Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Karachi

Shri Swaminarayan Temple, Karachi
"Karachi Mandir" by AroundTheGlobe via Wikipedia. 

The Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Karachi is a Hindu temple that belongs to the NarNarayan Dev Gadi of the Swaminarayan Sampraday and is the only Swaminarayan temple in Pakistan. The temple is notable for its size and frontage, over 32,306 square yards (27,012 m²) on the M. A. Jinnah Road in Karachi city. The temple celebrated its anniversary of 150 years in April 2004. It is believed that not only Hindus but also adherents of Islam visit the temple, which adds to its notability. There is a sacred cowshed within the premises of this temple. The temple is located at the centre of a Hindu neighborhood in Karachi. The building that housed a dharmshala (guest house) for visiting devotees has now been converted to the office of the City District Government.

According to the Pakistan Hindu Council, Swaminarayan Jayanti, Ram Navami, Janmastami, Dussehra, Diwali and almost all of the main religious festivals are celebrated by Hindus in this temple.. Holi is celebrated with the holi bonfire lit at the centre of the temple grounds, followed by the play with colours. Janmashtami is celebrated with singing bhajans and sermons on Krishna, while on Diwali, devotees light lamps and candles to welcome Rama from his fourteen-year exile, at the end of which he defeated Ravana and young men burst crackers at the temple on the occasion. The Holi festival celebrations that take place at this temple are the biggest in Karachi.

The temple also doubles as a marriage venue. In 2008, a mass wedding arrangement was made for 20 poor couples.

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Shri Laxmi Narayan Mandir, Karachi

Shri Laxmi Narayan Mandir in Karachi
"Shri Laxmi Narayan Mandir" by Saadullah Bhatti - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Shri Laxmi Narayan Mandir is a Hindu temple located in Karachi, Pakistan. According to the Pakistan Hindu Council, the temple was constructed around 200 years agoand is an important worshiping site for the Hindus of the local community. The Mandir is one of the oldest operating temples and the only one situated at the banks of a creek in Karachi.

Narayan Mandir is located under the Native Jetty Bridge, a landmark in Karachi, in the Sindh province of Pakistan. The temple overlooks the Arabian Sea which is an important place for many Hindu rituals.

The temple is primarily devoted to the Hindu goddess Lakshmi; however, it is also home to statues of Hanuman and Sai Baba of Shirdi. Main festivals celebrated in the temple are Ganesh Chaturthi, the birthday of Ganesha, and Raksha Bandhan. Hindus come to the temple to make offerings to the gods and to perform death rituals of Karni. The temple is a sacred place for offering Shraddha and placing murtis of Goddess Durga (after performing garba for nine days) and idols of Ganesha in the sea at the end of festivals of Nao Ratree and Ganesh Chaturthi respectively. Hindus dip and take baths in the waters of the Arabian sea for ritual purification. During monsoon season, Hindu women come to the temple for fasting and to pray for the well-being of their husbands.

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Saidpur Temple

Saidpur Temple
"Said Pur Village" by Xubayr Mayo - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Saidpur, apart from other structures of religious significance, boasts a shrine of Rama. Around 1580 AD, Akbar's trusted general Raja Man Singh stopped at Rawalpindi on his way to Kabul. One day, Said Khan took Raja Man Singh to the village for sightseeing. Raja Man Singh liked the village's serene atmosphere and decided to build a temple there. At that time there was a large Hindu population inhabiting the village. The general was fond of architecture and had built a number of temples in the Potohar area of Punjab. A haveli which he ordered at Rohtas Fort was said to be remarkable for its elegance.

In order to commemorate his visit to the village, Man Singh expressed his wish before Said Khan of erecting a temple, which Khan readily accepted. Man Singh willingly agreed on meeting all the expenses of the construction and its subsidiaries that included a two-roomed dharmshala (hostel or inn) and four ponds namely Ram Kund, Lakshman Kund, Sita Kund and Hanuman Kund, all named after the famous characters of the Ramayana epic.

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Hinglaj Mata

The Temple Cave of Hinglaj Mata, Hingol National Park

Hinglaj Mata, or Nani Mandir, is a temple situated in the town of Hinglaj, Balochistan. The site is a part of the Hinglaj National Park. The deity honoured is goddess Sati. 

The shrinewas formed in a narrow gorge on the bank's of Hingol river. It is a cave,  with a mud roof.  There is no man-made idol of goddess Sati. Instead, a shapeless rock is worshipped. 

There are many legends of Hinglaj Mata.  One of them pertains to the formation of the shrine. It is said that Sati and Vishnu married against the wishes of Sati's father, Daksha. Infuriated, he organised a yajna, and did not invite Sati and Vishnu. They still decided to go,  however. Daksha clashed with Shiva, and Sati,  strickened by grief, jumped into a pyre. 

Sati died, but her body did not burn. Shiva cut her body up into 52 pieces and scattered them in the universe. It is said that Sati's head landed in Hinglaj. 

Hinglaj is visited my many Hindu devotees. The local Muslims also worship and protect her, calling her Nani Mata.

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