History
Iraivan Temple was inspired by a vision of Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami in which he saw Lord Shiva walking on the land where the temple is now located. It is intended as a place of pilgrimage for Hindus worldwide. Subramuniyaswami set three parameters for its design and construction:
- that it follow traditional design according to the Saiva Agamas
- that it be designed to last 1,000 years
- that it be entirely carved by hand, without the use of any machinery.
The temple design was completed by Dr. V. Ganapati Sthapati in the late 1980s. Carving of the 3,000-plus blocks of granite commenced in 1990 at a worksite in Bangalore, India. Beginning in 2001, the stone were shipped to Kauai and assembly begun by a team of silpi temple carvers under the direction of a master architect or sthapati. The 3.2 million pound temple is expected to be completed in 2017.
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