Lotus Temple

The temple is in the village of Bahapur in New Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi, is a Bahá'í House of Worship that was dedicated in December 1986, costing $10 million. Notable for its flowerlike shape, it has become a prominent attraction in the city. Like all Bahá'í Houses of Worship, the Lotus Temple is open to all, regardless of religion or any other qualification. The building is composed of 27 free-standing marble-clad "petals" arranged in clusters of three to form nine sides, with nine doors opening onto a central hall with a height of slightly over 40 metres and a capacity of 2,500 people. The Lotus Temple has won numerous architectural awards and has been featured in many newspaper and magazine articles. A 2001 CNN report referred to it as the most visited building in the world.

The Bahá'í Faith teaches that a Bahá'í House of Worship should be a space for people of all religions to gather, reflect, and worship. Anyone may enter the Lotus Temple irrespective of religious background, sex, or other distinctions, as is the case with all Bahá'í Houses of Worship. The sacred writings of not only the Bahá'í Faith but also other religions can be read and/or chanted, regardless of language;  on the other hand, reading non-scriptural texts is forbidden, as are delivering sermons, lectures or fundraising. Musical renditions of readings and prayerscan be sung by choirs but no musical instruments can be played inside. There is no set pattern for worship services, and ritualistic ceremonies are not permitted.

All Bahá'í Houses of Worship, including the Lotus Temple, share certain architectural elements, some of which are specified by Bahá'í scripture. `Abdu'l-Bahá, the son of the founder of the religion, stipulated that an essential architectural character of a House of Worship is a nine sided circular shape. While all current Bahá'í Houses of Worship have a dome, this is not regarded as an essential part of their architecture.  Bahá'í scripture also states that no pictures, statues or images be displayed within the House of Worship and no pulpits or altars be incorporated as an architectural feature (readers may stand behind simple portable lecture stands).

  Inspired by the lotus flower, the design for the House of Worship in New Delhi is composed of 27 free-standing marble-clad "petals" arranged in clusters of three to form nine sides. The nine doors of the Lotus Temple open onto a central hall slightly more than 40 metres tall that can seat 1,300 people  and hold up to 2,500 in all. The surface of the House of Worship is made of white marble from Penteli mountain in Greece, the same marble from which many ancient monuments (including the Parthenon^[10]) and other Bahá'í Houses of Worship are built. Along with its nine surrounding ponds and gardens, the Lotus Temple property comprises 26 acres (105,000 m²; 10.5 ha).Lotus temple is situated near Nehru Place and Kalkaji Mandir metro station being just 500 meters away.

  The architect was an Iranian, Fariborz Sahba who now lives in Canada. He was approached in 1976 to design the Lotus Temple and later oversaw its construction. The structural design was undertaken by the UK firm Flint and Neill over the course of 18 months, and the construction was done by ECC Construction Group of Larsen & Toubro Limited.The major part of the funds needed to buy this land was donated by Ardishír Rustampúr of Hyderabad, Sindh, who gave his entire life savings for this purpose in 1953. A portion of the construction budget was saved and used to build a greenhouse to study indigenous plants and flowers that would be appropriate for use on the site.

Of the temple's total electricity use of 500 kilowatts (kW), 120 kW is provided by solar power generated by solar panels on the building. This saves the temple 120,000 rupees per month. It is the first temple in Delhi to use solar power.

A Bahá'í House of Worship, sometimes referred to by the name of mašriqu-l-'aḏkār , an Arabic phrase meaning "Dawning-place of the remembrances of God", is the designation of a place of worship, or temple, of the Bahá'í Faith. The teachings of the religion envisage Houses of Worship being surrounded by a number of dependencies dedicated to social, humanitarian, educational, and scientific pursuits, although none has yet been built to such an extent.

Ten Bahá'í Houses of Worship have been built around the world (this includes one in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan that has since been destroyed), nine currently stand including eight continental temples and one local temple. In the Ridván Message for 2012, the Universal House of Justice announced new initiatives for future Houses of Worship, calling for the first national and locally based institutions. The first two "national Mashriqu'l-Adhkars" are to be raised up in two countries: the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Papua New Guinea. With successful growth and cluster development it was also announced that the erection of the first local Houses of Worship would be raised up. Bahá'í communities own many properties where Houses of Worship remain to be constructed as the Bahá'í community grows and develops further. The Houses of Worship are open to the public, and are exclusively reserved for worship, where sermons are prohibited and only scriptural texts may be read. Most Bahá'í meetings occur in local Bahá'í centres, individuals' homes, or rented facilities, though local houses of worship are forthcoming.

The Bahá'í House of Worship was first mentioned in Bahá'u'lláh's book of laws, the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, as the Mashriqu'l-Adhkár (Arabic: مشرق اﻻذكار‎ "Dawning-place of the Mention of God"), and the details of the institution were then elaborated by both Bahá'u'lláh and his successor, `Abdu'l-Bahá.

Bahá'í literature directs that a House of Worship should be built in each city and town, and emphasizes that its doors must be open to all regardless of religion, or any other distinction. The Bahá'í laws emphasize that the spirit of the House of Worship must be a gathering place where people of all religions may worship God without denominational restrictions. The Bahá'í laws also stipulate that only the holy scriptures of the Bahá'í Faith and other religions can be read or chanted inside in any language; while readings and prayers may be set to music by choirs, no musical instruments may be played inside. Furthermore, no sermons may be delivered, and no ritualistic ceremonies practiced.

All Bahá'í temples share certain architectural elements, some of which are specified by Bahá'í scripture. 'Abdu'l-Bahá stipulated that an essential architectural character of a House of Worship be that it requires to have a nine-sidedcircular shape (Nonagon). While all current Bahá'í Houses of Worship have a dome, they are not regarded as an essential part of their architecture. Bahá'í scripture also states that no pictures, statues or images may be displayed within the House of Worship and no pulpits or altars incorporated as an architectural feature (readers may stand behind simple portable lecture stands). To date all the Houses of Worship built or planned have a single, undivided room under their dome. Furthermore, in all seven, the seats in the auditorium face the Shrine of Bahá'u'lláh in 'Akká, Israel. While each of the Houses of Worship is unique, the designs, through the selection of materials, landscaping and architecture, reflect the indigenous cultural, social and environmental elements of their location, to a greater or lesser degree.

Bahá'í literature also stipulates that the Houses of Worship be surrounded by a complex of humanitarian, educational, and charitable institutions such as schools, hospitals, homes for the elderly, universities, hostels, and other social and humanitarian institutions to serve the areas in which they stand. Shoghi Effendi, head of the religion in the first half the 20th century, stated that the functions of the House of Worship would be complementary to those of the Bahá'í centre, and that it would be desirable if both these buildings would be on the same site. He also describes the future interaction between the Mashriqu'l-Adhkár (worship) and its dependencies (service) as "capable of removing the ills that have so long and so grievously afflicted humanity".

The eight existing Houses of Worship were built as the Bahá'í community could support their construction through voluntary contributions. There are no collections during services and only Bahá'ís are permitted to contribute to the Bahá'í funds, including funds for the construction and maintenance of the House of Worship. The Houses of Worship are administered and maintained by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the country in which they are located. The Shrine of the Báb and other buildings at the Bahá'í World Centre are not Houses of Worship, although tourists often mistakenly refer to the Shrine as a Bahá'í temple.