Lakshmi Narayan Temple, popularly known as Birla Mandir in Bhopal, is located in the Malviya Nagar area of

Bhopal Bhopal (; ISO 15919, ISO: Bhōpāl, ) is the capital (political), capital city of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of both Bhopal district and Bhopal division. It is known as the ''City of Lakes,'' due to ...

, south of the lake near the Arera Hills. A museum is built near the temple which houses idols brought from places like

Raisen Raisen is a town and a municipality in Raisen district in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of Raisen District. Raisen takes its name from the massive fort at the top of a hill. The town is located at ...

Sehore Sehore is a city and a municipality in Sehore district in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is the district headquarters of Sehore District and is located on the Bhopal- Sehore-Indore highway, 38 km from Bhopal. History Sehore stands ...

Mandsaur Mandsaur is a city and a municipality in Mandsaur district located on the border of Mewar and Malwa regions of Madhya Pradesh, a state in Central India. It is the administrative headquarters of Mandsaur District. The ancient Pashupatinath Tem ...

and

Shahdol Shahdol is a City in Shahdol district in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of Shahdol district, The total geographical area of the district is . Geography Shahdol is Located on . It has an average eleva ...

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (; ; ) is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and the largest city is Indore, Indore. Other major cities includes Gwalior, Jabalpur, and Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, Sagar. Madhya Pradesh is the List of states and union te ...

. Stone idols of

Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions w ...

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, and the god of preservation ( ...

and other incarnations can be seen here. The museum built near the temple is open daily from 9 am to 5 pm except Mondays.

History

The foundation stone of this temple was laid in the year 1960 by the former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Dr. Kailashnath Katju and the inauguration was done in the year 1964 by the Chief Minister

Dwarka Prasad Mishra Dwarka Prasad Mishra (5 August 1901 – 31 May 1988) was an Indian politician, writer and journalist. He was a member of the Indian National Congress and served as the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh for two terms during the 1960s. An Indian ...

Description

The Birla Mandir established five decades ago on Arera Hill in Bhopal has been a centre of religious faith for years. The beautiful idols of

Lord Vishnu Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation (sattva). Vish ...

and

Goddess Lakshmi Lakshmi (; , , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, , ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism, revered as the goddess of wealth, fortune, prosperity, beauty, fertility, sovereignty, and abundance. She along with Parvat ...

installed in the temple are attracting devotees towards it. Spread over about 7-8 acres of hilly area, the fame of this temple has spread in various cities of the country and the state. Inside the temple, the carvings of various mythological scenes on marble are not only worth seeing, but teachings from the

Bhagavad Gita The Bhagavad Gita (; ), often referred to as the Gita (), is a Hindu texts, Hindu scripture, dated to the second or first century BCE, which forms part of the Hindu epic, epic poem Mahabharata. The Gita is a synthesis of various strands of Ind ...

and

Ramayana The ''Ramayana'' (; ), also known as ''Valmiki Ramayana'', as traditionally attributed to Valmiki, is a smriti text (also described as a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic) from ancient India, one of the two important epics ...

are also inscribed on them. Apart from the idols of Vishnu and Lakshmi, the idol of

is situated on one side and that of Maa Jagdamba on the other.

Hanuman Hanuman (; , ), also known as Maruti, Bajrangabali, and Anjaneya, is a deity in Hinduism, revered as a divine ''vanara'', and a devoted companion of the deity Rama. Central to the ''Ramayana'', Hanuman is celebrated for his unwavering devotio ...

and

Shivling A lingam ( , lit. "sign, symbol or mark"), sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva in Shaivism. The word ''lingam'' is found in the Upanishads and epic literature, wher ...

are established in the temple premises. The huge conch shell in front of the main entrance of the temple is also worth seeing. At the time of the establishment of the temple, former Chief Minister Kailash Nath had given land to the Birla family to establish an industry in the city and also put a condition that they should build a grand and huge temple in this inaccessible hilly area. At the time of the inauguration of the temple, a huge Vishnu Mahayagya was also organized here, in which many scholars and religious scholars participated. Even today, this temple is the main center of public faith. On

Janmashtami Krishna Janmashtami (), also known simply as Krishnashtami, Janmashtami, or Gokulashtami, is an annual Hindu festival that celebrates the birth of Krishna, the eighth avatar of Vishnu. In certain Hindu texts, such as the ''Gita Govinda' ...

, the main event of

Lord Krishna Krishna (; Sanskrit: कृष्ण, ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme God in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is wi ...

's birth is organized here, in which a large number of devotees participate and worship Vishnu.

References

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External links

Places of interest in nearby Bhopal
Temples in India Birla Mandir

History

Description

See also

References

External links