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Hinduism is a minority religion practised by 0.3% of the population of Botswana. [1] The practice of Hinduism in Botswana is concentrated in and around Gaborone and Selebi-Phikwe. The community of Hindus began to form in the early 20th century with the beginning of immigration from India to Botswana. Most Hindus in Botswana are of Indian descent.
The 2001 census of Botswana listed approximately 3,000 Hindus. Members of Hindu community estimated that these figures significantly understated their respective numbers. [2] The 2011 census stated about 3353 Hindus in Botswana. Among these 3230 are non-migrants and 123 are migrants. Hinduism constituted 0.3% of the total population of Botswana in 2001 which remain constant in 2011 census. [1] Hinduism constituted 0.3% of the Non-migrant population and 0.1% of the migrant population. [1]
As of January 2016, there are five Hindu temples in Botswana, including the Sai Temple and ISKCON Temple in Gaborone. [3] With the growth of the community, a number of region-based community associations have sprung up. There is already a Hindu temple in Gaborone, and another in Selebi-Phikwe. A gurudwara is also been built in the capital city. Plans have been made for the construction of a Swaminarayan temple, a Sai Baba Centre, a Venkateswara Temple and an ISKCON Centre at various sites in Botswana. [4]
The following are the major Hindu temples in Botswana:
The ISKCON Botswana temple is situated in Gaborone West Phase 2, opposite Baobab Primary School. It is a magnificent temple orange and maroon in colour that has attracted many people from all parts of the country to see its magnificent art work that can be seen on the outside and especially on the inside. It is the home of Sri Sri Kirishna & Balarama.
The Hindu Hall in Gaborone is situated behind the "Caltex" filling station, located in the area adjacent to the "Maru-a-Pula Robots" (traffic lights). All the major Hindu festivals (Maha Shivaratri, Rama Navami, Dussehra, Diwali etc.) are observed in this temple.
At the entrance to the Hindu Hall, is located the 'Navagraha Temple', with the deities of the 9 planets. Immediately adjoining thereto, is the 'Lord Shiva Temple' with a 'Shiva Lingam' at the centre, which is surrounded on the sides by the idols of Lord Subrahmanya, Goddess Mother Parvati, and Lord Ganesha.
On the inside of the wall of the Shiva Temple, there is a small cavern, which couches one idol of Lord Shiva, Mother Parvati, with Lord Baby Ganesh and Lord Baby Subrahmanya on their laps.
There is also a 'Nandi' facing the Shiva Lingam.
Inside there is a big hall from which the temple draws its name. Upon the dais, there are idols of Lord Rama, Mother Sita, Lakshmana and Lord Hanuman. There is also an idol of Lord Shiva.
The Botswana Hindu Charities Trust built the Sri Balaji Temple in Gaborone in the classical Dravidian architectural style. The temple is one of its kind in the Southern African region and become a cultural attraction in Gaborone, after earning the people's admiration for the architectural and the sculptural beauty. The temple has cost over Rs. 2 crores to build.
The temple has 10 sanctum sanctora to house Lord Balaji and his consorts Sridevi and Bhudevi as the presiding deity, Lord Ganesha, Lord Anjaneya (Hanuman), Lord Shiva, Mata Vaishnodevi, Lord Ayyapa, Lord Muruga and the Navagrahas. All Mulavar Vigrahas and Utsav Murthies were imported from India. The doors for the Maha Mandap and the Rajagopuram were imported from Kerala. The doors of Maha Mandap depict the scenes from Krishna Leela whereas the doors of Raja Gopuram depict the Dasa Avathars.
The Vadakkumnathan Temple is an ancient Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva in Thrissur, in the Thrissur district of Kerala, India. The temple is a classical example of the architectural style of Kerala and has one monumental tower on each of the four sides in addition to a koothambalam. Mural paintings depicting various scenes from the Mahabharata can be seen inside the temple. The shrines and the Kuttambalam display vignettes carved in wood. The temple, along with the mural paintings, has been declared as a National Monument by India under the AMASR Act. According to popular local lore, this is the first temple built by Parashurama, the sixth avatar of Vishnu. Thekkinkadu Maidan, encircling the Vadakkumnathan Temple, is the main venue of the renowned Thrissur Pooram festival.
Prabhas Patan, historically named Dev Patan, is a locality in Veraval, Gujarat. As the site of the Somnath temple and its associated Jyotirlinga, it is an important place of Hindu pilgrimage.
Hindu Temple of Ottawa-Carleton is a significant Hindu temple in the Gloucester section of Ottawa.
Kundrathur is a town located in the Chennai Metropolitan Area and the headquarters of Kundrathur taluk in Kanchipuram District. It is the birthplace of Sekkizhar, a well-known poet-saint who authored the Periyapuranam.
Kumara Swamy Devasthana, also known as Sri Kumaraswaami Temple, is a Hindu temple located in Hanumanthanagar, in the city of Bangalore, Karnataka, southern India. It is dedicated to the god Kartikeya, also known as Subrahmanya, Kumara Swamy, or Murugan.
The following are the temples located in and around Hyderabad
Nandeeswarar Temple is located in Adambakkam in Chennai, Tamilnadu, India. It is close to St. Thomas Mount suburban railway station. The temple has two entrances one in the east, and another in the south. There is a tank situated outside the southern entrance, though not in use.
The Mahabaleshwar Temple, Gokarna is a 4th-century CE Hindu temple located in Gokarna, Uttara Kannada district, Karnataka state, India which is built in the classical Dravidian architectural style. It is a site of religious pilgrimage. The temple faces the Gokarna beach on the Arabian Sea. The temple deifies the Pranalinga also called Atmalinga or Shiva Linga In legend, it is said that the deity of the temple will bestow immense blessings to devotees, even to those who only glimpse it. Currently the administrative charge of the temple is with an Overseeing Committee under the Chairmanship of Justice BN Srikrishna, a Retired Justice of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India. It is one of the 275 paadal petra sthalams expounded in the Tevaram, a sacred Tamil Shaivite text written during the 6th and 7th centuries by 63 saints called Nayanars.
Pariyur is a panchayat village located near Gobichettipalayam in Erode District of Tamil Nadu state, India. It is located about 3 km from Gobichettipalayam on the way to Anthiyur via Savandapur. It is a religious center with many famous temples including the Pariyur Kondathu Kaliamman temple.
Ernakulam Shiva Temple, also known as Ernakulathappan Temple, is one of the major temples of Kerala, located in heart of Ernakulam, Kochi,Kerala, India. The temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva, is considered as the city temple, with the presiding deity as the protector of the city, as per local Hindu faiths and traditions. As per the common practice in Kerala, the deity is reverently called Ernakulathappan, which means Lord of Ernakulam. The temple is located within the Durbar Hall Ground. The temple history itself has deep association with history of the city and was one of the 7 royal temples of Kochi Maharajas. The temple is now under administration of Cochin Devaswam Board. The temple in its current form was built under active patronage of Diwan Sri Edakkunni Sankara Warrier in year 1846 and raised it level of a Royal temple in the Kochi Kingdom. The temple is built on 1-acre (4,000 m2) land. The temple is one of the major Shiva temples in Kerala counted along with the Ettumanoor Mahadevar Temple, Kaduthruthy Mahadeva Temple, Vaikom Temple, Chengannur Mahadeva Temple, Vadakkunathan temple, and Sreekanteswaram Mahadeva Temple, Thiruvananthapuram.
Mukteshwar Mahadev Temple, also known as Mukesaran Mandir, is a shrine to Shiva and man-made cave complex located near Pathankot City, Punjab, India. on Shahpur Kandi Dam road. It is a Hindu temple containing representations of Ganesha, Brahma, Vishnu, Hanuman, and Parvati. It is considered to be one of the most sacred places around Pathankot. According to legend, the Pandavas stayed in the caves for a night during their exile (Agayatwas), and it is said that some of the caves date to the time of the Mahabharata.
Keesaragutta Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Shiva and his consort, Parvati, at Keesaragutta, Keesara Village, Medchal-Malkajgiri district, Telangana, India. It is located on a small hillock, roughly 30 km from central Hyderabad, and 12 km from ECIL. The temple draws several lakh devotees for the Maha Shivaratri festival, as well as during the month of Kartika on the Hindu calendar.
The Hindu Temple of Greater Chicago (HTGC) is a Hindu temple complex in Lemont, Illinois. It was inaugurated and opened to the public in 1986. It includes a Rama temple and a temple dedicated to Ganesha, Shiva, and Durga.
Pallikondeswara Temple(also Pradosha kshetram) is a Hindu temple dedicated to the god Shiva located in Surutupalle, a village in Tirupati district of Andhra Pradesh, India. The presiding deity Pallikondeswara, unlike other Shiva temples, is sported in reclining posture lying on the lap of his consort Parvati.
The Karaneeswarar Temple is a 12th-century Hindu temple in the neighbourhood of Mylapore in Chennai, India. The temple is dedicated to Shiva as Karaneeswarar. There are also shrines to Sarvamangala Vinayaka (Ganesha), Dandapani (Kartikeya), Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati.
The Hindu Temple Society of North America is a nonprofit organization that manages the Sri Maha Vallabha Ganapati Devasthanam temple in Flushing, Queens, in New York City. It is known as the Ganesha Temple after its main deity, Ganesha, and is the second-oldest Hindu temple in the United States built by Indian immigrants. Uma Mysorekar has served as the society's president since 1994.
The Fiji Sanatan Society of Alberta, also known as Vishnu Mandir in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada is a modern-style Hindu temple that was built by some of the first Fijian Hindu immigrants in Edmonton in 1984. Hindus have been living in Canada for over a century, especially in Edmonton. Fijian Hindus began to settle in Edmonton in larger proportions starting in the 1960s and 1970s. They conducted prayers and meditated in individual households via groups they formed in the community. Talks of the need of a temple started in 1983 by four major Hindu Bhakti groups in Edmonton at the time, Shree Sanatan Dharam Ramayan Society, Edmonton Geeta Ramayan Congregation, Edmonton Vedic Congregation and later joined by Edmonton Prem Society, the group founded the Sanatan Board and raised funds to buy a property for the temple. It became the first Fijian Hindu cultural society in all of Canada, and till date is the largest. It started as a small place of worship in the Balwin residential area, constructed out of an old Church building. Since then it has been renovated 2 times, first adding a basement, then in 2006 expanded further making it the second largest Hindu temple in Edmonton.
Chennai Om Sri Skandashramam is a Hindu temple dedicated to the deity Murugan in Chennai, India. It is located at Selaiyur, Tambaram, a southern neighbourhood of Chennai. The temple is known of its huge idols of several deities, including Kamala Siddhi Vinayakar, Panchamukha Heramba Ganapathy, Dattatreya, Panchamukha Hanuman, Shaniswara, Ayyapan, goddess Ashtadashabhuja Durga Parameswari, Sarabeswara, goddess Prathiyankira, goddess Bhuvaneshwari, Swaminathaswamy, Sudarshanachakathalwar, Lakshmi Narasimhar, Maha Sahasralingamurthy, Nandikeswarar, goddess Annapurani and Chakra Poorna Maha Meru. There is also an idol of Saint Sathguru Santhananda Swamigal, who built the temple.
Kilimarathukavu Siva Parvathy Temple is a Hindu temple located in Kadakkal, Kollam, Kerala, India. It contains the largest cult image of 'Dharma Sastha', an epithet of Ayyappan.
Hindus form 79.83% of the state's total population as per 2011 census. Hindus form the majority in all the districts of the state.The religion plays an important role in the lives of the Maharashtrian people in their day-to-day life. Vitthoba, along with other incarnations of Vishnu such as Rama and Krishna, Hanuman, Dattatreya, and Shaiva deities such as Shiva, Parvati, and Ganesha, are popular with Hindus of Maharashtra. The Varkari tradition holds a strong grip on the local Hindus of Maharashtra. The public Ganesha festival started by Bal Gangadhar Tilak in the late 19th century is very popular. Marathi Hindus also revere Bhakti saints associated with varkari sects such as Dnyaneshwar, Savata Mali, Tukaram, Namdev, Janabai, and Chokhamela. Many religious figures from 19th and 20th century are revered. They include Swami Samarth, Gajanan Maharaj, Sai baba of Shirdi, Tukdoji Maharaj, Gondavalekar Maharaj, and Gadge Maharaj.
