BAPS Paris temple dedication marks 56 years of hope for Hindu community in France

Highlights

• His Holiness Pujya Mahant Swami Maharaj, spiritual head of BAPS, presided over the ceremonies as part of a 13-day Festival of Culture, the Paris Mandir Mahotsav, running from September 2 to 14.
  
• The temple was built with hand-carved stone sourced and sculpted in India.
• More than 5,500 people took part in a Jal Yatra on the River Seine on Thursday (3)

FRANCE's first traditional, purpose-built Hindu stone temple will be dedicated on Sunday (6) in Bussy-Saint-Georges, an eastern suburb of Paris, marking the end of a 56-year wait since prayers for a spiritual home in France were first expressed in 1970.

The Murti Pratishtha, a sacred consecration ceremony, and the official Mandir Dedication will take place as part of a 13-day Festival of Culture, the Paris Mandir Mahotsav, running from September 2 to 14.

The spiritual head of BAPS, His Holiness Pujya Mahant Swami Maharaj, will preside over the ceremonies, having arrived in Bussy-Saint-Georges last Saturday (29) and visited the newly completed mandir and the 10-acre festival site, known as Swaminarayan Village.

Mahant Swami Maharaj arrives in France ahead of the Paris Mandir Mahotsav BAPS Paris Media

He was formally welcomed by the BAPS Board of Trustees for the UK and Europe, the leadership of the BAPS Paris Mandir, and others involved in building the mandir and organising the festival.

Stone carved in India, raised in France

The temple stands in the Esplanade des Religions et des Cultures, a district dedicated to fostering interfaith harmony. It was built using hand-carved natural stone sourced and sculpted in India, then shipped to France and assembled by Indian artisans working alongside French engineers, following the ancient principles of Vastu Shastra, with traditional shikhars, domes and pillars.

French stone restoration specialists from H Chevalier, who worked on restoring Notre-Dame Cathedral after its 2019 fire, helped engineer and assemble the temple.

Beyond serving as a place of worship for the local Hindu diaspora, the complex includes classrooms, an exhibition space, seminar halls, a sports hall and gardens for community service and cultural education. More than 10,000 people are expected to visit during the festival, which features religious ceremonies, cultural programmes and family activities.

A flotilla on the Seine

The celebrations began on Wednesday (2) with a Vedic Mahayagna, a sacred fire ceremony, and a Palkhi Yatra. On Wednesday, more than 5,500 participants took part in a Jal Yatra, a holy water procession along the River Seine, in which 11 decorated boats, adorned with Indian décor, flowers, and Indian and French flags, stretched almost a kilometre through the city, passing landmarks including the Eiffel Tower, Musée d'Orsay, Notre-Dame Cathedral and the Louvre Museum.

Organisers called it the largest coordinated flotilla to sail the Seine since the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, inspired by His Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj's journey along the Seine in 1997.

Historic Jal Yatra starts at the iconic Eiffel TowerBAPS Paris Media

Adam Oubuih, CEO and director general of Atout France, the French tourism development agency, attended the Jal Yatra's opening near the Eiffel Tower.

He said: "BAPS and its volunteers have undertaken tremendous work to bring this celebration to Paris. It is a privilege to join them for an occasion that reflects the deep ties between France and India and our shared values of peace, harmony, and mutual respect."

Organisers called it the largest coordinated flotilla to sail the Seine since the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic GamesBAPS Paris Media

Brahmaviharidas Swami, head sadhu of the BAPS Hindu Mandir in Abu Dhabi, said: "The River Seine carries the history, inspiration and aspirations of France. The Jal Yatra brings to it the sacred prayers and traditions of the Hindu faith. Together, they express a shared hope for peace and for the friendship between France and India."

Vipul Buddhev, whose family travelled from San Jose in the US for the celebration, said: "The atmosphere throughout the journey was incredible. Everywhere you looked, people were smiling, waving,… just enjoying the experience together. It was a wonderful living example of fraternity and harmony – values so embedded in French and Hindu culture – here in the very heart of this beautiful city of Paris."

Streets and roundabouts join in

On Saturday (5), a Nagar Yatra, a cultural street procession, will begin at the Eiffel Tower and travel through central Paris with more than 5,000 participants and performers, with traditional music and dance and 14 decorated floats showcasing Indian culture and values.

Ahead of the festival, a sculpture of folded hands in the traditional Indian gesture of namaste was unveiled at a roundabout in Bussy-Saint-Georges on Tuesday (1) by the town's mayor, Yann Dubosc, the Consular Minister of India, K G Praveen Kumar, and, on behalf of Mahant Swami Maharaj, Anandswarupdas Swami and senior swamis from the mandir.

A sculpture of folded hands in the traditional Indian gesture of namaste was unveiled at a roundabout in Bussy-Saint-Georges this weekBAPS Paris Media

Mayor Dubosc said the joined hands "symbolise both peace and compassion towards others" and reflect "the junction of our two cultures, our two traditions, our two civilisations."

The Paris mandir follows a BAPS temple in Abu Dhabi, opened in February 2024 as the first traditional, purpose-built Hindu stone temple in the Middle East.

BAPS has been active in France since 1970, and its Paris volunteers distributed food and essential items during the Covid-19 pandemic and later supported the humanitarian response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.