PM Modi to inaugurate BAPS temple in UAE: Its special features, architecture, significance

What is BAPS?

The temple has been built by the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), a denomination of the Swaminarayan Sampradaya, a Vaishnav sect of Hinduism.

BAPS has a network of around 1,550 temples across the world, including the Akshardham temples in New Delhi and Gandhinagar, and Swaminarayan temples in London, Houston, Chicago, Atlanta, Toronto, Los Angeles, and Nairobi.

It also runs 3,850 centres and 17,000 weekly assemblies globally.

How did the demand for such a temple come up? Does Abu Dhabi have a big Swaminarayan community?

A BAPS spokesperson said Pramukh Swami Maharaj, the tenth spiritual guru and head of the sect, on April 5, 1997 had envisioned a Hindu temple in the desert sands of Abu Dhabi which could bring countries, communities and cultures together.

“In addition to this was the need of the local Indian community to have a significant place of worship,” the spokesperson added.

The Indian diaspora is almost 3.3-million strong in UAE, a huge percentage of the country’s population. Of these, some 150 to 200 families are BAPS Swaminarayan devotees.

What are the features of the temple?

The Abu Dhabi temple is a traditional stone Hindu temple with seven shikhars. Built in the traditional Nagar style, the temple’s front panel depicts universal values, stories of harmony from different cultures, Hindu spiritual leaders and avatars.

Spread over 27 acres, the temple complex is on 13.5 acres, with a parking area of 13.5 acres that can accommodate around 1,400 cars and 50 buses. The 13.5 acres of land was gifted by Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the UAE in 2019.

The height of the temple is 108 ft, length 262 ft and width 180 ft. While the external facade uses pink sandstone from Rajasthan, the interior uses Italian marbles. A total of 20,000 tonnes of stones and marble was shipped in 700 containers for the temple. More than Rs 700 crore was spent on the temple’s construction.

The temple has two central domes, Dome of Harmony and Dome of Peace, emphasising human coexistence through the carvings of earth, water, fire, air, and plants.

A Wall of Harmony, one of the largest 3D-printed walls in the UAE, features a video showcasing key milestones of the temple’s construction. The word ‘harmony’ has been written in 30 different ancient and modern languages.

The seven shikhars (spires) are representative of the seven Emirates of the UAE.

Other amenities include an assembly hall with a capacity of 3,000 people, a community centre, exhibitions, classrooms, and a majlis venue.

Who can visit the temple?

Like all BAPS temples around the world, it is open to everyone.

What are the key architectural features?

The temple was judged the Best Mechanical Project of the Year 2019 at the MEP Middle East Awards, and the Best Interior Design Concept of the Year 2020.

Among the key architectural features are 96 bells and gaumukhs installed around the path leading to the temple. These 96 bells are a tribute to Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s 96 years of life. Nano tiles have been used, which will be comfortable for visitors to walk on even in the hot weather.

On the top left of the temple is a stone carving of the scene of Pramukh Swami Maharaj envisioning the temple in Abu Dhabi in 1997.

No ferrous material (which is more vulnerable to corrosion) has been used in the temple.

While many different types of pillars can be seen in the temple, such as circular and hexagonal, there is a special pillar, called the ‘Pillar of pillars’, which has around 1,400 small pillars carved into it.

Buildings surrounding the temple are modern and monolithic, with their colour resembling sand dunes.

Deities from all four corners of India have been featured in the temple. These include Lord Ram, Sita, Lakshman and Hanuman, Lord Shiv, Parvati, Ganpati, Kartikeya, Lord Jagannath, Lord Radha-Krishna, Akshar-Purushottam Maharaj (Bhagwan Swaminarayan and Gunatitanand Swami), Tirupati Balaji and Padmavati and Lord Ayappa.

The temple also has some special features, like a ‘holy river’ surrounding it, for which waters from Ganga and Yamuna have been brought in. The river Saraswati has been depicted in the form of white light. A Varanasi-like ghat has been created where the ‘Ganga’ passes.

Apart from 15 value tales from Indian civilisation, stories from the Maya civilisation, Aztec civilisation, Egyptian civilisation, Arabic civilisation, European civilisation, Chinese civilisation and African civilisation have been depicted.

What is the significance of the temple?

A BAPS spokesperson said, “A Muslim king donated land for a Hindu Mandir, where the lead architect is a Catholic Christian, the project manager a Sikh, the foundational designer a Buddhist, the construction company a Parsi group, and the director comes from the Jain tradition.”

Gujarat, especially Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar, has recently seen increasing interest from and presence of realtors from the UAE.

Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, was the chief guest for the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2024 held in January in Gandhinagar, where PM Modi personally received him at the Sardar Vallabhbhai International Airport in Ahmedabad.

When PM Modi reached UAE on Tuesday (February 13), he was received at the airport by President Zayed, and the two leaders hugged each other.