Highlights
- Built on an area of 80,000 square feet, the temple came up within three years after the UAE government handed land for construction in 2019.
- On the occasion, Ambassador Sunjay Sudhir thanked the UAE Government for their support to the 3.5 million-strong Indian diaspora in the UAE,” the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi tweeted.
A grand new Hindu temple that blends Indian and Arabic architecture designs has been inaugurated in Dubai’s Jebel Ali Village, with a powerful message of tolerance, peace and harmony.
Located in a neighbourhood referred to as the emirate’s ‘worship village’, the temple formally opened its doors to worshippers across the UAE today on the occasion of Dusshera. One of the oldest Hindu temples in the UAE, it has now been expanded and the groundwork for the temple was started in February 2020.
Indian embassy thanked UAE govt
The Sindhi Guru Darbar Temple has been inaugurated by the UAE’s Minister of Tolerance, Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan. On the occasion, Ambassador Sunjay Sudhir thanked the UAE Government for their support to the 3.5 million-strong Indian diaspora in the UAE,” the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi tweeted.
Indian & Arabic architecture
Built on an area of 80,000 square feet, the temple came up within three years after the UAE government handed land for construction in 2019. Clearances from Community Development Authority, Dubai Municipality, Dubai Police, and Dubai Land Department came at the peak of the pandemic.
The grand architecture of the temple will likely attract tourists. The temple has welcomed people of all religions and has granted admission to worshippers and other visitors to witness the 16 deities and other interior works, according to Gulf News. The temple is available to the public officially starting today, the day of the Dussehra celebration.
Features of the grand temple
The Dubai temple has a huge capacity to comfortably hold between 1,000 and 1,200 worshippers every day. The temple, which welcomes members of all religions, had its soft-opening on September 1, when thousands of tourists were permitted to see its white marble interiors.
It contains bells on the ceiling, Arabic and Hindu geometric patterns on the exterior, and decorative pillars. On the day of the temple’s soft opening, the management turned on the website’s QR-code-based appointment booking system.
Since opening, the temple has seen a lot of visitors, especially on weekends. According to the article, the restricted admission has been controlled by QR-coded appointments to manage crowds and ensure social distance.
The main prayer hall, which also has a big 3D-printed pink lotus covering the dome in the centre, is where the majority of the deities are placed up. The official website for the new Hindu temple in Dubai lists its hours of operation as 6:30 am to 8 pm.
The temple also installed the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikhs’ sacred book, in August. It is situated in Jebel Ali’s “Worship Village,” which also includes the Guru Nanak Darbar Gurudwara and a number of churches.
