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A wedding is taking place outside the mandir.
Image caption,
A wedding is taking place outside the mandir.

A mandir is a place where Hindus go to worship.

Hindus are people who follow the Hinduism religion.

At a mandir, there are shrines for different Hindu gods and goddesses, also known as deities. Different deities can be worshipped depending on the mandir.

A wedding is taking place outside the mandir.
Image caption,
A wedding is taking place outside the mandir.

Meet Nikhil as he shows you around his local mandir

Explore some of the features that can be found in a mandir.

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What is in a mandir?

A murti shrine.
Image caption,
A murti shrine.
  • Hindus believe in one supreme being called Brahman. They believe that there are different parts to Brahman, shown in different gods and goddesses, or deities.

  • In a mandir, there are statues of different deities. They are called murtis, which are kept as part of a .

  • Many Hindu people also have a shrine at home.

A murti shrine.
Image caption,
A murti shrine.

Here are some things that are in a mandir

Image gallerySkip image gallerySlide 1 of 4, A Hindhu murti in a shrine, Murti This is a statue of a deity or goddess, called a murti.
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Ways of worship

A variety of shoes on a set of shelves.
Image caption,
People take their shoes off before entering the mandir as a way of respecting the deities.
  • People take off their shoes and wash their hands when they enter a mandir.

  • Hindu services are led by a Brahmin priest.

  • When they reach the shrine, Hindus ring a bell as a symbol of waking the deity.

  • People sing songs or say prayers called mantras.

  • Passages are read from Hindu religious books.

  • Depending on the mandir, Hindu people or the priest offer food to the deities. This is called prashad.

  • Prashad is blessed and given to the people in the mandir at the end of the service

A variety of shoes on a set of shelves.
Image caption,
People take their shoes off before entering the mandir as a way of respecting the deities.
A person is offering flowers to the deity.
Image caption,
A person is offering flowers to the deity.

There are different types of service at a mandir. Some are held in the morning and evening, such as arti and puja.

  • Arti is one of the most important ceremonies and takes place five times a day at the mandir. It is also called ‘the ceremony of light’, where the lamps are waved in front of the images of deities.

  • Puja is offering light, flowers, water and food to the deities.

A person is offering flowers to the deity.
Image caption,
A person is offering flowers to the deity.
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