In India, we are very used to seeing and visiting temples. We have beautiful temples in our country. But do we know about some very gorgeous and well-crafted temples outside India? Let’s take a look at some.
Temples outside India
Pashupatinath Temple, Nepal
Originally constructed in 753 AD, this Shiva temple was built by King Jayadev. It is known to be the oldest Hindu temple in Kathmandu, Nepal. Its architecture is pretty different from the Indian temple architectures. With a Nepalese pagoda style of architecture, it has four entries which are covered with silver sheets.
Katasraj Temple In Chakwal, Pakistan
One of the very old temples, this is said to be existing since the times of Mahabharata. It is said that during the time of exile, Pandavas, took refuge in this temple. The legend states that when Sati died, Lord Shiva cried so much that two pools were formed. One was in Pushkar and other is here in Katasraj temple.
Tanah Lot Temple, Indonesia
Constructed on a large rock, on the seashore, this temple is the most famous in Bali. With the waves crashing all around it, Tanah lot temple is part of the 7 sea temples on the coast of Bali.
Arulmigu Sri Rajakaliamman Glass Temple, Tebrau, Malaysia
This is the only Hindu glass temple in the world which was built in 1922 in Malaysia. With rudraksha beads embedded in the wall, the temple has a hut-like structure. It has entirely mosaic and glass interiors. Dedicated to Lord Shiva, the temple has 10 gold finished scriptures. It also has its name in Malaysia book of records.
Angkor Wat, Cambodia
Originally addressed as the ‘’varah-vishnulok’’, this temple was attributed to Lord Vishnu. 14th century onwards, it hosted both Buddhist and Hindu religious symbols. This was built in 12th century by King Suryavarman. This temple is known to be the largest Hindu temple outside India.
15 Incredible Things To Know About Angkor Wat – An Age-Old Vishnu Temple in Cambodia
Prambanan Temple, Indonesia
This temple built in Java is the largest Hindu temple in Indonesia and SE Asia. It was built in the 9th century. Prambanan temple is dedicated to three devtas (lords) – Brahma, Vishnu, and Mahesh. Among the three Lords, Lord Shiva’s (Mahesh) temple is the biggest and is built at the center. The temple has also been preserved by UNESCO.
Sri Subramaniar Swamy Devasthanam, Malaysia
Standing 42.7 meters in height, this temple has one of the tallest statues of Lord Murugan. Located near Kuala Lumpur, it is also called as Batu Caves. Attracting a large number of pilgrims, it is a series of limestone caves. This temple was built in 1890 and it is a major tourist attraction.
Shri Venkateswara Temple, Birmingham, U.K
Attributed and dedicated to the avatar of Lord Vishnu known as Balaji, this temple opened in 2006. The temple was built in resemblance to the famous Tirupati Balaji Temple in India. Also, this was the first temple ever built of Lord Balaji.
New Vrindaban Temple, USA
Built-in 1979 and called as the ‘palace of gold’, this temple is part of the ISKCON international community of West Virginia. The temple is named after the famous city Vrindavan in India. Absolutely adored by the visitors, this temple was addressed as ‘’almost heaven’’ by The Washington Post.
Shri Kali Temple, Burma
The Kali temple is known for its beautiful and unique architecture and stone carvings of the many Hindu Gods. This was built in 1871 by Tamil migrants when Burma was still part of British India. The temple is located in Yangon which has a large Indian population. Yangon is also known as little India because of the number of Indians living in the area.
Mukti Gupteshwar temple, Minto Australia
It is a 13th and last jyotirlinga. Built in the year 1999, it was a gift to Australia by the then king of Nepal Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev. As per the scriptures, this Jyotirlinga’s construction had to be in the southern hemisphere, which symbolized the mouth of a snake. Therefore Australia was chosen. It is the only cave temple built by man. The temple also houses the replicas of other 12 jyotirlinga’s along with 1128 small temples of Lord Shiva. Inside there is a 10-meter deep vault where there are two million notes written by devotees hands saying ‘Om Namah Shivaya’.
Durban Hindu temple – South Africa
It is believed to be the oldest Hindu temple that was established by the first Indian immigrants I 1875. The temple was also declared a national monument of South Africa in the year 1980. It houses the temples of Lord Shiva, Draupadi, and Mariamman.
Sri Muthumariamman Temple, Hannover
It is the largest temple situated in North Germany. It is a three storey temple. Muthumariamman is south Indian goddess of good health and rain. She is said to be the manifestation of Hindu deity Parvati. The temple also houses handcraft idols of Ganesha, Navagraha (personification of the nine planets) and Murugan that was sent from India.
If You don’t want to miss our next Post then Like and Follow MetroSaga on Facebook and Instagram or simply download our Android App
You can also Subscribe to MetroSaga for newsletters.
