The Hindu Temple of Minnesota is located at 10530 Troy Lane North and is just a short drive away from Uneek Design Build & Remodel in the city of Maple Grove, MN. It is run by the Hindu Society of Minnesota, a non-profit organization that services the religious, cultural, and educational needs of its followers in the Twin Cities. The HSMN hosts this magnificent temple in Maple Grove, MN which was founded in 1978 and includes 21 deities.
History
In December of 1998 Asha & Mahendra Nath, Kumud & Shashikant Sane, and Kusum & Krishna Saxena determined that there was a need to purchase the ideally located 80 acres of land in the city of Maple Grove. They felt it had the potential to be the perfect place to build a new Hindu Temple. The Board of Trustees of the Hindu Society of Minnesota unanimously agreed to the purchase of the land and the temple was constructed.
Features
The central piece of this beautiful temple is a large, sunlit Prayer Hall with decorated pillars, polished granite floors, and 21 ornate shrines. The shrines are temples within a temple that honor a different representation of the same, single God. The biggest of the shrines is dedicated to Sri Vishnu, one of the most important figures in the Hindu religion. Elaborate designs and hand-crafted figures of musicians and lions mark the crown of the shrine. Within the temple is a standing depiction of Vishnu who is blessing his devotees and is appropriately known as Varadaraja. Flanked on either side of Sri Varadaraja are two shrines, one representing Mother Earth, Sri Andal or Sri Bhu Devi, and the Goddess of Prosperity, Sri Laxmi (Sridevi).
The main entrance of the Hindu temple is facing east and features two sets of massive handmade, brass-covered, copper doors. When opened they let the light of a summer sunrise shine on the face of the central deity during celebrations and festivities. In front is a large man-made lake with several large watershed areas adjacent to it. There is also a freshwater stream that runs through the temple property on the north side. The temple is situated at the highest elevation on the land with a gradual incline towards the east and north side as suggested in the age-old and time-tested Vastu Shastra.