Lotus Temple in Delhi

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In the middle of South Delhi, stands a spectacular structure carved out in white marble. The Bahai House of Worship, more popularly known as the Lotus Temple is a famous tourist spot in Delhi. It is gradually emerging as a Mecca for the visitors. It is a marvelous piece of architecture and a peaceful place to meditate and pray.

There is no presiding deity in the temple and it is open to all religion and nationality. The temple is a Bahai faith temple which is one of the youngest independent religions of the world. The founder of the religion Baha u llah, believed that world is no more fragmented by caste, creed, color and religion. He wanted to promote a universal civilization and global society. Peace was the essence of his message.

This marvelous piece of architecture took 10 years for designing and construction. It's a masterpiece of a Canadian based Iranian architect, Fariborz Sahba. A follower of Bahai faith, Fariborz was passionate about constructing this temple and spent a lot of yeas collecting funds for it. It took him a team of 800 engineers, artisans and construction workers to complete this project. After it was ready it looked a really complicated piece of architecture.

The temple is named Lotus Temple because of its shape that resembles a lotus flower. 27 marble-clad petals are cluttered together to create the shape of a lotus. The structure has a striking similarity to the Opera House of Sydney, Australia. The temple attracts as much as four million visitors every year.

The temple has a huge hall in the centre which is accessible by 9 doors around it. The hall can accommodate 2,500 people at a time. Visitors meditate in the hall and people are required to maintain pin-drop silence when inside. Nine pools surround the temple in a way that it looks a lotus is emerging from the pool.

Fariborz Sahba has designed the temple in the shape of lotus because this flower is the symbol of purity and tenderness. Apart from this, lotus has lots of significance in Indian mythology as Lord Brahma was born from the lotus that grew out of Lord Vishnu's naval. Also, lotus is significant for Buddhists who use it in their day to day prayer. Lotus has deep association with worship. Thus, the architect decided to construct the temple in the shape of a lotus. Another reason was probably to make the design and shape of the building look distinct and Fariboz was successful in making this structure unique and spectacular by giving it the shape of lotus.

Bahai House of Worship or the Lotus Temple is worth visiting for its remarkable architecture. It is a place where you can experience ultimate solitude and peace for meditating and looking inside your soul.

The temple has got a number of architectural and fine arts awards. In 1987, F Sahba received the award of excellence in religious art and architecture by UK based Institution of Structural Engineers.