Shiva Temples Outside India: Numerous temples in India are renowned for his or her outstanding architectural design, intricate stonework, and other features. However, did you recognize that there are several beautifully designed and constructed temples found outside of India? If this has you intrigued, we’ll show you five stunning Shiva temples that are located outside of India and are well worth a visit.

  1. Pashupatinath Temple, Kathmandu,Nepal

One of the foremost sacred Hindu temples of Nepal, Pashupatinath Temple is found on both banks of Bagmati River on the eastern outskirts of Kathmandu. Pashupatinath is the most vital temple dedicated to God Shiva. They arrive here to search out shelter for the last several weeks of their lives, to fulfill death, be cremated on the banks of the river and travel their last journey with the waters of the sacred river Bagmati, which later meets the holy river Ganga. Hindus from every corner of Nepal and India are arriving here to die.

It is believed that those that die in Pashupatinath Temple are reborn as a personality’s, irrespective of any misconduct that might worsen their karma. The precise day of their death is predicted by astrologers of the temple. If you’re interested in the places where the spirit of death is felt, then consider Pashupatinath as your first destination.

The main temple of Pashupatinath could be a building with a bunk roof and a golden spire.It is located on the Western bank of Bagmati and is taken into account a masterpiece of Hindu architecture.One of the foremost astonishing decorations of the temple is that the huge golden statue of Nandi, Shiva’s bull.

The majority of non secular rituals are culturally unusual and even mind-blowing for Westerners, but probably the foremost culturally unusual thing in Pashupatinath is the specific smell of cremated bodies. It’s also quite common to satisfy sadhus in Pashupatinath.Sadhus are wandering ascetic yogis, who are attempting to amass liberation from the cycle of death and rebirth by meditating.

  1. Munneswaram Temple, Sri Lanka

Siva linga is installed within the main sanctum of this kovil. Siva because the undivided causal principle is worshiped within the linga. His more manifest as­pects are represented in various other images. The linga represents the male aspect and therefore the pitha as a yoni represents the feminine principle complementing the male principle of linga; both together reflect the Siva-Sakti concept. In Saiva tradition the linga is the most sacred and highly venerated object. Hence Siva linga is installed within the garbhagriha ‘womb-house’ of Sri Munneswaram Devasthanam.

The main festivals celebrated at the temple include Navratri and Sivaratri. The previous may be a nine-day long festival in honor of the presiding Goddess, while the latter is an overnight observation in honor of Lord Shiva.A four week long event attended by pilgrims from all parts of state including Hindus, Buddhists etc.

According to legend, this temple has been around since the Ramayana. After defeating Ravana, it’s stated that Lord Rama worshiped Lord Shiva here. There are five temples on the grounds of the Munneswaram temple, with the biggest and central one being the one dedicated to Lord Shiva. The Navaratri and Shivaratri celebrations at Munneswaram Temple are its most notable features.

  1. Arulmigu Sri Raja Kaliamman Temple, Malaysia

The Arulmigu Sri Rajakaliamman Temple is the world’s first and Malaysia’s only glass temple. The temple has also been listed within the Malaysian Book of Records as the first and only glass temple within the country. The Hindu temple in Johor Bahru is roofed almost entirely with glass.

Embellished with over 300,000 pieces of colorful glass pieces, the temple’s floors, pillars and walls are all covered in red, blue, yellow, green, purple and white glass. The ceiling of the temple has large crystal chandeliers hanging and their light reflected on the glass create a surreal effect. The fully air-conditioned temple can accommodate over 1,500 devotees. Whether you’re an architectural enthusiast or a spiritual seeker, the temple is worth a visit for everybody.

The various murals and sculptures within the Glass Temple convey the message of unity with social harmony. The centerpiece during this temple may be a lotus with Lord Shiva sitting on it which is worshiped by devotees who pour perfume on it. The roof of the temple has 10 gold finished sculptures which depict the message of the cycle of life – from birth, youth, adulthood, to maturity and to death. Though called a Hindu Temple, the temple has 10 standing white marble statues of Gautam Buddha, religious leader Dev, Sai Baba, the Nazarene, and Teresa.

  1. Prambanan Temple in Java, Indonesia

Prambanan is found just outside of Yogyakarta city, in central Java, Indonesia. Prambanan was a gaggle of temples (‘candi’) built by the Hindu dynasties of Java within the 8th and 9th centuries.this is the most important temple compound dedicated to Shiva in Indonesia. Rising above the middle of the last of those concentric squares are three temples decorated with reliefs illustrating the epic of the Ramayana, dedicated to the three great Hindu divinities (Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma) and three temples dedicated to the animals who serve them.

It was one in every of the most important Hindu temple complexes within the world, with over 500 individual temples and shrines, and sported a gaggle of pointy towers that rose as high as 50 meters (165 feet).The temple was severely damaged over the centuries by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, and it absolutely was eventually abandoned to the jungle and have become surrounded by legends and myths.Today, Prambanan is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site, and plenty of tourists visit each year. along with Borobudur, it’s one among the highlights of a visit to central Java.

  1. Mukti Gupteshwar, Australia

Mukti Gupteshwar Mandir is that the first and then far the sole artificial cave mandir dedicated to the Lord Shiva, the 13th Jyotirlinga, Mukti Gupteshwar Mahadev.The temple is found within the Minto neighborhood of the Australian city of recent South Wales, where it’s frequently visited by an oversized number of pilgrims and visitors.

Along with the Mahadev, there are scale model replicas of 12 other Jyotirlinga, 108 human made lingam represent the Rudra names of the Lord Shiva and 1008 fannings Lord Shiva representing his Sahastra namas. Each figure represents a little mandir of Lord Shiva and so there are a total of 1128 small mandirs inside the Mukti Gupteshwar mandir which is incredibly unique to its kind.

In the Sanctum there’s a ten meter deep ‘vault’ which comprises 2 million handwritten notes each saying ‘Om Namah Shivaya’ from devotees around the world. There’s water from 81 rivers including major rivers from Australia and from five oceans, and eight precious metals. Good wishes from holy men and other dignitaries around the world have also been placed within the ‘vault’. Each morning a Brahmin priest conducts the ritual sustenance of the 13th Jyotirlingam, 12 replicas of other Jyotirlinga, 108 Rudra Shivas and 1008 Sahastra nama Lord Shivas.