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City & Village Tours: 0845 812 5000 info@cityandvillagetours.com
Yogesh Patel is a spokesperson for the Mandir and he
was one of the volunteers who helped build the temple.
He says that:
The architecture of the temple is evolved from nature.
In the old days, wise old men used to go to the mountains
to meditate and be at one with God. The peace that they
found there, they wanted to bring back to the towns and
villages; so they built temples. The shrines represent
caves, the pillars trees and the pinnacles the mountain
peaks.
Each day there are five services called
arti
. Recordings
of Indian music and ritual chanting heralds the arrival of
the monks or sadhus who unfold wooden doors revealing
golden shrines full of vivid colours, orange, green and
scarlet, that almost take the breath away in this otherwise
pure white space. Central is the figure of Bhagwan
Swaminarayan and to either side of him are statues of
the Swamis who followed him both literally and
chronologically. The sadhus wave lamps of lighted wicks
in front of each murti and prostrate themselves. And
that’s it, quite brief compared to Christian services and
once the sadhus have done their bit the congregation file
past the shrines, chanting mantras, touching the steps on
which the murti stand and bowing to them.
Even bearing in mind how different both building and
worshippers look I can’t help but be reminded of the
scene in any traditional Roman Catholic church in Spain.
Within half an hour of the sadhus appearing the doors are
closed but life-size photographs of the murti are propped
in front and images of the murti dressed in changing and
splendid garb are posted on the Mandir website every day.
Next door to the Mandir is the
haveli
or community centre –
a venue for football, badminton, yoga and on Saturdays
prayer meetings attended by 2000 people. The
haveli
is
itself an ornate construction of Burmese teak decorated
with intricate carvings of peacocks, elephants and lotus
flowers. It also houses a café and a permanent exhibition -
Understanding Hinduism and next door to the Mandir is the
Swaminarayan School – an impressive 40th in the 2012
Top 100 Schools for GSCE Results in the UK – one place
above Eton College!
Soon thousands of people will come here from all over the
UK as they do every November for the Diwali celebrations.
Many will bring their account books to be blessed at what
is, in effect, the Hindu New Year celebrations. Charles and
Camilla were invited one year with the Prince calling it
“one of the most positive forces that bind the country
together”
Visit the Mandir as part of City & Village Tours
Cosmopolitan London
tour.
This entertaining day examines patterns of
migration to a City founded by the Italians and
includes visits to Spitalfields and China Town.
Read about the tour on page 16.
Bookings & Enquiries 0845 812 5000