Lotus Temple
While the world is struggling in maintaining peace among mankind on the basis of religion and caste, the Baha’i community takes the responsibility to establish human equality. Lotus Temple is a live example that the community has held in this regard.
The Lotus Temple is not just one of the important tourist places to visit in Delhi but also has a significant meaning in terms of the unity of humankind in terms of religion.
The Lotus Temple
Constructed and inaugurated in the year 1986, the Lotus Temple has become not only one of the important attractions in Delhi but also one of the most popular places to visit in India. The name of the temple is derived from the structure of the temple which is constructed in the form of a lotus.
The entire temple is made up of white marble while the walkway reaching the entrance of the temple is made up of red sandstone. The magnificent masterpiece was designed by Fariborz Sahba, who is an Iranian architect. The architectural beauty of the temple received a lot of awards even before the inauguration.
When you enter the temple, you land in a huge hallway with seating areas to accommodate as many as 2500 people in one go. The idea of the Lotus Temple is to offer people of all religions the platform to meditate and believe in one god. Hence, when you arrive in this hallway, you need to sit and meditate.
The interior of the hallway is exceptionally serene and calm and offers you a perfect environment to meditate and rejuvenate your mind.
If you see the temple from a distance, you may notice that the roof is open, which denotes the semi-open lotus flower. But in reality, the top of the temple is made up of glass so that the temple interiors can have natural lights during the daytime.
The Baha’i Community
When you are learning about the Lotus Temple, it becomes quite important to learn about the constructors of the temple and the Baha’i community too.
The community took birth in Iraq and firmly believed in one god. Starting in the 19th century, the community preaches about the equality of religions, and thus, it offers a neutral place to meditate for all humans from different religions in the Lotus Temple.
It is quite interesting to know that the community has a belief in the digit 9. This belief is also reflected in the architecture of the Lotus Temple too. There are 9 lotus petals on each floor and there are 9 walkways reaching out to the temple in different ways. Again, there are 9 waterbodies surrounding the temple that offers it a beautiful external look.
Also, there are nine mashriqs throughout the world constructed by the Baha’i community and the Lotus Temple is one of them, which is one of the most famous places to visit in India.
Places to Visit in Delhi
When you are in Delhi, you have a lot of things to explore and the Lotus Temple is one of the most beautiful. There are so many other places to visit in Delhi also near the Lotus Temple and some of them are:
Akshardham Temple
Humayun’s Tomb
India Gate
Qutub Minar
Purana Quila
National Museum
Lodhi Garden
Hazrat Nizamuddin Aulia Dargah
Delhi, the capital city of India, is quite easily accessible from different cities of the country and also from different parts of the world. A lot of tourists land in Delhi as the city houses a lot of important places to visit in India.
