Lotus Temple

Description

The Lotus Temple lies south of New Delhi and is the pride of the Baha'i community; a faith that welcomes people from every religion. Expressionist in style and spectacular in its architectural and structural ingenuity, the House of Worship takes its inspiration from the exquisite lotus flower - a symbol of beauty, purity and divinity intimately associated with worship and a common strand running through the symbolism of many religions in India as well as their international sects and manifestations.

Commissioned, 1976

Opened, Dec 24, 1986

In 1986, the Lotus Temple was dedicated and opened to both practitioners of the Bahá'í Faith and the general public.

Designations

UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2013

Awards

American Institute of Architects Honor Award for Architecture in 1987 Award for Excellence in Concrete - Publicly Funded Project (American Concrete Institute) in 1990

Factoids

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2020- The temple is featured on a 6.50 rupee postage stamp in India.

2000- It is the first temple in the national capital that makes use of solar power.

Ardishir Rustampur, a Bahai follower from Hyderabad in the Sindh province of Pakistan, donated his entire savings to fund the land purchase of the temple.

current

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current Images

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Nine reflecting pools surround the building, their form suggesting the leaves of the lotus.

The Lotus Temple, expressionist in style and spectacular in its architectural and structural ingenuity

Surrounded by lush green landscaped gardens, this lotus-inspired structure spreads across 26 acres of land.

The entire structural load of the temple's interior is supported by nine arches spread around the central hall

The reinforced-concrete petals cladded by white marble panels accentuating the surface profile

The Interpretation Centre sits modestly at one corner of the site cladded with red sandstone

The white marble panels perfectly laid to fit the surface profiles and patterns related to the structure's geometry.

Light filters into the central hall through the skylights in the same way as the lotus flower

The symbol 'Greatest Name' set at the top of the temple

The concept of unity as displayed in the Interpretation Centre of Lotus Temple

1976 - Commissioned

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1976 - Commissioned - Images

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The complexity of the structure is conceived using the arcaded construction system.

White marble covers the interior floors, while the insides of the petals are bush-hammered concrete.

The interior of the structure is revealed with the precast ribbed roof exposed in the worship spaces.

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