If you happened to take a walk around Bengaluru, irrespective of what you might or might not see, you will definitely see a small or big temple within every kilometer. While most people would think that being a metropolitan city is tantamount to loss of culture and religious beliefs, Bengaluru proves otherwise.
Bengaluru, unlike most would believe, has two faces. One is that of a modern city with huge, westernized malls, wide roads, technology, huge colleges and metros while the other is that of a spiritual place with culture and tradition. The heart of this city lies in its rich culture and deeply rooted religious beliefs.
The population of Bengaluru is very diverse due to a large influx of people from all parts of India and the world over. This also means that the religions, as such, are found in plenty. But most people in Bengaluru are highly spiritual and believe that ‘He is there’. As varied as the religions might be, there is one unifying God at the end of the day. It is teeming with religious places and traditions and houses many spiritual gurus.
The specialty about this religion is that despite all the various religious differences, people respect each other’s spiritual beliefs. It is a multi-religious city with over 400 mosques, 1000 temples, 100 churches, three Gurudwaras, 100 Jain temples, a Parsi Agiari and two Buddhist Viharas. Religious Bengaluru has embraced each of these religions with open hands. These religious places are where its population goes to find sanctuary after a long and tiring day in a bustling city.
Every Bangalore an has his or her spiritual peace mantra. While a large part prefers to wake up early and visit the nearest temple barefoot, those with more hectic schedules prefer to revere in spirituality during the early day or at dawn. These are the two phases of the day when you will see people swarming in to temples. Early in the morning or at sunset, the sound of temple bells is very soothing and calming. Due to the busy lifestyle, this might not work out on an everyday basis for all but it is a regular ritual for sure.
Some among this religious population prefer to go to a calm religious place to string their peace chords, others prefer to take regular trips to the bigger ones to give them a better sense of religion and devotion. And Religious Bengaluru has plenty of these places to offer.
Ranging from the Bull Temple in Basavangudi to Jamia Masjid in K. R. Market to St. Mary’s Basilica in Shivajinagar to the Sikh Gurudwara near Ulsoor Lake to Mahabodhi Society to the ISKCON temple in Rajajinagar, there is ample and more spirituality that the city has to offer to its people. These are also of architectural importance and always manage to evoke the spiritual and religious side of the population. No matter how modern Bengaluru might get, the heart of its people will always be deeply rooted in religion.