Located on the North Island of New Zealand, Rotorua is a small lakeside city known for its indigenous Maori culture. On Saturday, 8 September 2012, Rotorua saw the opening of its first Hindu Mandir in the form of the new BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir. This marked the opening of the fourth BAPS Mandir in New Zealand.
Devotees and well-wishers from Auckland, Wellington, Hamilton, Taupo, Tauranga and other surrounding areas joined local families to take part in a mahapuja ceremony and assembly in the presence of Jnanpurush Swami and Adarshmuni Swami. One of the community leaders in attendance, Dr Guna Magesan from the Hindu Council of New Zealand said, “I am so glad that BAPS has now opened a new mandir in Rotorua. This will help the whole community to come together and partake in religious activities which is so important to all of us.”
President of the Indian Association of Rotorua, Mr Shashi Patel, also addressed the assemby saying, “I warmly welcome the new Swaminarayan Hindu Mandir by BAPS because it means a lot to the community… and teaches our younger generation about our roots.”
The new mandir, inspired by Pramukh Swami Maharaj, will promote goodness in society and preserve Hindu culture. A Vedic murti-pratishtha ceremony will take place at the mandir in the near future.