gurjara architectural style.
The mandir also consists of 234 ornately carved pillars, nine domes and 20,000 murtis of swamis, devotees and acharyas. The mandir also features the Gajendra Pith at its base, a pedestal that pays homage to the elephant for its importance in Hindu culture and Indian history. It contains 148 life-size elephants weighing a total of 3,000 tons.
Beneath the central dome of the temple is the 3.4 meter (11 ft) tall murti of Swaminarayan seated in abhayamudra to whom the temple is dedicated. Swaminarayan is surrounded by images of the lineage of Gurus of the faith depicted in a devotional posture or a posture of service. Each murti is made of pañcadhātu, or the five metals according to Hindu tradition. The temple also houses the murtis of Sita-Rama, Radha-Krishna, Shiva-Parvati and Lakshmi-Narayana.
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| Places To Visit In Delhi - Swaminarayan Akshardham |
Exhibits - Swaminarayan Akshardham
Sahajanand Darshan [Hall of Values]
Nilkanth Darshan [Theatre]
The theater houses Delhi's first and only large-format screen, measuring 26 meters (85 ft) by 20 meters (65 ft). The theater screens a 40-minute film specially commissioned for the complex, Neelkanth Yatra, which chronicles a seven-year pilgrimage undertaken by Swaminarayan during his teenage years across India. Mystic India, an international version of the film produced by BAPS Charities, was released in 2005 in IMAX theaters and big screen cinemas around the world. An 8.2 meter (27 ft) tall bronze murti of Nilkanth Varni stands outside the theatre.
Sanskruti Vihar [Boat Ride]
The Boat Ride is a 12-minute journey through 10,000 years of glorious heritage, using life-size figures and robotics to represent life in Vedic India, from family life to bazaars and teaching. It also shows the contributions of Vedic Indians to various fields like science, astronomy, arts, literature, yoga, mathematics, etc. by eminent people like the mathematician-astronomers Aryabhata and Brahmagupta, the grammarian Pāṇini, contributors to the ancient art and science of Ayurveda. such as Sushruta and Charaka, the classical Sanskrit writer Kālidāsa, the philosopher, economist and royal advisor Chanakya, among others. It shows the world's first university, Takshashila and the subjects taught there, such as horse riding and war. It moves to the Middle Ages, to Sufi saints like Kabir and saints of the Bhakti movement like Meera and Ramananda and then to recent times highlighting the contributions of modern Indian mathematicians like Jagadish Chandra Bose, Srinivasa Ramanujan, C. V. Raman and Satyendra Nath Bose. and philosophers like Swami Vivekananda.[
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| Places To Visit In Delhi - Swaminarayan Akshardham |
musical fountain
The musical fountain, also known as Yagnapurush Kund, is the largest stepwell in India. [citation needed] It has a very large series of steps that lead to a traditional 'yagna kund'. During the day, these steps provide rest to the visitors of the complex and at night, a musical fountain show called Sahaj Anand – Multimedia Water Show is shown. The Sahaj Anand Water Show is a 24-minute performance that brings together a variety of media to bring to life a story from the Kena Upanishad. Multicolored lasers, video projections, underwater flames, water jets and surround sound in a symphony with lights and live actors produce a presentation. International experts contributed their expertise along with BAPS volunteers and swamis to produce this presentation.[25][26] The fountain is named after the founder of the Hindu organization BAPS, Shastriji Maharaj.[27] The fountain measures 91 meters (300 feet) by 91 meters (300 feet) with 2,870 steps and 108 small shrines. At its center is an eight-petaled lotus-shaped yagna kund designed according to the Jayaakhya Samhita of the Pancharatra shastra.
References - From Wikipedia
- Address: NH 24, Pramukh Swami Maharaj Marg, Pandav Nagar, New Delhi, Delhi, 110092, India
- Phone: +91 11 4344 2344
- Deity: Swaminarayan, Sita-Rama, Radha-Krishna, Shiva-Parvati and Lakshmi-Narayana
- Architect(s): Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha
- Completed: 6 November 2005 (consecration)
- Height (max): 43 m (141 ft)
- Creator: Virendra Trivedi; Pramukh Swami Maharaj
- Monument(s): Over 20,000
- Geographic coordinates: 28°36′45″N 77°16′38″E / 28.61250°N 77.27722°E