Baha’i temple was mentioned at home
several times since I had touched the city of Illinois. Back home I have
visited a lotus shaped Baha’i temple in Delhi, but still, I was curious to see this
one mainly for its architecture.
We drove on a clear day to Linden Ave,
Wilmette, to see the famous Baha’i temple.
It’s a beautiful structure in white
with artistic carvings on the walls and on pillars, surrounded on all side by
landscape and water fountains, it overlooks the lake. Completed in 1953 and
designed by French Canadian architect Louis Bourgeois, it is one of the seven
Baha’i temples in the world. The Baha’i place of worship is the cross between a
mosque and the temple.
Baha’is believe nine, the last number
in decimal system, symbolizes perfection and completions, hence many elements
of the building occur in groups of nine. There are nine entrances to the
auditorium, nine interior alcoves; nine dome sections to the auditorium, nine fountains
in the garden area. Bahia followers believe that God revealed himself through
Messengers (Christ, Krishna, Buddha, Muhammad and other Gods)
On closer inspection of the pillar,
one could see symbols of many religions like cross (of Christians), Star of
David, symbols used by Hindus and Buddhists in the form of swastika. On the top
of the pillar is a nine-pointed star, symbolizing the Baha’i. Various writings
of Bahaullah, the founder of the religion, are inscribed above the building
entrances.
Since I did not want to climb the
step to go up, I took the back entrance and went up inside the building by
lift. People meditated in silence in the large dome shaped hall, all engrossed in their own faith.
Inside the building there were
artwork and large wall hangings of religious inscriptions. A plaster model of
Baha’is temple designed by Bourgeois occupied one segment of the corridor.
In the dark corner was the Cornerstone, that Abdu’i-Baha
had dedicated to the Baha’I temple.
It was a beautiful experience walking around this
temple. I went back again after sunset, the building glowed at night against
the dark skies.
Since i used the back entrance and taken the lift to go upstairs, I had not seen the gardens and fountains that looked so beautiful during my last visit. I went there back again to climb the stairs and have a closer look from below the stairs.This time I clicked more pictures from different angles, the front view, the gardens and the waterfall. It was beautiful..
