Australia’s biggest Hindu temple opens amid rising Indian population

Australia’s biggest Hindu temple opens amid rising Indian population

Melbourne: After five years of construction a Hindu temple will be opened in the western suburb of Melbourne.It is located in Rockbank, a rocky district of Melton City.The Pre-opening ceremonies, called Pran Pratishtha Program, were held from Nov 24 and will end on Nov 30.The temple will open daily and will conduct aarti every day and kirtan on Sundays.

The Sri Durga Temple will be the biggest temple of Australia.For Hindus, the goddess Durga is highly revered. Durga is the principle form of the Goddess, also known as Devi and Shakti in Hinduism.

Besides worship services, leaders of the Sri Durga Temple are planning to make the temple a non-profit organisation to undertake charitable activities.

Among the projects under consideration is the collection and distribution of clothing, medicine, and food to the less fortunate.

Other programs in the pipeline include organizing events such as discussions, chanting and meditation sessions, free yoga, Hindi classes, pilgrimages, helping India-descent senior citizens and students, and providing support for local schools.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), immigration has been a large contributor to the total Australian population growth for several years and it has consistently been the main driver since 2005-06, contributing more than 50 percent of population growth in Australia.

The ABS noted that while the largest migrant groups were people born in the United Kingdom and New Zealand, the next two most common birthplaces were from the Asian region — China and India, with around 450,000 and 400,000 people respectively.

"Of the top ten countries of birth, the number of Australian residents who were born in India increased the most, almost tripling from just 132,800 people in 2004 to 397,200 people in 2014," said Denise Carlton of ABS ,as quoted by Asian Correspondent.

Rajan Zed, president of the Universal Society of Hinduism based in Nevada, said the temple serves as an important accomplishment to pass on Hindu spirituality, concepts, and traditions to coming generations.

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