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'Akshardham' means the divine abode of God. It is hailed as an eternal place of devotion, purity and peace. Swaminarayan Akshardham at New Delhi is a Mandir – an abode of God, a Hindu house of worship, and a spiritual and cultural campus dedicated to devotion, learning and harmony. Timeless Hindu spiritual messages, vibrant devotional traditions and ancient architecture all are echoed in its art and architecture.The mandir is a humble tribute to Bhagwan Swaminarayan (1781- 1830), the avatars, devas and great sages of Hinduism. The traditionally-styled complex was inaugurated on 6 November 2005 with the blessings of HH Pramukh Swami Maharaj and through the devoted efforts of skilled artisans and volunteers.

Each element of Akshardham echoes with spirituality – the Mandir, the Exhibitions and even the Gardens.

The Akshardham mandir has over two hundred murtis, representing many of the spiritual stalwarts over many millennia. The spiritual premise of Akshardham is that each soul is potentially divine.

Architecturally, the mandir is an homage to traditional Indian Hindu architecture. It is designed with an eye to The ancient and middle-agemedieval Indian treatises on architectural science, - the shilpa shastras, have guided the mandir’s design and construction from its distinctive style of carving and its proportions to its avoidance of .

Accordingly, the mandir is made without the use of ferrous metal in construction.

The Akshardham mandir consists of 234 intricately carved pillars, 9 ornate domes, 20 quadrangle spires, and 20,000 statues of India’s Hinduism spiritual personalities. The mandir reaches 141.3 feet into the sky, spans 316 feet in width, and is 356 feet long.

Inside the mandir, each worshipfully carved pillar, ceiling and dome shares a story of devotion, offers darshan of a deity, or captures an incident from the life of Bhagwan Swaminarayan.

The inner sanctum or garbhagruh of the Akshardham mandir is home to Bhagwan Swaminarayan and his divine succession of gurus - Gunatitanand Swami, Bhagatji Maharaj, Shastriji Maharaj, Yogiji Maharaj, and Pramukh Swami Maharaj.

As manifestations of Aksharbrahma, the gurus, as manifestations of Aksharbrahma, are God’s eternal servants and ideals of saintliness and devotion.

The interior of the Akshardham mandir can be divided into nine mandapams or thematic spaces. These nine mandapams are each filled with intricately carved murtis and pillars and capped by unique domes and ceilings. Travelling through these mandapams, one meets renowned devotees, great avatars and rejoicing celestial beings. The ornate designs and intricate carvings of the mandapams inspire reflection of God’s inconceivable beauty and the beauty he inspires in creation.

The external facade of a traditional stone temple is known as a mandovar. Swaminarayan Akshardham's mandovar is the largest, most intricately carved mandovar built in India in the last eight hundred years. It is 25 feet high, 611 feet long and features 200 sculptured stone figures of many of Hinduism’s great rishis, sadhus, devotees, acharyas and avatars.