Indian Temples

Step well temples are large walk-in wells that served as the only source of water in dry months but also served as social meeting places and carried religious significance.

Mountain temples such as Masrur and cave temples such as Chandrabhaga are examples of Hindu temples found in diverse locations in India.

Rani ki vav, with hundreds of art reliefs including many of Vishnu deity avatars, has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The Indian rock-cut architecture evolved in Maharashtran temple style in the 1st millennium CE, with temples carved from a single piece of rock as a complete temple or carved in a cave to look like the interior of a temple. Ellora Temple is an example of the former.

In arid western parts of India, such as Rajasthan and Gujarat, Hindu communities built large walk-in wells that served as the only source of water in dry months but also served as social meeting places and carried religious significance.

Step well temples are Hindu temples built around large walk-in wells that served as the only source of water in dry months but also served as social meeting places and carried religious significance.

Rani ki vav is a step well temple with hundreds of art reliefs, including many of Vishnu deity avatars. It has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Rock-cut temples are carved from a single piece of rock as a complete temple, while cave temples are carved in a cave to look like the interior of a temple.

The Elephanta Caves consist of two groups of caves - the first is a large group of five Hindu caves and the second is a smaller group of two Buddhist caves.

Stepwells or vav were large walk-in wells built in arid western parts of India by Hindu communities. They served as the only source of water in dry months but also had religious significance. These stepwells had intricate art reliefs on the walls, with numerous murtis and images of Hindu deities, water spirits, and erotic symbolism. They ranged from being small single pada (cell) structure to large nearby complexes, and were named after Hindu deities. Therefore, they were used as temples for Hindu deities.

The Mata Bhavani Stepwell is an example of stepwell temple compounds in India. In arid western parts of India, such as Rajasthan and Gujarat, Hindu communities built large walk-in wells that served as the only source of water in dry months but also served as social meeting places and carried religious significance. These stepwells were part of a temple complex and had intricate art reliefs on the walls, with numerous murtis and images of Hindu deities, water spirits, and erotic symbolism. The stepwells were named after Hindu deities; for example, Mata Bhavani's Stepwell, Ankol Mata Vav, Sikotari Vav, and others. Therefore, the correct answer is option D.

Rani ki vav is an example of stepwell temple compounds in India and has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site. These stepwells were large walk-in wells built in arid western parts of India by Hindu communities that served as the only source of water in dry months but also carried religious significance. The stepwells were part of a temple complex and had intricate art reliefs on the walls, with numerous murtis and images of Hindu deities, water spirits, and erotic symbolism. Therefore, the correct answer is option C.

A Hindu temple is a sacred place where devotees come to worship, sacrifice, and show devotion to their deities. It is a house, seat, and body of divinity for Hindus, and it is designed to bring human beings and gods together.

Hindu temples symbolize the good, the evil, and the human, as well as the elements of the Hindu sense of cyclic time and the essence of life. They present dharma, artha, kama, moksha, and karma symbolically.

The spiritual principles symbolically represented in Hindu temples are given in the ancient Sanskrit texts of India, such as the Vedas and Upanishads, and their structural rules are described in various ancient Sanskrit treatises on architecture.

Hindu temples are found in many countries around the world, including India and Nepal, Southeast Asian countries such as Cambodia and Vietnam, Western countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom, and many other countries with a significant Hindu population.

Hindu temples incorporate all elements of the Hindu cosmos, presenting the good, the evil, and the human, as well as the elements of the Hindu sense of cyclic time and the essence of life.

The spiritual principles symbolically represented in Hindu temples are dharma, artha, kama, moksha, and karma. These principles are presented symbolically through the elements of the Hindu cosmos, which are incorporated into the temple.

The symbolism and structure of a Hindu temple are rooted in Vedic traditions, deploying circles and squares. These shapes represent the elements of the Hindu cosmos and symbolize recursion and the representation of the equivalence of the macrocosm and the microcosm by astronomical numbers.

Hindu temples are primarily found in South Asia, particularly India and Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, in Southeast Asian countries such as Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Island of Indonesia.

The spiritual principles described in ancient Sanskrit texts that are symbolically represented in Hindu temples are Brahman, Atman, Maya, and Moksha.

The motifs, plan, and building process of Hindu temples recite ancient rituals, geometric symbolisms, and reflect beliefs and values innate within various schools of Hinduism.

The elements of the Hindu cosmos that are presented symbolically in Hindu temples are dharma, artha, kama, moksha, and karma.

The purpose of a Hindu temple is to bring human beings and gods together through worship, sacrifice, and devotion.

The spiritual principles symbolically represented in Hindu temples are given in the ancient Sanskrit texts of India, while their structural rules are described in various ancient Sanskrit treatises on architecture. The layout, the motifs, the plan, and the building process recite ancient rituals, geometric symbolisms, and reflect beliefs and values innate within various schools of Hinduism.

Hindu temples are found in South Asia, particularly India and Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, in Southeast Asian countries such as Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Island of Indonesia, and countries such as Canada, Fiji, France, Guyana, Kenya, Mauritius, the Netherlands, South Africa, Suriname, Tanzania, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda, the United Kingdom, the United States, and other countries with a significant Hindu population.

The Swaminarayanan Akshardham in Robbinsville, New Jersey between the New York and Philadelphia metropolitan areas, was inaugurated in 2014 as one of the world's largest Hindu temples.

A Hindu temple incorporates all elements of the Hindu cosmos, presenting the good, the evil, and the human, as well as the elements of the Hindu sense of cyclic time and the essence of life, symbolically presenting dharma, artha, kama, moksha, and karma.

A Hindu temple represents a synthesis of arts, values, beliefs, and the way of life cherished under Hinduism.

The Parama Sayika layout plan found in large ceremonial Hindu temples represents the relationship between the cosmos and the cell by a unique plan based on astronomical numbers.

Brahma padas signify creative energy and the site for a temple's primary murti for darsana.

Susan Lewandowski states that the underlying principle in a Hindu temple is the belief that all things are one and that everything is connected.

The Garbhagriha is the innermost sanctum of a Hindu temple where the primary deity is enshrined. It is also known as the womb chamber or the sanctum sanctorum.

The Parama Sayika layout plan is a 9x9 (81) grid found in large ceremonial Hindu temples, and it is one of many grids used to build Hindu temples. It maps the relationships between the cosmos and the cell by a unique plan based on astronomical numbers.

According to Hindu tradition, the primary purpose of a Hindu temple is to encourage reflection, facilitate purification of one's mind, and trigger the process of inner realization within the devotee.

Susan Lewandowski states that the underlying principle in a Hindu temple is the belief that all things are one, that everything is connected.

According to the Jabaladarshana Upanishad, a yogin perceives God within himself, while images are meant for those who have not yet achieved this knowledge.

An arca vigraha is an authorized form constructed in accordance with scriptural directives, and is used to worship the personal form of the deity.

Devotees aspiring to a personal relationship with the Supreme Lord worship Krishna or Shiva as the source of Brahma-jyoti.

The Jabaladarshana Upanishad states that yogins perceive God within themselves.

Devotees worship Vishnu as a personal form of the Supreme Lord.

Mental modes of worship are offered as one of the spiritual paths in Hinduism.

The Jabaladarshana Upanishad appears to endorse the idea of offering mental modes of worship in Hinduism.

Devotees aspiring to a personal relationship with the Supreme Lord hold that the personal form of the deity is the source of the Brahma-jyoti.

An arca vigraha is an authorized form constructed not according to imagination but in pursuit of scriptural directives, and is used for worship in Hinduism.

Devotees in major temples may bring in symbolic offerings for the puja. This includes fruits, flowers, sweets, and other symbols of the bounty of the natural world.

The inner sanctuary, where the murtis reside, is known as the garbhagriha. It is in this inner shrine that devotees seek a darsana of, where they offer prayers.

In most large Indian temples, only the pujaris (priests) are allowed to enter into the main sanctum.

Additionally, there may be specially allotted times for devotees to perform circumambulations (or pradakshina) around the temple.

The garbhagriha symbolizes the birthplace of the universe, the meeting place of the gods and mankind, and the threshold between the transcendental and the phenomenal worlds.

The inner sanctuary in Hindu temples is known as the garbhagriha and is where the murtis reside. It is the most important part of the temple and symbolizes the birthplace of the universe, the meeting place of the gods and mankind, and the threshold between the transcendental and the phenomenal worlds. It is where devotees seek a darsana of and offer prayers.

In temples in Kerala, it is customary for men to remove their shirts and cover their pants and shorts with a traditional cloth called a Vasthiram. This is a sign of respect and devotion towards the deity.

Special puja timings are announced by temple management staff to allow devotees to participate in special religious ceremonies. These ceremonies may include special offerings, prayers, and rituals, which are performed at specific times of the day or on specific days of the year.