Akshardham, second largest Hindu temple outside India, to be inaugurated in US

Akshardham, the world's second-largest Hindu temple, outside India, will be inaugurated in United States' New Jersey on October 8. Located just 60 miles from New York’s Times Square, the temple took nearly 12 years to construct.

The temple, which is dedicated to Bhagwan Swaminarayan, spans over 183 acres. As per PTI, it has one main shrine, 12 sub-shrines, nine shikhars (spire-like structures), and nine pyramidal shikhars.

Nearly two million cubic feet of stone was used in the construction and was sourced from different sites around the world, including limestone from Bulgaria and Turkey; Marble from Greece, Turkey and Italy; Granite from India and China; Sandstone from India and other decorative stones from Europe, Asia, Latin America.

The Brahma Kund, a traditional Indian stepwell, contains water from over 300 bodies of water from around the world, including the holy rivers of India and all 50 states of the US, news agency PTI reported.

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Sustainable practices of the temple’s management include a solar panel farm, a fly ash concrete mix, and the planting of over two million trees worldwide in the past few decades.

(With PTI inputs)