Next month, France will see the opening of its first major Hindu temple at Bussy-Saint-Georges, a suburb east of Paris, during a 13-day festival beginning September 2.The temple is built by the Gujarat-based Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) in collaboration with French architecture and engineering firms, stone specialists H Chevalier, that worked on the restoration of the Notre-Dame cathedral after a fire destroyed its roof and spire on April 15, 2019, according to an official statement.Unlike the pink sandstone Akshardham temples, the BAPS Swaminarayan Hindu Mandir in Paris is white and uses marble sourced from Greece, Italy and Ambaji in Gujarat, and sandstone from Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh, a source from the organisation told The Indian Express.According to the source, this is the first major BAPS temple with traditional features, including five shikhar (spires), 10 ghummat (domes), 120 jharukha (ornate windows), four chhatri (canopies), 20 carved columns and 49 sculpted panels.Other Hindu temples in Paris are dedicated to Ganesha and Shiva.Given the weather conditions, the temple will have an underfloor heating system and a rooftop garden. Apart from the shrines, the 5,000 sq metre complex offers a sports hall, a café, a crèche, classrooms, assembly halls, and seminar halls.Located at Esplanade des Religions et des Cultures (Cultural Centre) in Bussy-Saint-Georges, the temple will be open to visitors from all backgrounds, the BAPS statement said. The Centre has places of worship for people from several faiths.Story continues below this ad“Its opening adds a Hindu place of worship to that setting and gives concrete expression to the French ideal of fraternité (fraternity),” read the statement.The formal opening of the temple is slated for September 6, preceded by a jal yatra, a cultural procession along the river Seine, which will be held on September 3. The river will feature 11 choreographed boats with thousands of participants, carrying the ‘message of fraternity’. On September 5, the streets of Paris will see 14 floats passing its iconic landmarks through performances showcasing Indian culture, culminating in the consecration of the temple the following day by the BAPS’ spiritual leader Mahant Swami Maharaj.Components crafted in India, shipped to FranceThe groundbreaking ceremony for the temple coincided with the year of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021, followed by the foundation stone laying ceremony in 2022. Skilled artisans in India carved more than 1,000 individually crafted stone components, which were carefully coded and shipped to France for assembly. Select elements of the temple were carved by hand using traditional methods.“In France, Indian artisans worked alongside French stonemasons, including specialists who restored the Notre-Dame Cathedral. French architects, engineers, and construction teams helped bring traditional Hindu sacred architecture together with contemporary French engineering, environmental and construction standards,” the statement added.Story continues below this adThe cathedral was reopened to the public in December 2024. According to its website, H Chevalier worked on the restoration of its high bays, chequerboard paving, liturgical platform, the chimeras and so on, between 2021 and 2024.Other French firms majorly involved in the Hindu temple project were Arte Charpentier, Bateg (a subsidiary of Vinci Construction), and GS Construction, which did the interior finishing.“Opening BAPS Swaminarayan Hindu Mandir as France’s first traditionally designed, purpose-built stone Hindu temple is a historic moment for Hindu families in France and for everyone who has helped make this Mandir possible. It has been created through years of devotion, service and a remarkable collaboration between India and France — Indian artisans working alongside French architects, engineers, stonemasons and construction specialists. We hope it will be a permanent home of faith and culture, and a place of welcome, learning and service for generations to come,” Sanjay Kara, trustee of BAPS UK & Europe and Lead, Paris Mandir Project, was quoted as saying.BAPS got temple land in 2017According to the statement, BAPS held its first organised ‘satsang’ near the Eiffel Tower in 1982. This was after its former spiritual leader Yogiji Maharaj had a brief stopover in Paris in 1970, followed by repeated visits by his successor Pramukh Swami Maharaj.Story continues below this adThe land was made available to BAPS in 2017 during a visit by the current leader.In April 2024, Mahant Swami Maharaj wrote “Bénédictions” on the drawings, “blessing” the project, the statement said.