Yesterday my wife and I visited the BAPS mandir located in Bartlett, IL. It was a beautiful building. http://www.baps.org/globalnetwork/america/chicago.htm. I was concerned about dress and such, as I didn't want to be disrespectful.
As we were waiting for a friend from work, who was to show us around, 3 school busses appeared and out came children aplenty. So much for a reverent time, right. Well, I could have just stared at the outside of the building for hours. The main entrance was all wood carving and it was very nice. Inside, the foyer was also wood and had many, many intricate decorations. The rug below was displaying several beautiful peacocks. There was a soft mantra playing in the background. Once the kids went away on their tour, we took off our shoes and went into the temple proper. My guild explained that this particular sect represented many of the business caste and was quite involved with building this beautiful buildings. I had also read that on their website.
Inside the temple was beautiful. Carved marble everywhere. I really can't describe it very well. It was smaller than I expected but just as some of the photos depicted. http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/couriernews/lifestyles/focus/temple/32193,...
The deities were mostly covered. Ganesh, Shiva and his consort were visible, as well as a few of their leaders, whom it appears they believe are divine. After some more discussion we went to the small store located in the back of the main building and obtained some sweets that were suggested to us. We also bought a few books to familiarize myself to their beliefs, as their website isn't very instructive.
Up the road is a Jain temple, but it is under construction so I haven't been able to see what it offers. There is also another religion that took over an old Lowes theater that I need to visit sometime.
I really like learning about these other religions. They are so interesting.
