A country with an ancient history, deep national traditions, many religions and rituals - India is today considered one of the most interesting places on the planet. The Indian culture of antiquity has given rise to a number of wonderful, completely unique temples, among which there are buildings with a thousand-year past and temples erected during the Middle Ages. There are also quite modern masterpieces built in the second half of the 20th century. Without exception, all the temples of India have lasting religious value, they contain shrines revered by the Indian people.
Undoubtedly, all the temples of India begin with the
Taj Mahal Palace-Mausoleum
, built in the 17th century by Shah Jahan for the untimely departed wife, whom he loved more than his life. Allah gave the Shah and the beautiful Mumtaz 17 happy years of marriage, but at the birth of the last child, the woman died. For more than twenty years, the palace was built in Agra from expensive translucent marble, precious stones and pearls. Huge
swing doors were made of pure silver, the inner chambers breathed oriental luxury. After his death, Shah Jahan was buried next to his beloved Mumtaz. The Taj Mahal is the main temple in India, but there are many more masterpieces worthy of attention.
In the Indian city of Armitzar, right in the middle of the
holy lake of the same name, stands the golden temple of Harmandir Sahib - the shrine of the Sikhs. The approaching pilgrims, before entering, perform the obligatory ritual of immersion in the waters of Armittsar. Sikhs are religiously tolerant enough, therefore, a representative of any religion is allowed to enter their temple, but only after washing their feet. At the entrance you must also wear a hat. The temple is richly decorated with gold plates and many precious stones both outside and inside.
The stunning temple complex is located in the Indian village of Ellora in the state of Maharashtra. The temples of India in Ellora united three religions: Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism. In total, the complex has 34 monasteries in which monks have been living for centuries. And the most significant in the complex of Ellora has always been and remains common to all religions, carved in a monolithic rock, the Kailasanath temple is the abode of Shiva. This temple has been carved over a hundred years by several generations of masons.
In the Indian state of Orissa, in the city of Puri, is the temple of Jagannatha - the deity personifying Krishna. This temple is extremely isolated; entry into it is possible only for Hindus. The Hindu of any other religion cannot enter, and Europeans even more so. Hindus have a suspicion that people of the white race have long dreamed of stealing a wooden statue of Jagannath from the temple. In order to see this unique attraction, just climb onto the roof of a building nearby. And the deity of Jagannatha and other gods from the temple can be observed on the days of the chariot festival, which takes place in Puri every year.
The temples of India are also reflected in the state of Madhya Pradesh - a wonderful complex called Khajuraho. It consists of 22 buildings, some of which are dedicated to the god Shiva. One of the temples - Kandarya-Mahadeva - began to be built in the 9th century and was built for about a hundred years. It so happened that after two hundred years the temple was forgotten and for a long 700 years it disappeared into the dense Indian jungle. When the European colonialists discovered the temple, they tried not to advertise their find, since all the walls of the building were covered with sculptures of a frankly erotic nature. However, at present Kandarya-Mahadeva is one of the most visited temples.
Vishwanath Kashi Temple (meaning the
Golden Temple) is located on the banks of the Ganges in the city of Varanasi. In the temple is one of the shrines of the god Shiva. All Hindus of the country dream of getting into the Kashi temple, it is impossible for a non-Hindu to get into the temple, with this it is very strict. Hindus consider bathing in the Ganges, followed by a visit to the temple, the possibility of a complete cleansing of the soul. Kashi Viswanath is very richly decorated with real gold. About a ton of precious metal was spent on numerous domes.
And the magnificent
Lotus Temple, the Prayer House in Delhi. A masterpiece of sacred architecture of the second half of the 20th century. It is a huge lotus flower of 27 petals, built of white marble. The temple is surrounded by 9 pools. At the entrance of each visitor, there is a feeling of pacification, I want to talk in a whisper, even thoughts do not arise to get the camera and click the shutter. There is a harmony of unity with the Lotus Temple. I want this feeling to last as long as possible.
The temples of ancient India do not end there, but more than one article will be required to fully describe them.