Overview
A Hindu temple, also known as a Mandir, Devasthanam, Pura, Kshetram, Ambalam or Kovil, is a sacred place where Hindus worship and express devotion to deities through prayer, ritual offerings and sacrifice. In tradition, it is regarded as the house of the deity to whom it is dedicated, and serves as a spiritual destination for devotees as well as a landmark around which arts, community celebrations and local economic life have historically flourished.
Hindu temple architecture has its roots in later Vedic traditions and makes extensive use of squares and circles in its layout. The design incorporates ideas of recursion and the equivalence of the macrocosm and the microcosm, often expressed through astronomical numbers and specific alignments that connect the site, the deity and the worshipper. Symbolically, a temple incorporates all elements of the Hindu cosmos—presenting the good, the evil and the human, alongside the cyclic sense of time and the essence of life—and represents the aims of dharma, artha, kama, moksha, and the workings of karma.
The spiritual principles embodied in Hindu temples are detailed in ancient later Vedic texts, while their structural rules are described in Sanskrit treatises on architecture, including the Bṛhat Saṃhitā and the Vāstu Śāstras. The layout, motifs, plan and building process draw upon ancient rituals and geometric symbolism, and reflect the beliefs and values of various schools of Hinduism.
Hindu temples are presented in many styles, situated in diverse locations, and employ different construction methods adapted to particular deities and regional traditions, while sharing certain core ideas, symbols and themes. They are found across South Asia—particularly in India and Nepal, as well as Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka—and in Southeast Asian countries such as Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines. Temples have also been established by Hindu communities in countries such as Canada, Fiji and others around the world.