Pic of the Day

Houston is definitely a multi-cultural city.

The BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha, which is headed by Mahant Swami Maharaj, is a denomination of the Swaminarayan branch of Hinduism. It consists of a 11,500-square-foot (1,070 m2), 73-foot (22 m) tall open-air temple and a 25,620-square-foot (2,380 m2) surrounding deck. By July 2004 the cost to build the temple was $7 million at that time. The temple materials were carved out of Italian marble and Turkish limestone by 3,000 craftsmen in various parts of India. The pieces were shipped to Houston, and construction began in March 2002. 175 volunteers, including some individuals resident in India, came to the Houston area to help build the temple. Most of the labor was donated. The marble and limestone add up to 33,000 pieces.