By Aliza Alperin-Sheriff
Massive Hindu complex springs to life in Windsor
On what used to be farmfields, a massive, intricate spiritual center has sprung to life in the fields of Robbinsville’s Windsor section.
BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha, a worldwide Hindu organization, held Mandir Mahotsav, a multi-day celebration in August to inaugurate its new temple, known as a mandir, off of North Main Street and Route 130 in Windsor.
The mandir and the adjoining Satsang Activity Center, completed in 2012, are only the beginning of the complex that BAPS has planned for its 162-acre property. The finished complex will also have a welcome center with a vegetarian Indian food court, a yoga and meditation center and a youth activity center with classrooms and an open air theatre. By acreage, the site will be larger than the largest Hindu temple in India.
The recently inaugurated mandir will be the focal point of the entire complex.
A mandir serves an important role in Hindu religious practice as it is thought to be the best place to perform rituals like arti, the symbolic waving of lighted wicks in front of murtis (images of deities that are themselves considered to be divine), and thal, the offering of food to murtis.
The mandir in Robbinsville is what’s known as a Shikhardbaddh mandir, a traditional structure built to thousands-year-old specifications called Sthapatya Shastra, found in Jaya, an ancient Hindu religious text. That means instead of using modern technology or materials like steel, the mandir is built entirely from hand-carved stone and held together by ball and socket joints.
Being a traditional stone mandir makes the mandir in Robbinsville somewhat unusual. In fact, it is only the sixth traditional stone mandir built by BAPS in North America. The others are located in Toronto, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Chicago and Houston.
“Most mandirs are regular buildings,” said Lenin Joshi, a resident of Lawrenceville and a BAPS volunteer.
Robbinsville might seem like an odd choice for a stone mandir, especially since all the others in North America are in major cities. Joshi said that the Robbinsville location was chosen because of New Jersey’s significant Indian population. Additionally, Robbinsville serves as a convenient central location for people from New York, Philadelphia and even Delaware.
The mandir is 133 feet long and 87 feet wide. It is covered in ornate carved designs illustrating stories of Hindu deities and depicting scenes of nature. Among these designs are 91 elephants with musical instruments and flowers. The mandir has two domes, 10 wall murals, 66 arches and 98 pillars. All in all, it is constructed of 13,499 pieces of marble.
Before the mandir could be built, each of those pieces of marble went on a 21,500-mile journey beginning in Italy.
“We did stone testing across the world,” Joshi said. “The stone experts determined that Italian marble was best for our needs.”
From Italy, the marble was shipped to India where it was carved and prepared for assembly by expert craftsmen. After that, it was finally brought to Robbinsville.
“Here it’s all assembled as a big jigsaw puzzle,” said Joshi.
Another intriguing aspect of the mandir’s construction is that it was enclosed inside another building. Joshi explained that this idea also emerged from the stone testing process.
“We found out that because of the harsh climate in New Jersey, the marble might not be able to last long,” he said. “The architects and engineering team came up with the unique idea that if we enclosed the whole mandir, its life would be enhanced for thousands of years.”
Joshi also noted that in the wintertime it would be unpleasant to stand outside and look at the sculptures on the outside of the building, but now the beauty can be enjoyed year round.
The idea for the mandir was conceived by Pramukh Swami Maharaj, the spiritual leader and guru of BAPS, and the project has been directed by a group of Swamis (Hindu monks) and a board of trustees. BAPS also hired a general contractor who is responsible for construction and making sure that the building conforms to local codes. The work itself has been done by a mix of paid professionals and volunteers.
Joshi said that the volunteers take care of the tasks that can be done by someone with only a little bit of training or general chores that people also do at home like cleaning. Some volunteers, like the ones keeping track of which pieces of stone have arrived, work at the site itself, while others, like those helping with IT, work from home.
The work being done by volunteers often complements the work being done by paid professionals. For example, BAPS hired a gardening professional who designed the landscape for the property, but the planting, fertilizing and general care of the plants is all being done by volunteers.
Besides scheduled daily rituals like arti and thal, the mandir is also a place for communal and individual prayers, discourses by Swamis, meditation and celebrating festivals.
The complex is also meant to be a place to foster cultural heritage and strengthen families. To this end, the Satsang Activity Center includes a gymnasium and an assembly hall. BAPS also offers music and language classes among other activities.
In addition to strengthening the local Hindu community, BAPS is also committed to contributing to the outside community. The organization holds a walkathon in Robbinsville every year to raise money for local organizations. Past beneficiaries include the Robbinsville Education Foundation, the Mercer County Boys and Girls Clubs and the American Cancer Society. It also hosts health fairs, children’s health and safety days, blood drives, food drives and flu vaccination drives.
In 2012, after Hurricane Sandy, BAPS played an important role in local relief efforts, including opening the doors of the newly completely Satsang Activity Center to shelter people who had to evacuate their homes.
Ultimately, though, it is the mandir itself that is most important to local Hindus.
“It’s something like a dream come true for hundreds of Hindus in and around the area,” Joshi said.
Web: baps.org/robbinsville.
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