Role of Devalayas
A temple integrates the community and is the binding force that promotes unity in society. The Hindu temple is a vast and complex adhyatmik, religious, cultural and socio-economic entity. As the scholar of Hindu architecture Adam Hardy notes: “The foundation and endowment of temples played a central role in the development of state and society. Temples became social and educational centres, and important economic institutions — landowners, employers, moneylenders and dispensers of charity. They were a canvas for the visual arts, a stage for the performing arts.”
The temples also functioned as a social security system, helping in times of emergencies like floods, famines and epidemics, and supporting the poorest sections of society. Till Bharat’s independence, they served as judicial arbitrators for the rural population. There are more than 6,49,000 temples in India, with 53 temples for every one lakh persons. Tamil Nadu emerges as the ‘temple state’ with 79,154 temples — 103 temples for every one lakh people.
Conclusion
The centrality of the Hindu temple in the social life of the community cannot be stressed enough. Over the centuries, due to the destruction brought by invaders, the Hindu temple fell into neglect. It is only now that the world is waking up to the wonder that is the Hindu temple.
Kovil Konda Thamizhagam is an effort by Aram Valartha Naayaki Sevai Maiyam — a team inspired, trained and having worked under Swami Dayananda Saraswathi — to bring back the age-old practice of making the temple a charging centre for people to carry out their day-to-day work effectively. The temple should once again be a central point in people’s lives so that all communities prosper and the temples flourish alongside them. We invite you to be a part of this great endeavour of rejuvenating our temples.