Temples in Mumbai
Mahalaksmi Mandira
This temple is inside an alley off Bhulabhai Desai Rd, north of Malabar Hill, by the seashore. A temple has been here for a thousand years, but the present temple was built in the 18th century. In the 18th century, when this area of the city was a swamp, it was drained and a breach-wall constructed. It is said that Laksmi appeared to the contractor in a dream and told him that unless he installed in a temple the Deity of her that would appear from the sea, the breach-wall would not hold. The next day a Laksmi Deity was found by the workmen and was duly installed in the temple at this spot.
On weekends the queue (line) to see the Deity can be very long.
Elephanta Caves (Gharapuri)
These 1,000 year old caves are 10 km from Bombay on an island in the middle of the harbor. There are four rock-carved temples on the island that are said to have been carved between 450 and 750 AD.
There is a Siva temple here carved out of the western hill, about 250 feet above sea level. The three-headed Trimurti statue is carved out of a single rock and is considered to be one of the masterpieces of Indian sculpture. It is 20 feet high, and each head is six feet high.
Boats leave every 30 minutes from the Gateway of India. You purchase a ticket from the booth on the boat landing or just before you get on the boat. Luxury boats cost double the price of the regular boats. They both get you to the same place at the same time, but the luxury boat may have a guide on board and not be as crowded. The boat trip takes about an hour and is quite interesting.
You have to go up steep stairs to reach the caves. A palanquins can be hired to be carried up. It takes about an hour to see everything at the top of the hill.
Kanheri Buddhist Cave Temples
They are 40 km north of Bombay. There are 109 caves, but only a few are interesting. The caves date from the 2nd to the 9th century. They are excavated on the face of a hill in the center of Salsette Island. The Great Chaitya Cave has two figures of Buddha 21 feet high. Caves 1, 2,10, 11, 14, 21, 34, 35, 66, and 67 are interesting, and from cave 35 there is a good view of the sea. To get here you get a suburban train (50 min) from Churchgate station to Borivli Station. You then get an auto-rickshaw or taxi (8 km) to the caves. You should bring water with you as the stalls there sell only cold drinks.
There is a Lion Safari Park at Krishnagiri Upavan National Park near the caves. You have to get there by auto-rickshaw, either from the caves or the train station.
ISKCON Temple
Located on four acres of land in Bombay's picturesque Juhu Beach, ISKCON's Hare Krishna Land includes a spacious marble temple, theater, restaurant, Bhaktivedanta Institute, and a twin-towered seven-storied hotel. The project cost more than $2 million dollars in 1976 and took nearly three years to build.
The main Deities of the temple on the center altar are Radha-Rasabihari and the two gopis Lalita and Visakha. Rasabihari is a name for Krishna that means "the enjoyer of the transcendental rasa dance". On the right altar are Sita-Rama, Their servant Hanuman, and Rama's brother Laksmana. On the left altar are Lord Nityananda and Lord Caitanya. At Their feet sit Srila Prabhupada, Founder-Acarya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, and his spiritual master, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur.
There is an excellent vegetarian restaurant and a maha-prasada booth here.
To get there from downtown you take either an express train from Churchgate Station to Andheri Station or a local train to Vile Parle Station, which is closer to downtown, but is only served by local trains. You then take an auto-rickshaw the rest of the way. Most of the rickshaw drivers know the temple as the "Hare Krishna Mandira, ISKCON".
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