Birla Mandir, Jaipur (Lakshmi Narayan Temple) is a

Hindu temple A Hindu temple, or ''mandir'' or ''koil'' in Indian languages, is a house, seat and body of divinity for Hindus. It is a structure designed to bring human beings and gods together through worship, sacrifice, and devotion.; Quote: "The Hi ...

located in Jaipur, India and is one of many Birla mandirs. It was built by the B.M. Birla Foundation in 1988 and is constructed solely of white marble. It is dedicated to the Hindu Goddess Lakshmi and

Lord Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Prese ...

( Narayan), whose images appear inside, along with other Hindu gods and goddesses and selections from the Gita and

Upanishads The Upanishads (; sa, उपनिषद् ) are late Vedic Sanskrit texts that supplied the basis of later Hindu philosophy.Wendy Doniger (1990), ''Textual Sources for the Study of Hinduism'', 1st Edition, University of Chicago Press, , ...

. Festivals such as

Diwali Diwali (), Dewali, Divali, or Deepavali ( IAST: ''dīpāvalī''), also known as the Festival of Lights, related to Jain Diwali, Bandi Chhor Divas, Tihar, Swanti, Sohrai, and Bandna, is a religious celebration in Indian religions. It i ...

and Janamashtami are celebrated at the temple. The temple is open daily with visiting hours between 8:00 AM and 12:00 PM, as well as between 4:00 PM and 8:00 PM. It is located in Jaipur's Tilak Nagar neighborhood near Moti Dungari hill.

History

Tradition states that a Maharaja sold the

Birla family The Birla family is a family connected with the industrial and social history of India. Foundations The Birla family origins lie with the Maheshwari caste of Bania Vaishya traders but they were outcast from their traditional community in 1922 ...

the land for the temple for one rupee. Construction began in 1977 under the direction Ramanauj Das and Ghanshyam Birla. It opened on February 22, 1988.

Architecture

The temple is made of white marble. There are four distinct parts of the temple: its sanctum, tower, main hall, and entrance. It has three towers, referencing the three main faiths of India, as well as

stained glass windows Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

depicting traditional Hindu stories. Marble sculptures also reference

Hindu mythology Hindu mythology is the body of myths and literature attributed to, and espoused by, the adherents of the Hindu religion, found in Hindu texts such as the Vedic literature, epics like ''Mahabharata'' and ''Ramayana'', the Puranas, and r ...

. It features Hindu deities inside - particularly

Lakshmi Lakshmi (; , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism. She is the goddess of wealth, fortune, power, beauty, fertility and prosperity, and associated with ''Maya'' ("Illusion"). Alo ...

, Narayan, and

Ganesh Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu ...

- and figures such as

Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religi ...

, the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jews, Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Jose ...

, St. Peter,

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in ...

Confucius Confucius ( ; zh, s=, p=Kǒng Fūzǐ, "Master Kǒng"; or commonly zh, s=, p=Kǒngzǐ, labels=no; – ) was a Chinese philosopher and politician of the Spring and Autumn period who is traditionally considered the paragon of Chinese sages. C ...

, and

Socrates Socrates (; ; –399 BC) was a Greek philosopher from Athens who is credited as the founder of Western philosophy and among the first moral philosophers of the ethical tradition of thought. An enigmatic figure, Socrates authored no te ...

on the outer walls. Statues of its founders - Rukmani Devi Birla and Braj Mohan Birla - lie outdoors in covered pavilions, facing the temple with hands folded in namaskāra mudra. Its architectural style is considered to be modern. It was built on a raised platform, which lifts it up into the Jaipur skyline; at night, it becomes covered in light. In addition to the temple itself, the grounds include gardens and a small gift shop. Below the temple lies the B. M. Birla Family Museum and the Sri and Smt. G. P. Birla Gallery; both contain photographs of the temple's construction and the Birla family's philanthropic contributions, as well as treasures belonging to the Birla family.

Gallery

File:Birla mandir jaipur.JPG, alt=white marble Hindu temple File:Birla mandir 3.jpg, alt=white marble Hindu temple File:Handrails of birla mandir.JPG, alt=handrails of white marble Hindu temple File:Jaipur-Birla Mandir-Chattri of the Birla family member-20131016.jpg, alt=white marble Hindu temple File:Birla Mandir 032.jpg, alt=white marble Hindu temple File:Birla temple bt vsv.jpg

References

External links

Laxmi Narayan Birla Temple
{{Birla Mandirs Hindu temples in Rajasthan Tourist attractions in Jaipur Hindu temples in Jaipur