A Hindu temple or mandir is a construction designed to convey human beings and gods collectively, utilizing symbolism to precise the concepts and beliefs of Hinduism.[2] The symbolism and construction of a Hindu temple are rooted in Vedic traditions.[2] A temple incorporates all components of Hindu cosmos – presenting the great, the evil and the human, in addition to the weather of Hindu sense of cyclic time and the essence of life – symbolically presenting dharma, kama, artha, moksa, and karma.[3][4]
The religious ideas symbolically represented in Hindu temples are given within the historical Sanskrit texts of India (for instance, Vedas and Upanishads), whereas their structural guidelines are described in varied historical Sanskrit treatises on structure (Brhat Samhita, Vastu Sastras).[5][6] The format, the motifs, the plan and the constructing course of recite historical rituals, geometric symbolisms, and replicate beliefs and values innate inside varied faculties of Hinduism.[2] A Hindu temple is a religious vacation spot for a lot of Hindus, in addition to landmarks round which historical arts, group celebrations and economic system have flourished.[7][8]
Hindu temples are available in many kinds, are located in various places, deploy completely different development strategies and are tailored to completely different deities and regional beliefs,[9] but nearly all of them share sure core concepts, symbolism and themes. They’re present in South Asia notably India and Nepal, in southeast Asian international locations resembling Cambodia, Vietnam and islands of Indonesia and Malaysia[10][11] and international locations resembling Fiji, Mauritius, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, the Caribbean, Suriname, South Africa, Europe and North America with a major Hindu group.[12] The present state and outer look of Hindu temples replicate arts, supplies and designs as they developed over a number of millennia; additionally they replicate the impact of conflicts between Hinduism and Islam because the 12th century.[13] The Swaminarayanan Akshardham in Robbinsville, New Jersey, United States, throughout the New York Metropolis Metropolitan Space, was inaugurated in 2014 because the world’s largest Hindu temple.[1]
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