Akshardham Robbinsville
Swaminarayan Akshardham Mahamandir
United States
BAPS Swaminarayan Akshardham in Robbinsville, New Jersey, was inaugurated on 8 October 2023 by Mahant Swami Maharaj after twelve years of construction by nearly 13,000 volunteers. Spanning 185 acres and rising 191 feet at its highest point, the Mahamandir uses 1.9 million cubic feet of stone sourced across Europe. It is the largest Hindu temple in the Western Hemisphere and the second-largest in the world after Angkor Wat.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 40.254166, -74.577778
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 40° 15′ 15″ N, 74° 34′ 40″ W
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 40° 15.25′ N, 74° 34.6667′ W
Akshardham Temple
अक्षरधाम
India
Akshardham Temple (अक्षरधाम) in Delhi, India, is one of the largest Hindu temples in the world, completed in 2005. Its 234 ornately carved pillars and 9 elaborate domes celebrate 10,000 years of Indian culture, spirituality, and architecture.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 28.612516, 77.277318
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 28° 36′ 45.06″ N, 77° 16′ 38.34″ E
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 28° 36.751′ N, 77° 16.6391′ E
Bangla Sahib
ਗੁਰਦੁਆਰਾ ਬੰਗਲਾ ਸਾਹਿਬ
India
Gurdwara Bangla Sahib (ਗੁਰਦੁਆਰਾ ਬੰਗਲਾ ਸਾਹਿਬ) near Connaught Place in central New Delhi is the most prominent Sikh house of worship in the city. Built in 1783 by Sikh general Sardar Bhagel Singh on the bungalow where the eighth Sikh Guru, Guru Har Krishan, lived in 1664, it is famous for its golden dome, its Sarovar holy water tank, and its langar (community kitchen) which serves free meals to tens of thousands of visitors each day.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 28.626481, 77.208875
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 28° 37′ 35.33″ N, 77° 12′ 31.95″ E
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 28° 37.5889′ N, 77° 12.5325′ E
Brihadeeswarar Temple
பெருவுடையார் கோயில்
India
The Brihadisvara Temple (பெருவுடையார் கோயில்), also known as the Big Temple, in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, was built between 1003 and 1010 CE by the Chola king Rajaraja I and dedicated to Shiva. Its 66-meter granite vimana was the tallest temple tower in the world at the time of completion. The temple is the centerpiece of the UNESCO Great Living Chola Temples site, inscribed in 1987 and extended in 2004 to include the Brihadeeswarar Temple at Gangaikonda Cholapuram and the Airavatesvara Temple at Darasuram.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 10.782778, 79.131667
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 10° 46′ 58″ N, 79° 07′ 54″ E
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 10° 46.9667′ N, 79° 7.9′ E
Dashashwamedh Ghat
दशाश्वमेध घाट
India
Dashashwamedh Ghat (दशाश्वमेध घाट) is the main bathing ghat of Varanasi, on the western bank of the Ganges close to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple. Its name derives from a Hindu legend in which Brahma performed ten (dasa) Ashwamedha horse-sacrifice yajnas here. The present stone ghat was built by Peshwa Balaji Baji Rao in 1748 and rebuilt by Ahilyabai Holkar, queen of Indore, in 1774. Every evening at dusk priests perform the 45-minute Ganga Aarti, an oil-lamp (deepam) and incense ritual that draws hundreds of pilgrims and tourists watching from the steps and from boats.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 25.306248, 83.010153
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 25° 18′ 22.49″ N, 83° 00′ 36.55″ E
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 25° 18.3749′ N, 83° 0.6092′ E
Fushimi Inari Taisha
伏見稲荷大社
Japan
Fushimi Inari Taisha (伏見稲荷大社) in Fushimi-ku, southeast Kyoto, is the head shrine of as many as 32,000 Inari sub-shrines (bunsha) throughout Japan, dedicated to the Shinto kami Inari, patron of rice, agriculture, household wellbeing and business prosperity. Formally founded in 711 CE by the Hata clan, it is famous worldwide for the trail of roughly 10,000 vermilion torii gates that climbs the 233-metre Mount Inari over a 4 km loop (about 2 hours on foot). Each torii has been donated by a Japanese business since the Edo period, and around 800 of them form the densely packed Senbon Torii (千本鳥居, Thousand Torii) tunnel just behind the main shrine.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 34.967173, 135.773355
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 34° 58′ 1.82″ N, 135° 46′ 24.08″ E
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 34° 58.0304′ N, 135° 46.4013′ E
Golden Temple
ਹਰਿਮੰਦਰ ਸਾਹਿਬ
India
The Golden Temple (ਹਰਿਮੰਦਰ ਸਾਹਿਬ, Harmandir Sahib) in Amritsar, India, is the holiest gurdwara of Sikhism. Surrounded by a sacred pool (Amrit Sarovar), its gold-plated upper levels gleam over a community kitchen that serves free meals to over 100,000 visitors every day, regardless of faith.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 31.619978, 74.876528
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 31° 37′ 11.92″ N, 74° 52′ 35.5″ E
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 31° 37.1987′ N, 74° 52.5917′ E
Ise Grand Shrine
伊勢神宮
Japan
Ise Grand Shrine (Ise Jingu, 伊勢神宮) in Ise, Mie Prefecture, is the most sacred Shinto shrine in Japan. The complex centres on two main shrines: the Inner Shrine (Naiku) dedicated to the solar goddess Amaterasu Omikami, traditional ancestor of the Japanese imperial family, and the Outer Shrine (Geku) some 6 km away dedicated to the grain goddess Toyouke-hime. Following the Shikinen Sengu tradition, the main shrine buildings, treasures and the Uji Bridge are completely rebuilt every 20 years on adjacent sites to renew the divine prestige of the kami; the 62nd Sengu was completed in 2013 and the 63rd is scheduled for 2033. The pin points to the Naiku.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 34.456890, 136.722978
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 34° 27′ 24.8″ N, 136° 43′ 22.72″ E
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 34° 27.4134′ N, 136° 43.3787′ E
Itsukushima Shrine
厳島神社
Japan
Itsukushima Shrine (厳島神社) on the island of Miyajima in Hiroshima Bay, originally founded in 593 CE and rebuilt in its current form in 1168 by the powerful Heian samurai Taira no Kiyomori, is famous worldwide for its vermillion O-Torii gate that appears to float on the sea at high tide, set 200 meters offshore from the main shrine. The shrine and the surrounding primeval forest were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 34.295833, 132.319722
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 34° 17′ 45.00″ N, 132° 19′ 11.00″ E
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 34° 17.7500′ N, 132° 19.1833′ E
Jagannath Temple Puri
ଶ୍ରୀ ଜଗନ୍ନାଥ ମନ୍ଦିର
India
The Jagannath Temple in Puri, Odisha, built in the 12th century during the reign of Eastern Ganga king Anantavarman Chodaganga, is one of the four Char Dham pilgrimage sites of Hinduism. It is dedicated to Lord Jagannath, a form of Vishnu, alongside his siblings Balabhadra and Subhadra. Each summer the temple stages the world-famous Rath Yatra chariot festival, when the three deities are paraded through Puri on massive wooden chariots before millions of pilgrims, the origin of the English word juggernaut.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 19.804773, 85.818081
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 19° 48′ 17.18″ N, 85° 49′ 05.09″ E
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 19° 48.2864′ N, 85° 49.0849′ E
Gurdwara Janam Asthan
ਗੁਰਦੁਆਰਾ ਜਨਮ ਅਸਥਾਨ
Pakistan
Gurdwara Janam Asthan (ਗੁਰਦੁਆਰਾ ਜਨਮ ਅਸਥਾਨ) in Nankana Sahib, about 65 km southwest of Lahore in the Punjab province of Pakistan, marks the birthplace of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, born here on 15 April 1469. The current shrine was largely built by Sikh emperor Maharaja Ranjit Singh in the early 19th century. It is the holiest Sikh site outside India, and the annual birthday pilgrimage draws thousands of Sikhs across the Wagah border each November.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 31.445521, 73.696424
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 31° 26′ 43.88″ N, 73° 41′ 47.13″ E
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 31° 26.7313′ N, 73° 41.7854′ E
Kashi Vishwanath Temple
श्री काशी विश्वनाथ मंदिर
India
Kashi Vishwanath Temple (श्री काशी विश्वनाथ मंदिर) in the Vishwanath Gali of Varanasi is one of the twelve Jyotirlinga shrines of Shiva, considered the most sacred sites in Hinduism, where the deity is said to have manifested as an infinite column of light. The current structure was rebuilt in 1780 by Maratha queen Ahilyabai Holkar of Indore on a site adjacent to the original temple destroyed by Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. The Kashi Vishwanath Corridor, completed in 2021, reopened a direct walkway from the temple down to the ghats of the Ganges.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 25.310853, 83.010678
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 25° 18′ 39.07″ N, 83° 00′ 38.44″ E
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 25° 18.6512′ N, 83° 0.6407′ E
Meenakshi Amman Temple
மீனாட்சி அம்மன் கோயில்
India
The Arulmigu Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple (மீனாட்சி அம்மன் கோயில்) in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, is dedicated to the goddess Meenakshi (a form of Parvati) and her consort Sundareswarar (a form of Shiva). The temple complex spans concentric squares around twin gold-gilded sanctum towers, framed by 14 ornate gopurams (the tallest, the southern gopura, rises 51.9 meters) and a famous Thousand Pillar Hall, all rebuilt mostly in the 16th and 17th centuries under the Nayak dynasty.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 9.919611, 78.119014
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 9° 55′ 10.60″ N, 78° 07′ 08.45″ E
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 9° 55.1767′ N, 78° 7.1408′ E
Meiji Shrine
明治神宮
Japan
Meiji Shrine (明治神宮) in central Tokyo is dedicated to the deified spirits of Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken. Surrounded by a 70-hectare evergreen forest of 100,000 donated trees, it offers a sudden hush amid the city.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 35.676389, 139.699306
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 35° 40′ 35.00″ N, 139° 41′ 57.50″ E
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 35° 40.5833′ N, 139° 41.9584′ E
Pashupatinath Temple
पशुपतिनाथ
Nepal
Pashupatinath Temple (पशुपतिनाथ) on the banks of the Bagmati River in Kathmandu, Nepal, is one of the most sacred Hindu temples dedicated to Lord Shiva. Open only to Hindus inside, it draws millions of pilgrims each year and is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 27.710556, 85.348611
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 27° 42′ 38.00″ N, 85° 20′ 55.00″ E
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 27° 42.6334′ N, 85° 20.9167′ E
Ram Mandir
राम मंदिर
India
The Ram Mandir (राम मंदिर) in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, was consecrated on 22 January 2024 in the Pran Pratishtha ceremony presided over by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Built on the site that Hindu tradition identifies as Ram Janmabhoomi (the birthplace of the deity Rama), it is one of the most significant new Hindu temples of the 21st century. The temple drew over half a million pilgrims on its opening day and now welcomes between 100,000 and 150,000 visitors daily.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 26.795639, 82.194575
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 26° 47′ 44.3″ N, 82° 11′ 40.47″ E
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 26° 47.7383′ N, 82° 11.6745′ E
Sri Venkateswara Temple
శ్రీ వేంకటేశ్వర దేవాలయం
India
The Sri Venkateswara Swami Temple (శ్రీ వేంకటేశ్వర దేవాలయం), also called Tirumala Temple or Tirupati Balaji, sits atop the Tirumala hills in the Tirupati district of Andhra Pradesh. Dedicated to Venkateswara, a form of Vishnu, it is one of the world's most visited religious sites, attracting around 24 million devotees a year (an average of 60,000 daily, peaking above 150,000 on Vaikunta Ekadasi). Built in Dravidian architecture over many centuries from around 300 CE under successive Pallava, Chola, Pandya and Vijayanagara dynasties, the temple stands on the seventh peak (Venkatadri) of the Sapta-giri (Seven Hills, said to represent the seven hoods of Adishesha) and is run by the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) trust under the Andhra Pradesh government.
- Decimal Degrees (DD)
- 13.683229, 79.347308
- Degrees, Minutes, Seconds (DMS)
- 13° 40′ 59.62″ N, 79° 20′ 50.31″ E
- Degrees, Decimal Minutes (DDM)
- 13° 40.9937′ N, 79° 20.8385′ E