Abu Dhabi’s first Hindu temple

The historic foundation stone-laying ceremony of the first traditional Hindu temple in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was performed in Abu Dhabi in the presence of Indian and UAE officials and thousands of members of the Indian community.

The ceremony was presided over by Mahant Swami Maharaj - the spiritual leader of BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha - the organisation which is building the temple, along with other priests. Indian Ambassador to UAE Navdeep Suri attended the event in the presence of over 2,500 Indians from the UAE and across the world.

Suri and BAPS Hindu Mandir committee head and community leader B.R. Shetty were among those who laid foundation stones. Some 50 priests from India were part of the ceremony.

UAE’s Minister for Climate Change Thani Al Zoyoudi and Ahmad Bilhoul Al Falasi, Minister of State for Higher Education and Advanced Sciences, were among the attendees.

The temple will be built in phases, with all the pink sandstone and marble being transported from Rajasthan to the UAE capital.

The stones of the temple will be handcarved by artisans in India and then transported to Abu Dhabi. Once completed, this will be the first traditional Hindu stone temple in the entire region.

The temple is being built on 13.5 acres (55,000 square metres) of land gifted by Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince, Sheikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to the Indian community.