History, Timing, Architecture, Interesting Facts and Travel Guide of Shri Sanatan Hindu Temple or Wembley Temple, London, United Kingdom
The Sanatan Hindu temple is the name of two different Hindu shrines in London. One of them is situated in Whipps Cross in Waltham Forest near Leytonstone and the other one is at the Ealing Road in Wembley. Both the temples are managed by Charity Shri Vallabh Nidhi of the United Kingdom. The temple follows the guidance of the Sanatan Dharma. Sanatan is the real name of Hinduism. It took almost 14 years to complete the construction of both temples. The inauguration ceremony was performed on 31st May 2010.
The temple near Leytonstone was popularly known as the Shri Nathji Mandir. It started in June 1980. The main deities of this temple are – Shrinathji, Shri Ram, Hanuman Ji, Shiva Parivaar, and Amba Mataji.
The Wembley temple is the bigger one and took 14 years to complete. The followers of Sanatan Dharma wanted to spread the religious theory among everyone living in the London area. They found the number of devotees was growing continuously. They wanted a proper place to worship and discuss the culture and tradition of the religion. To motivate this idea of the devotees the charity built these two temples. Enthusiastic people contributed to the foundation of the temple. Finally, in 2010, the temple was opened for visitors. The prime deities of this temple are – Shri Radha Krishna, Shri Tirupati Balaji, Shri Ganesha, Hanumanji, Shri Amba Mataji, Shri Sahajanand Swami, and Shri Shrinathji.
Architecture of Shri Sanatan Hindu Mandir, Wembley
The construction of the Wembley temple followed the scriptures of the sacred Hindu manuscripts. The temple does not have any support of steel or iron as written in the manuscripts. It was entirely made of limestone imported from India. Many parts of the temple component were cut up with hands in the township of Sola of Gujarat (India) before they were imported to Britain for accumulation. 41 marble figurines were made in India exclusively for the temple. The interior of the temple has detailed carvings on the walls and the pillars. The carvings also have drawings of several Hindu gods and goddesses.
Festival celebration at Shri Sanatan Hindu Mandir, Wembley
Holi is said to be the festival of colors for the Hindus. Holi is celebrated with great passion in this temple. The devotees take part in the festival of colors. Apart from the Hindus, foreign visitors also seem to enjoy the festival a lot. Holi is the festival committed to Radha and Krishna. The followers of Sanatan Dharma do not think of it just as a festival. Celebration of Holi is an integral part of the religion.
Diwali, the festival of lights is also celebrated in this temple. The rituals are conducted for 4 days. People are found to take part in all the customs with great devotion. They try to maintain their tradition by following the rituals properly.
Both the festival of colors and lights are celebrated in the temple with immense devotion. The temple gets a gorgeous look during both festivals.
Special rituals followed at Shri Sanatan Hindu Mandir, Wembley
There are different types of Aartis performed in the temple starting with the Mangala Aarti. The idols that are ornamented in their night outfits are woken by the priests before the Aarti. It is performed at 7.10 am. The second one is the Rajbhog Aarti, which starts at noon. In this aarti, the devotees are offered various types of Prasadam. On weekends and other festivals, this aarti is performed at 1.00 pm. Temple gets closed after the Rajbhog aarti. The evening aarti starts at 5.00 pm, and the Shayan aarti is performed at 8.00 pm marking the end of the day.
Shri Sanatan Hindu Mandir, Wembley Daily Darshan timings
The temple has several visiting hours from 7.00 am to 8.30 am, 10.00 am to 11.00 am, and 5.00 pm to 8.00 pm.
One of the biggest temples of Sanatan Dharma is this temple in London. Followers of this religion come from different parts of the world to visit this temple.
How to Reach Shri Sanatan Hindu Mandir, Wembley, Britain.
The London Heathrow Airport and London City Airport both are close to the temple. Cab facilities are available from both airports to reach the temple.