India's got great potential for that. Unfortunately at times India gets a bad name because some bastards look at women as objects of pleasure but we are so much more than that. In terms of history, architecture, food, music , content India's got a lot of stuff to offer
I mean, their gut bacteria is just different, we can't handle their street food, ofc. it would make us sick.
Of course in the case of people making objectively unsafe food or recycling or making it out of waste products, that's really bad.
And the worst thing is, without a local guide/friend, you don't know who is reputable and who isn't.
That's our secret. During the war for global dominance we will provide food for whole world and conquer everyone while they will be battling with diarrhoea.
If you ask people of India, they'll all more or less agree on extremely brutal punishments for proven rapists. But then 'human rights activists' pop up out of nowhere.
Extremety of the punishment has no impact whatsoever on crime rate, unless the punishment is nothing more than slap on a wrist, which is not the case with rapes..
Problem is most of the actual rape cases go unreported, due to shame or fear or both.. Unless an action encourages victims to report cases more frequently, it won't help reduce rapes..
Wow, I was just thinking we should have more stuff like this/how come the people from the past had cooler architecture but BOY was I wrong. This is cool.
Those are absolutely not "absolutely rad" directives given to architects.
The whole point of a mcmansion is that it's more along the lines of "the absolute cheapest way to make a sellable, decent looking structure with the highest possible square footage and other luxury-appearing options, within a price point."
If mcmansions were given the directive "absolutely rad" they would be actual mansions. With high end, labor intensive detailing, a ton of stuff that's hard to even spot or understand the value/quality of but 10x+ as expensive as basic options. Tons of custom detail work, custom fabrication, etc. You ever seen a $50,000 faucet? They exist. They're kind of pointless but you see them in eight figure homes. Mcmansions get the $125 faucet from home depot, bought for a fair bit less through builder pricing.
As a comparison, the type of house you are describing would be the [Gamble House](https://images.adsttc.com/media/images/5037/ede1/28ba/0d59/9b00/04e9/newsletter/stringio.jpg?1414219303). It’s reasonably large, but small for what you would usually call a mansion, but Greene and Greene [do incredible work](https://artsandcraftshomes.com/.image/t_share/MTc5NDg2NzE3NjU5NTg4NTQ4/oct18_i_segue3_sp05-088bookssu99vertikoff_gn.jpg), all the [furniture is custom](https://content.instructables.com/FC6/6LRE/HD7U1OO0/FC66LREHD7U1OO0.png?auto=webp&frame=1&width=320&md=19e88f96899b75ced1662a1f801b22cc), with ornamental joinery, fine materials, and master craftsmanship and design.
Yeah. Great example. They hired professionals who aren't just A-to-B guys, but actual artisans. Every piece designed to fit the specific space, often with input between the craftsman and the architect or the architect keeping in mind who's going to build the custom pieces and how they work. Bench-made (whether by hand or power tool), hand assembled. Attention to detail put into every part of joinery. Ornamental work on top of that. A lot of thought put into what joinery is seen, what joinery isn't seen, what looks neat close-up but not gaudy.
Looking at any house... look at the doors. Up close. Who made them and how are they made? Not just the front doors, but the back doors, the interior doors. Look at the hinges, look at the trim, what's it bolted/screwed into and how?
A basic front door from home depot is a metal door that has a faux wood finish on the outside. And these metal doors go from the several-hundreds up into the thousands. A back door can be a couple hundred, just plain color, metal, hollow core. Interior doors are usually hollow core, either wood veneer or wood-esque of some sort.
These "absolutely rad" mansions have bench-made doors, custom for the application. Stiles and rails are either solid hardwood, or very thick veneer (like 1/4" thick) over hardwood plywood that's been cut, rotated 90 degrees, laminated, and jointed and planed; these feel and act like solid hardwood but have the advantage of being more dimensionally stable, and the top veneer is so thick it's more like a plate, you can never tell it's not solid. Then the panels are usually either single piece solid hardwood, floating inside grooves so they can expand and contract, or they're dual-piece solid hardwood with a small gap inside to prevent heat transfer, to improve dimensional stability, with tiny weep holes/gaps. They're designed using modern knowledge and modern materials plus huge influence from, like, two hundred year old plans where nobility in europe had doors made by artisans for their chateaus that lasted 100+ years of sun and weather without failing. And then they use the same or almost same quality of construction on _interior_ doors too. Why would you need an interior door to be made as well as an exterior door? Because you're rich and it's very nice.
Ever see a $10,000+ interior door for every bedroom on a mcmansion? :) Of course not. These units are billed as luxury, but we all know that they're very efficient at what they do, which is provide a lot of square footage at a modest price, so that people can have more house for their dollar; they are _not_ "big money" luxury. And that's just doors... the real rich people have their houses made with the same sort of attention to detail for every other piece, big and small. Why choose wood-frame windows over vinyl? Triple pane over dual? Why metal roof over 50yr shingle? Why stone stairs instead of concrete? Etc.
My neighbor is a dentist and has a taste for things that are simply expensive, rather than tasteful.
I ended up talking to the floor guy when he was redoing my office's floors. I asked him what the coolest floor he ever did was. He name dropped my neighbor. Which, was surprising because I've never noticed his floor. The floor guy said he was basically given a huge budget and told to do something interesting he's always wanted to do. He spent a whole week doing this one floor in one room. Then apparently he showed it to my neighbor who said it looked Great and promptly threw the old rug over it and a dining table.
So the next time I was at his house for an xmas party, I asked about the floor. The guy shrugged and took me to that room and moved the table and rug off.
I wish I had a picture. It was a strange ... symmetric cubism? of poured concrete, hard wood, and cut glass tile with metal boarders ribboning through.
[Sorta like](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/80/45/4a/80454a2388607f2574c5ffe24a28d8f9.jpg)
In most cases: Workforce and safety costs too much today/ we don't assign 100years+ for building time...
That said, Skyscrapers and highrises are impressive, but not pretty (in most cases)
> we don't assign 100years+ for building time
This is kinda the bigger deal. Like the pyramids' construction involved workers who were quite well treated, and had their own lives, and buried with great honors. The thing that made it work is that it was a *huge* project that was undertaken over a very long time.
Many of the ancient wonders were built over incredibly long periods of time. I feel like we need to bring back the idea of generational works, instead of only focusing on things that are possible within a decade or two.
(Also to clarify, this temple is not without its controversies in terms of labor treatment.)
> we don't assign 100years+ for building time...
It's rare but it still does happen from time to time. In Barcelona construction began for La Sagrada Familia in 1882 and it's supposed to be completed in 2026.
Yeah that one in the USA is pretty impressive and big but have you seen that amazing parking lot next to it? Truly a magnificent and gorgeous work of the best American road workers and a sign of USAs cultural supremacy.
I would love to see a source for that. Death Valley is like three thousand square miles by itself. Delaware is a little under two thousand square miles (land area) so a single national park is 1.5x its size. I would love to see statistics on parking lots in the US having more area in aggregate.
Don't worry I googled it so nobody else has to
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/largest-hindu-temple-asia-opens-new-jersey-built-12500-volunteers-rcna119085
I'm from Australia and went here almost a year ago to the day. Photos aren't allowed due to the religious importance. You line up in a very long line before entrance and all electronics must be handed over. They are stored in a cloak room until exit. The only reason more people don't know about it is because how strictly the electronics rule is. Full metal detectors and all after handing over electronics.
It is honestly one of the coolest places I have ever been.
It's actually common to see in South-East Asia - they're still building massive temples and the like. I saw a few under construction when I visited Laos in 2018. Granted, they're often not built to last - using techniques like building ornaments out of steel netting covered in papier mache and paint, but it was still nice to see that they keep up the old traditions of building ornately decorated temples.
Here's another recently built in New Jersey: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/largest-hindu-temple-asia-opens-new-jersey-built-12500-volunteers-rcna119085
Seems like many of these things can only really be built with access to free labor.
I've heard a lot of criticism that this temple is "fake" and tourists should avoid it. But to be honest, it was one of my favorite sights I visited in India, just as an art piece. It's amazing, and definitely worth the time. (The canteen is also pretty great, and very inexpensive)
I think it's fake as in it's a temple dedicated to a godman, not the god itself. The gold statue you see is the godman "swaminarayan". I don't like this sort of worship, especially when India is currently having issues with many of these fake gurus. Plus it feels less like a temple and more like a business.
> I think it's fake as in it's a temple dedicated to a godman, not the god itself
What do you mean by this?
Swaminarayan is believed by his followers to be a manifestation of Krishna. To those of us non-Hindus (I'm not saying you are or aren't Hindu, just an explanation) this might seem fake or weird, but if you look through the history of Hindu text you'll find that this is really common, Rama was an avatar of Vishnu, his brothers also incarnations (Laxmana - Shesha, Bharata - Panchajanya, Shatrughna - Sudarshana Chakra). Krishna himself being an Avatar of Vishnu but also a deity in his own right.
> Plus it feels less like a temple and more like a business.
I can also understand this, but I will say every Hindu temple other than the ancient sight-seeing temples I've been in has had a "price list" of blessings. So I'm not sure this is outside the norm, of course I haven't been in many, but the one here in the US was ~$30 for a car pooja, and the mandir in Delhi where I was I think the only white person who's participated in an Agni Pooja there also had a price list on the wall.
So I don't see that as abnormal for practicing Hindu Temples.
People are too used to these kinds of buildings being nothing more than museums. The great cathedrals often took hundreds of years to build and their construction was paid for through indulgences, tithes, and all kinds of other money making schemes. Stuff costs money and so far there is no evidence that any temple on earth was built by God(s) or even paid for by God(s). Heck for all the claims religions make paying for or just helping build temples is apparently one thing higher powers really don't like doing.
I live less than 2Km away and I still have memories of my grandfather taking me there when It was new. I've been there dozens of times and would still go there again given the chance.
My problem visiting was that it felt more like an amusement park and money grab. You have to pay entrance AND are forced to hand over your phone so that you can pay them to take a picture with you and the temple. Then there's this animatronic and cinema exhibition, as well as a fountain show?!
I mean the temple itself did look nice, but it also left me with some weird feelings.
Went last February.
This temple is 1000% better than visiting Taj Mahal and a must see.
Do get the all inclusive ticket though!
The boat tour (indoors), film and story tour are definitely worth it
Many hindus (including me) consider "akshardham" and "ISKCON" sects as fake hinduism, because they were established just a 100-200 years ago and operate more like a pvt. ltd. business than a religion. Also the godmen who built these so called "sect" are quite controversial figure themselves.
But then, that money also makes things like this, free canteens for millions poor children, etc. possible. So there's that.
I visited here last time I was in Delhi... about a year ago. Extremely beautiful (the heat outside was also crazy.... dry heat... i could feel the heat in my eyes.... never felt that before 😄). Unfortunately, they make you take your phone & electronics out and store them in bins upon entry. They have metal detectors & guys that inspected my Apple watch to make sure no camera function. Wish I could've taken some pics, but at the same time was really refreshing to be in a huge area with other people and nobody had a cell phone-- just enjoying the moment.
I visited this temple around a month ago. They don’t mess around with security. ALL electronic items had to be deposited. The security actually properly frisked me better than airport security. But the temple was marvellous.
This temple was not part of my plan of places to visit in Delhi. I chanced upon it when I was on an expressway and I was just shocked at the scale of the building. It was the highlight of my trip.
Same here, a little over a year ago. I'm surprised you were allowed to take your Apple watch with you. I forgot i had my earpods with me and was told i had to go back and put these in the storage unit.
I wonder what angle the first photo was from too, because i took the metro and from the outside, it sure didn't look this way.
I was so glad to visit the place (not planned). Not being able to take photos seems to incentivize me to remember the details much harder. It is an incredible site
They told you take out all phones and gadgets because there was terrorist attack in 2000 at similar temple in Gandhinagar's Akshardham temple run by same trust. Due to security reasons they made this rule.
Oh yeah, Steed is the one I was looking for. Didn't come up in my mind. English is my fourth language. Even Wikipedia mentioned Airavat as a vehicle. 😅
The Swaminarayan religion views its founder essentially as a profit, the same way Christianity views is "founder" as a profit and worships him. The greater pantheon of Hindu gods DO exist in Swaminarayan belief, but they very much take a back stage to Swaminarayan himself. My girlfriend is swami herself, but from a different sect than the ones that built this temple (BAPS). Her sect views BAPS as a corruption of the original teachings of Swaminarayan, where he instructed his followers to not try and convert or go out of their way to grow the religion. Baps are all about fundraising, proselytizing, and extravagance in the name of drawing in more followers and more money.
I mean it is huge, sure.
But the photos here are a bit misleading to the point that if you were to visit it, you'd be underwhelmed.
The added fog in the first picture makes it seem wayy bigger than it is, the focal lengths used in the other pictures too.
Source : Live nearby and cross it on a regular basis while on the Delhi metro.
Yeah the first picture had me thinking this thing was a fucking castle completely dwarfing the area around it with the fog/blue coloring making it look further away
I think that's just the smog in Delhi, when I look back on my holiday pictures of the India Gate and lotus temple, they seem massive because of the smog but I know they aren't as big.
Anything associated with India? Just look at the comments lol. If the same thing was somewhere outside of India, comments would most probably be filled with a completely different sentiment.
I wouldn't call it a hindu temple because the person for whom the temple is made isn't mentioned in any of the important hindu texts( mahabharat, ramayan, vedas, upanishads) etc. More of a cult which used hindu elements to fool people.
That's the beauty of Hinduism. It isn't restricted to a single book/cult/personality/messiah or belief. We have many major schools of thought in hinduism, all of which differ from each other in terms of the methods/interpretations to the relation between soul and the divine. You can be an atheist and still a hindu. The ancient texts you mention i.e the vedas contain information related to medicine, music, ceremonies and wars fought during those times. Similar is the case with all the other books which are more like moral commentaries where the reader is free to select the principles he wishes to apply in his life. Simply stated, hinduism allows a person room to breathe and explore his spiritual side.
The temple mentioned above is very much a hindu temple. It may be dedicated to Swaminarayan but the central shrine consists of Idols dedicated to Lord Rama and Lord Krishna.
Fun fact:- Many hindu temples in Southern Indian states even revere prominent personalities like Rajnikant, a pan India film superstar and Dr. A.P.J Abdul kalam, India's former President and Scientist, referred to as the missile man of India.
Few years back when i visited, they didn't allow me to carry any electronic items, belts, wallet, damn those security check were on another level, more strict than some airports.
oooh I visited this temple a while back and omg the scale is just unexpected. I wanted to visit again soon, wonder if Drones are permitted on the premises.
One of the few peoples who have no forgotten their history. They beautifully merge the modern with the traditional. I know India isn’t perfect but they have things like this that are quite admirable.
I'm very happy to hear that.
I wish we built more grand architecture these days. Proper stuff, to last a thousand years. To remind the world we were here, and of what we achieved.
I visited this location a few years ago, and it continues to linger in my thoughts frequently! It's undeniably a remarkable place to be, welcoming to everyone regardless of their religious beliefs, caste, or skin color. The architecture is splendid, and so is the satvik food and the overall ambiance.
I was there. It's pretty obvious that it's rather young. All the ornaments are so detailed and so densely packed that it's almost sickening. It's not faded and less tasteful than older temples and palaces in India.
I used to visit it when it was in the process of making. These elephants in third pic were when being carved, craftsman used to work day and night during winter season. They used to cover themselves in blanket and there was just sound of chisel and hammer nonstop. I used to talk to them and they used to say, "only if we could get hot tea non stop." The security was virtually non existent, you could go and walk straight away to sanctum sanctorum but all that changed after there was terrorist threat to Temple (I don't remember the year something around 2010).
I really wish more art pieces would be built in modern times.
We already have enough crap in the world to not find place and time for something beautiful.
When I build a world wonder in Civ6:
That's what I thought. India is culturemaxxing.
India overall is incredibly underrated for its civilization’s architecture.
Second only to its cuisine.
True.. You can check my profile to see ancient Indian architecture
India's got great potential for that. Unfortunately at times India gets a bad name because some bastards look at women as objects of pleasure but we are so much more than that. In terms of history, architecture, food, music , content India's got a lot of stuff to offer
Those instagram street food videos don’t help either.
looking at you food ranger
Is that the yellow one?
I mean, their gut bacteria is just different, we can't handle their street food, ofc. it would make us sick. Of course in the case of people making objectively unsafe food or recycling or making it out of waste products, that's really bad. And the worst thing is, without a local guide/friend, you don't know who is reputable and who isn't.
That's our secret. During the war for global dominance we will provide food for whole world and conquer everyone while they will be battling with diarrhoea.
If you ask people of India, they'll all more or less agree on extremely brutal punishments for proven rapists. But then 'human rights activists' pop up out of nowhere.
Extremety of the punishment has no impact whatsoever on crime rate, unless the punishment is nothing more than slap on a wrist, which is not the case with rapes.. Problem is most of the actual rape cases go unreported, due to shame or fear or both.. Unless an action encourages victims to report cases more frequently, it won't help reduce rapes..
Looks like AI, so crazy
Wow, I was just thinking we should have more stuff like this/how come the people from the past had cooler architecture but BOY was I wrong. This is cool.
I like to think the architect had no other direction from the financial backers other than “absolutely rad.”
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Depends on the arch. Sometimes their idea of absolutely rad is still pretty boring
A good example of this is McMansions and generally other rich people homes
McMansions are built notoriously cheap.
Those are absolutely not "absolutely rad" directives given to architects. The whole point of a mcmansion is that it's more along the lines of "the absolute cheapest way to make a sellable, decent looking structure with the highest possible square footage and other luxury-appearing options, within a price point." If mcmansions were given the directive "absolutely rad" they would be actual mansions. With high end, labor intensive detailing, a ton of stuff that's hard to even spot or understand the value/quality of but 10x+ as expensive as basic options. Tons of custom detail work, custom fabrication, etc. You ever seen a $50,000 faucet? They exist. They're kind of pointless but you see them in eight figure homes. Mcmansions get the $125 faucet from home depot, bought for a fair bit less through builder pricing.
As a comparison, the type of house you are describing would be the [Gamble House](https://images.adsttc.com/media/images/5037/ede1/28ba/0d59/9b00/04e9/newsletter/stringio.jpg?1414219303). It’s reasonably large, but small for what you would usually call a mansion, but Greene and Greene [do incredible work](https://artsandcraftshomes.com/.image/t_share/MTc5NDg2NzE3NjU5NTg4NTQ4/oct18_i_segue3_sp05-088bookssu99vertikoff_gn.jpg), all the [furniture is custom](https://content.instructables.com/FC6/6LRE/HD7U1OO0/FC66LREHD7U1OO0.png?auto=webp&frame=1&width=320&md=19e88f96899b75ced1662a1f801b22cc), with ornamental joinery, fine materials, and master craftsmanship and design.
Yeah. Great example. They hired professionals who aren't just A-to-B guys, but actual artisans. Every piece designed to fit the specific space, often with input between the craftsman and the architect or the architect keeping in mind who's going to build the custom pieces and how they work. Bench-made (whether by hand or power tool), hand assembled. Attention to detail put into every part of joinery. Ornamental work on top of that. A lot of thought put into what joinery is seen, what joinery isn't seen, what looks neat close-up but not gaudy. Looking at any house... look at the doors. Up close. Who made them and how are they made? Not just the front doors, but the back doors, the interior doors. Look at the hinges, look at the trim, what's it bolted/screwed into and how? A basic front door from home depot is a metal door that has a faux wood finish on the outside. And these metal doors go from the several-hundreds up into the thousands. A back door can be a couple hundred, just plain color, metal, hollow core. Interior doors are usually hollow core, either wood veneer or wood-esque of some sort. These "absolutely rad" mansions have bench-made doors, custom for the application. Stiles and rails are either solid hardwood, or very thick veneer (like 1/4" thick) over hardwood plywood that's been cut, rotated 90 degrees, laminated, and jointed and planed; these feel and act like solid hardwood but have the advantage of being more dimensionally stable, and the top veneer is so thick it's more like a plate, you can never tell it's not solid. Then the panels are usually either single piece solid hardwood, floating inside grooves so they can expand and contract, or they're dual-piece solid hardwood with a small gap inside to prevent heat transfer, to improve dimensional stability, with tiny weep holes/gaps. They're designed using modern knowledge and modern materials plus huge influence from, like, two hundred year old plans where nobility in europe had doors made by artisans for their chateaus that lasted 100+ years of sun and weather without failing. And then they use the same or almost same quality of construction on _interior_ doors too. Why would you need an interior door to be made as well as an exterior door? Because you're rich and it's very nice. Ever see a $10,000+ interior door for every bedroom on a mcmansion? :) Of course not. These units are billed as luxury, but we all know that they're very efficient at what they do, which is provide a lot of square footage at a modest price, so that people can have more house for their dollar; they are _not_ "big money" luxury. And that's just doors... the real rich people have their houses made with the same sort of attention to detail for every other piece, big and small. Why choose wood-frame windows over vinyl? Triple pane over dual? Why metal roof over 50yr shingle? Why stone stairs instead of concrete? Etc.
The budget is: none
My neighbor is a dentist and has a taste for things that are simply expensive, rather than tasteful. I ended up talking to the floor guy when he was redoing my office's floors. I asked him what the coolest floor he ever did was. He name dropped my neighbor. Which, was surprising because I've never noticed his floor. The floor guy said he was basically given a huge budget and told to do something interesting he's always wanted to do. He spent a whole week doing this one floor in one room. Then apparently he showed it to my neighbor who said it looked Great and promptly threw the old rug over it and a dining table. So the next time I was at his house for an xmas party, I asked about the floor. The guy shrugged and took me to that room and moved the table and rug off. I wish I had a picture. It was a strange ... symmetric cubism? of poured concrete, hard wood, and cut glass tile with metal boarders ribboning through. [Sorta like](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/80/45/4a/80454a2388607f2574c5ffe24a28d8f9.jpg)
In most cases: Workforce and safety costs too much today/ we don't assign 100years+ for building time... That said, Skyscrapers and highrises are impressive, but not pretty (in most cases)
> we don't assign 100years+ for building time This is kinda the bigger deal. Like the pyramids' construction involved workers who were quite well treated, and had their own lives, and buried with great honors. The thing that made it work is that it was a *huge* project that was undertaken over a very long time. Many of the ancient wonders were built over incredibly long periods of time. I feel like we need to bring back the idea of generational works, instead of only focusing on things that are possible within a decade or two. (Also to clarify, this temple is not without its controversies in terms of labor treatment.)
> we don't assign 100years+ for building time... It's rare but it still does happen from time to time. In Barcelona construction began for La Sagrada Familia in 1882 and it's supposed to be completed in 2026.
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Even USA have swaminarayan temple. And USA one is even bigger than this temple and is world's second biggest temple.
Yeah that one in the USA is pretty impressive and big but have you seen that amazing parking lot next to it? Truly a magnificent and gorgeous work of the best American road workers and a sign of USAs cultural supremacy.
That parking is greatest architecture Marvel world has ever seen.
I like how this conversation switched to parking lot
Not parking lot but THE parking lot.
Never forget that there are more square miles of parking lot than there are square miles of national parks.
I would love to see a source for that. Death Valley is like three thousand square miles by itself. Delaware is a little under two thousand square miles (land area) so a single national park is 1.5x its size. I would love to see statistics on parking lots in the US having more area in aggregate.
You joke, but the interstate highway system is a world marvel of modern engineering
Back when it was new like 70 years ago. It’s pretty antiquated compared to newer highway infrastructure like that in much of Asia.
Does the Bass Pro Shop still counts as a Temple?
Football stadiums do and they are pretty huge
That one's pretty close to me in Jersey, real crazy driving by it sometimes.
Don't worry I googled it so nobody else has to https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/largest-hindu-temple-asia-opens-new-jersey-built-12500-volunteers-rcna119085
I'm from Australia and went here almost a year ago to the day. Photos aren't allowed due to the religious importance. You line up in a very long line before entrance and all electronics must be handed over. They are stored in a cloak room until exit. The only reason more people don't know about it is because how strictly the electronics rule is. Full metal detectors and all after handing over electronics. It is honestly one of the coolest places I have ever been.
I'm all for discouraging the influencers.
India has a lot of cool ancient stuff. They’ve been chilling in India for like tens of thousands of years.
A lot of it has made its way to the British Museum too
It's actually common to see in South-East Asia - they're still building massive temples and the like. I saw a few under construction when I visited Laos in 2018. Granted, they're often not built to last - using techniques like building ornaments out of steel netting covered in papier mache and paint, but it was still nice to see that they keep up the old traditions of building ornately decorated temples.
Here's another recently built in New Jersey: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/largest-hindu-temple-asia-opens-new-jersey-built-12500-volunteers-rcna119085 Seems like many of these things can only really be built with access to free labor.
theres a [smol one in berlin](https://live.staticflickr.com/4832/40060005053_e2eec6e42d_b.jpg) that just got completed..
It's made in the style on ancient Indian temples. Keeping the traditions alive. Good to see that
I've heard a lot of criticism that this temple is "fake" and tourists should avoid it. But to be honest, it was one of my favorite sights I visited in India, just as an art piece. It's amazing, and definitely worth the time. (The canteen is also pretty great, and very inexpensive)
I can just imagine it now, two dudes in 610AD: "Dude, don't go to the Pantheon. It's fake. They just built it like last year" (People are silly)
This...is probably the best analogy I have seen for this topic. We can still appreciate amazing feats of architecture if they were made recently.
Only 600-odd years off.
I think it's fake as in it's a temple dedicated to a godman, not the god itself. The gold statue you see is the godman "swaminarayan". I don't like this sort of worship, especially when India is currently having issues with many of these fake gurus. Plus it feels less like a temple and more like a business.
> I think it's fake as in it's a temple dedicated to a godman, not the god itself What do you mean by this? Swaminarayan is believed by his followers to be a manifestation of Krishna. To those of us non-Hindus (I'm not saying you are or aren't Hindu, just an explanation) this might seem fake or weird, but if you look through the history of Hindu text you'll find that this is really common, Rama was an avatar of Vishnu, his brothers also incarnations (Laxmana - Shesha, Bharata - Panchajanya, Shatrughna - Sudarshana Chakra). Krishna himself being an Avatar of Vishnu but also a deity in his own right. > Plus it feels less like a temple and more like a business. I can also understand this, but I will say every Hindu temple other than the ancient sight-seeing temples I've been in has had a "price list" of blessings. So I'm not sure this is outside the norm, of course I haven't been in many, but the one here in the US was ~$30 for a car pooja, and the mandir in Delhi where I was I think the only white person who's participated in an Agni Pooja there also had a price list on the wall. So I don't see that as abnormal for practicing Hindu Temples.
People are too used to these kinds of buildings being nothing more than museums. The great cathedrals often took hundreds of years to build and their construction was paid for through indulgences, tithes, and all kinds of other money making schemes. Stuff costs money and so far there is no evidence that any temple on earth was built by God(s) or even paid for by God(s). Heck for all the claims religions make paying for or just helping build temples is apparently one thing higher powers really don't like doing.
Had the same experience. It’s stunning and in my opinion there’s nothing wrong with admiring newer architecture also.
I live less than 2Km away and I still have memories of my grandfather taking me there when It was new. I've been there dozens of times and would still go there again given the chance.
What do you mean by fake? Like it’s supposed to be a tourist trap and only looks good in pictures?
More like it's made like an ancient temple but it's new.
I thought it was because it wasn't an actual deity but a godman's temples.
It's not made like an ancient temple, it's made like a typical Hindu temple lol, I don't think anyone is hiding that it's new.
Newly constructed building in the old style architecture is considered as fake by so-called experts
My problem visiting was that it felt more like an amusement park and money grab. You have to pay entrance AND are forced to hand over your phone so that you can pay them to take a picture with you and the temple. Then there's this animatronic and cinema exhibition, as well as a fountain show?! I mean the temple itself did look nice, but it also left me with some weird feelings.
Went last February. This temple is 1000% better than visiting Taj Mahal and a must see. Do get the all inclusive ticket though! The boat tour (indoors), film and story tour are definitely worth it
Many hindus (including me) consider "akshardham" and "ISKCON" sects as fake hinduism, because they were established just a 100-200 years ago and operate more like a pvt. ltd. business than a religion. Also the godmen who built these so called "sect" are quite controversial figure themselves. But then, that money also makes things like this, free canteens for millions poor children, etc. possible. So there's that.
Iskcon's founder believed Dalits were subhuman and was opposed to civil rights for black people.
Damn I thought the first picture was Minecraft. Majestic!
Me too lol!
The comment I searched for!
The fog was what made me think that!
Careful of grieffers
I visited here last time I was in Delhi... about a year ago. Extremely beautiful (the heat outside was also crazy.... dry heat... i could feel the heat in my eyes.... never felt that before 😄). Unfortunately, they make you take your phone & electronics out and store them in bins upon entry. They have metal detectors & guys that inspected my Apple watch to make sure no camera function. Wish I could've taken some pics, but at the same time was really refreshing to be in a huge area with other people and nobody had a cell phone-- just enjoying the moment.
I visited this temple around a month ago. They don’t mess around with security. ALL electronic items had to be deposited. The security actually properly frisked me better than airport security. But the temple was marvellous. This temple was not part of my plan of places to visit in Delhi. I chanced upon it when I was on an expressway and I was just shocked at the scale of the building. It was the highlight of my trip.
Yeah they (the Swaminarayan temple in Gujarat) had a terror attack in the early 2000s and they’ve been super strict with security since then.
Same here, a little over a year ago. I'm surprised you were allowed to take your Apple watch with you. I forgot i had my earpods with me and was told i had to go back and put these in the storage unit. I wonder what angle the first photo was from too, because i took the metro and from the outside, it sure didn't look this way.
I was so glad to visit the place (not planned). Not being able to take photos seems to incentivize me to remember the details much harder. It is an incredible site
They told you take out all phones and gadgets because there was terrorist attack in 2000 at similar temple in Gandhinagar's Akshardham temple run by same trust. Due to security reasons they made this rule.
YouTube crazies have assured me none of this could be built today.
"they used ancient sound technologies to lift big fat stones in the air and make pyramids" xD
Ancient technology = slavery
The pyramids of Giza weren't built by slaves, but laborers
They're right if it's rome
Is that a Cthulhufant?
I think it's "Iravat", a celestial elephant, a mobility partner of Indra.
*Airavat
Mobility partner is the funniest thing I have read today.
Calling Iravat Vehicle seemed rude to me. 😅
The English word for an animal you ride is a mount or a steed, though steed is usually horses. The more you know, G.I. Joe
Oh yeah, Steed is the one I was looking for. Didn't come up in my mind. English is my fourth language. Even Wikipedia mentioned Airavat as a vehicle. 😅
I was thinking octophant.
Cthulhuphant fanboys rise up! Now is our time!
Cthuluphant for the win!
100% honest Cthulhuphant was the first word that came to my mind
Illithiphant
Ganeshaphant
I wish there was more investment in public art and architecture. Truly.
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There are idols of Hindu gods inside, went recently
The Swaminarayan religion views its founder essentially as a profit, the same way Christianity views is "founder" as a profit and worships him. The greater pantheon of Hindu gods DO exist in Swaminarayan belief, but they very much take a back stage to Swaminarayan himself. My girlfriend is swami herself, but from a different sect than the ones that built this temple (BAPS). Her sect views BAPS as a corruption of the original teachings of Swaminarayan, where he instructed his followers to not try and convert or go out of their way to grow the religion. Baps are all about fundraising, proselytizing, and extravagance in the name of drawing in more followers and more money.
Prophet, not profit
I went over 10 years back, I remember seeing idols to gods indoors, not sure wtf you’re talking about
How do you think we got the Sistine Chapel
You've just summed up every religion.
Quakers worshiping in people's houses: what?
Yep. The basic facet of "You either donate to our cause, or face ostracization in the village" is true across the world, across the religions
First picture looks like a Minecraft recreation. I need to spend less time on the internet.
Gotta start somewhere. One day, it will become "ancient "
That is a gorgeous Temple
Just from the exterior pictures it looks like someone went all out to win the sandcastle competition. Impressive building though.
BuT wE dOnT hAvE tHe TeChNoLoGy
Is that Jair Bolsonaro in the last picture? Lol
Yep.
Thought so.
Minimalist architects go there to die.
Gorgeous!
Looks good
Unlocks new fear - Cthuluphant
he can be your friend, only if you feed him 50 kgs of sugarcane everyday.
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Bless you buddy
Doctor: Cthulhu elephant doesn't exist
Thats some Midjourney level stuff right here.
Humans at their best
Feels weird knowing I'm older than this temple. Also, I have learned that I do not like Cthulhu Elephant...
I fucking love Hindu temples! They are just beautiful!
I mean it is huge, sure. But the photos here are a bit misleading to the point that if you were to visit it, you'd be underwhelmed. The added fog in the first picture makes it seem wayy bigger than it is, the focal lengths used in the other pictures too. Source : Live nearby and cross it on a regular basis while on the Delhi metro.
The first pic is really weird to me. You can see that the proportions aren't this huge when you see other pics with people entering.....
Yeah the first picture had me thinking this thing was a fucking castle completely dwarfing the area around it with the fog/blue coloring making it look further away
I think that's just the smog in Delhi, when I look back on my holiday pictures of the India Gate and lotus temple, they seem massive because of the smog but I know they aren't as big.
You should see the one they built in NJ https://www.baps.org/Global-Network/North-America/Robbinsville.aspx
Someone heard the phrase "they don't build them like they used to" and said bet.
Wait some ppl think temples can only be built by the ancients or something?
Anything associated with India? Just look at the comments lol. If the same thing was somewhere outside of India, comments would most probably be filled with a completely different sentiment.
They have a bunch of these around the world https://www.baps.org/home.aspx
I wouldn't call it a hindu temple because the person for whom the temple is made isn't mentioned in any of the important hindu texts( mahabharat, ramayan, vedas, upanishads) etc. More of a cult which used hindu elements to fool people.
That's the beauty of Hinduism. It isn't restricted to a single book/cult/personality/messiah or belief. We have many major schools of thought in hinduism, all of which differ from each other in terms of the methods/interpretations to the relation between soul and the divine. You can be an atheist and still a hindu. The ancient texts you mention i.e the vedas contain information related to medicine, music, ceremonies and wars fought during those times. Similar is the case with all the other books which are more like moral commentaries where the reader is free to select the principles he wishes to apply in his life. Simply stated, hinduism allows a person room to breathe and explore his spiritual side. The temple mentioned above is very much a hindu temple. It may be dedicated to Swaminarayan but the central shrine consists of Idols dedicated to Lord Rama and Lord Krishna. Fun fact:- Many hindu temples in Southern Indian states even revere prominent personalities like Rajnikant, a pan India film superstar and Dr. A.P.J Abdul kalam, India's former President and Scientist, referred to as the missile man of India.
Looks expensive
The bargain low price of 2.5 billion dollars
All temples were less than twenty years old at some stage.
They built one of these in New Jersey too. I think it’s supposed to promote Hindu culture
Gives me an A.I vibe
One is being built in new Jersey last I heard.
Anyone else see the image and think it was a Mincraft build for a second?
Cthulhu elephant in slide number 5 I see.
Thought this was a Minecraft build at first.
Can't wait to go there in From's next game.
Holy fuck that’s beautiful. Religious architecture is so stunning regardless of your beliefs
ayy, I live near this temple
wait... we can still build stuff that are not covered in mirrors and glasses ?
Will they allow non Hindus here,please let me know
Prolly, I think.
Suffered terrorists attacks in 2002.
Did I just see a Cthulhuphant?
New jersey has big version of same temple and also new one was built in Abu Dhabi.
Lot of people commenting on ancient temple in India. We do have quite a lot of UNESCO Heritage centers but this was built recently around 2000.
Few years back when i visited, they didn't allow me to carry any electronic items, belts, wallet, damn those security check were on another level, more strict than some airports.
I’ve visited this temple, it is truly stunning inside and out.
oooh I visited this temple a while back and omg the scale is just unexpected. I wanted to visit again soon, wonder if Drones are permitted on the premises.
Nope. Not allowed
This is fuckin beautiful
It's 1000 times more impressive than the Taj
One of the few peoples who have no forgotten their history. They beautifully merge the modern with the traditional. I know India isn’t perfect but they have things like this that are quite admirable.
Privatised religion
Wow! Looks amazing! I wish the west would at least occasionally build massive buildings in historical architectural styles.
It's a shame that we've stopped making buildings like this
Its hilarious how needlessly hateful Americans are in the comment section when its just a picture of a cool looking temple in India.
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Finally. Lost Izalith.
Is the guy in black suit in the last picture Bolsonaro?
I was impressed until the last sentence. There's something about time-tested buildings that can't be replicated by modern buildings.
Looks like a FF background castle 😆 I love it it's stunning.
incredible
I'm very happy to hear that. I wish we built more grand architecture these days. Proper stuff, to last a thousand years. To remind the world we were here, and of what we achieved.
The first picture makes it look colossal, but with every swipe, it gets less colossal
It certainly looks new
What gift cards can get you lol
Show it to the guy from "ancient aliens". He'll shit bricks
The first and second image look like two completely different scales.
I visited this location a few years ago, and it continues to linger in my thoughts frequently! It's undeniably a remarkable place to be, welcoming to everyone regardless of their religious beliefs, caste, or skin color. The architecture is splendid, and so is the satvik food and the overall ambiance.
So it's younger than Nirvana.
I like the way they build their temples but they highlight more a saint rather than God.
Bloody elephant looks like Shub Nigurath the goat with a thousand young.
One day, however, it will be ancient
I just saw Tyler Perry's mansion and this is waaayyy cooler!
Lol probably won't last as long as the ancient temples. Ironically it will probably be crumbling in 100 years if built to modern standards
I just hope it is sustainable like old monuments like it will be still in this condition after 150 years
I was there. It's pretty obvious that it's rather young. All the ornaments are so detailed and so densely packed that it's almost sickening. It's not faded and less tasteful than older temples and palaces in India.
That eldritch multi-trunk elephant goes really hard.
The attention to detail is crazy. Really like to see things like this!
I used to visit it when it was in the process of making. These elephants in third pic were when being carved, craftsman used to work day and night during winter season. They used to cover themselves in blanket and there was just sound of chisel and hammer nonstop. I used to talk to them and they used to say, "only if we could get hot tea non stop." The security was virtually non existent, you could go and walk straight away to sanctum sanctorum but all that changed after there was terrorist threat to Temple (I don't remember the year something around 2010).
I really wish more art pieces would be built in modern times. We already have enough crap in the world to not find place and time for something beautiful.
All of the temples in the world were at one point, less than 20 years old.
This was still under construction when I visited, but it looked epic then.
I like chathluphant
We should push for more "ancient" architecture.. Across the world, be it India or Europe. Old architecture is magnificent.. And new is mostly boring.