Birla Mandir (Hyderabad)

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Birla Mandir is one of the foremost tourist attractions in Hyderabad. Surely no trip to the city is complete without a visit to this beautiful temple. The best thing about this Birla Temple is that it is open to people of all religious faiths. At the very entrance of the temple there is a brass memorial welcoming everyone.

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An enchanting temple dedicated to Lord Venkateswara, the Birla Mandir of Hyderabad, India stands in its entire splendor on the hilltop of Kala Pahad. Made of pure white marble from Rajasthan, the Birla Mandir overlooks the serene and placid waters of the Hussain Sagar Lake. The famous Birla industrialist who had built a large number of temples all over India built the Birla temple of Hyderabad. They finished building the Birla Mandir of Hyderabad within a time span of ten years. The magnificent shrine offers a wonderfully breath-taking view of the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad.

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The Birla Mandir was built by Raja Baldev Birla. In the year 1938, the temple was inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi. There is a very interesting anecdote. At that point of time, the social evil of Untouchability was like a poisonous sore and needed to be mitigated. Everyone was not given the permission to enter the premises of temples. Gandhi placed the condition that he would inaugurate the temple only if people belonging to all strata of the society were permitted to offer their prayers in the temple.

As you enter the temple you can see the ‘Gopuram’ or the pyramid shaped temple top, which is a characteristic feature of South Indian temples. The tower situated at the top of the principal deity called the Jagadananda vimanam is again built in the Orissan style. The flagstaff of the temple is made up of brass, and reaches to a staggering height of 42 feet.

Lakshmi Narayan Temple – (Birla Mandir, Delhi)

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The Lakshmi Narayan Temple or the Birla Temple as it is popularly known enshrines Lord Vishnu – the preserver of the Hindu Trinity. The Temple is one of the major attractions of the capital city – Delhi. The divine tranquility of the temple is interrupted only by the melodious kirtans that echoes in the sanctum sanctorum. The temple enshrines almost all the deities of the Hindu Pantheon. Situated at the heart of the cit, this is one of the major tourist and pilgrim destinations of Delhi. Located in the heart of the city of New Delhi, the Lakshmi Narayan Temple is one of the major tourist attractions of the city. Enchantingly carved depicting some of the finest gems of Hindu theology, the Lakshmi Narayan Temple was built in 1938 by Raja Baldev Das and is situated on the western portion of Connaught Place, one of the most important areas of the city of New Delhi.

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The temple has an immense historical significance as well. Built after a period of 6 years, the temple was inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi who laid down the condition, that the temple was not to be barred for entry to anyone on the basis of caste and every individual especially the untouchables would have as much a right of entry to its sacred grounds as people from other castes. Built by the Birla family of industrialists, one of the best-known families of India, the temple is also known as the Birla Temple.

The presiding deity of the temple is Lord Vishnu, Hinduism’s emblem of wealth and prosperity. However, the Birla Temple is also home to a number of other shrines dedicated to deities like Lord Shiva, Lord Ganesha and Hanuman. The Vedic texts are also enshrined in the temple which also houses a Buddha temple inside its premises. In the northern portion of the temple lies the Geeta Bhavan, dedicated to Lord Krishna. Though almost all the major Hindu festivals are celebrated with equal fervor in the temple yet even among these, Krishna Janmashtami and Deepawali are considered to be of immense importance.

Jama Masjid (Delhi)

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The Jama Masjid, the Friday congregational mosque, in Delhi is the largest and glorious mosque in India. It was the last architectural extravaganza of the Mughal Emperor, Shahjahan built in the year 1656 AD with the help of 5,000 craftsmen. It was made across the road from the Red Fort. The mosque is also known as Masjid-I-Jahanuma, which means ‘mosque commanding view of the world’. The measurement of the mosque is 65 m X 35 m while the courtyard is forms an area of 100 n square. The mosque has the capacity to hold as many as 25,000 devotees. The Lal Qila or the Red Fort stand towards the east of the mosque.

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The Jama Masjid was designed as the main mosque of Shahjahan, designed by Ostad Khalil, A brilliant Mughal Architecturer. It stands on one of the two hills, Bho Jhala in the Mughal capital, Shahjahanabad. The mosque has three gateways, four towers and two minarets. It is constructed with alternate use of vertical strips of red sandstone and white marble. The white marble has been used extensively in the three domes and has been inlaid with stripes of black. The structure was situated on a high platform so that its magnificent facade would be visible from all the neighboring areas. The main prayer hall on the west is decorated by a series of high cusped arches, which stand on 260 pillars. These pillars support 15 marble domes at various elevations. The imposing gateways are approached through a broad flight of steps in the north and the south. The hallmarks of this famous mosque are the wide staircases and arched gateways.

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The tower is made up of five distinguished storeys, each pronounced by a protruding balcony. Beautiful calligraphy embellishes its adjacent buildings. The first three storeys of the tower are made of red sandstone, the fourth one, while the fifth is again of sandstone. The closet in the North gate of the mosque contains a collection of Muhammad’s relics – the Quran written on deerskin, a red beard-hair of the prophet, his sandals and his footprint, embedded in a marble slab, all of which are still preserved.

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The premises of the south minaret are 1076 sq ft wide where the people assemble for the namaaz. The cost for building the mosque was approximately Rupees 10 crores. It was the replica of the Moti Masjid at Red Fort in Agra. It is said that the walls of the mosque were tilted at a certain angle so that at the time of an earthquake, the walls do not collapse in the courtyard but outwards. The Jama Masjid combines the best of he Hindu and Islamic styles of architecture. The main entrance on the eastern side was probably used by the emperors. It remains close on the weekdays.