Darya Lal Mandir (also known as Darya Lal Sankat Mochan Mandir) is a

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

temple in

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

. It is located near Custom House,

Saddar Town Saddar Town (صدر ٹاؤن) lies in the Karachi District (South), Karachi District South that forms much of the historic colonial core of Karachi, in the Sindh province of Pakistan. According to the 2023 Pakistani census, Saddar Subdivision ...

in the

Sindh Sindh ( ; ; , ; abbr. SD, historically romanized as Sind (caliphal province), Sind or Scinde) is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, southeastern region of the country, Sindh is t ...

Province of Pakistan. It is 300 years old. The temple is dedicated to Darya Lal ( Jhulelal), who is considered as incarnation of Varuna Deva.

History

The temple was constructed 300 years ago. The temple has a square shaped prayer area (40ft by 40ft). The temple was attacked in 1965 and in 1992 in retaliation of the Babri Masjid Incident. The temple became office of the transporting company. The temple was in a dilapidated condition and regular worshippers stopped coming.

Architecture

It was built using limestone and the Jung Shahi stone. The temple is 40 feet wide, 40 feet long and 40 feet high. There are 40 blue snakes painted at the top of the temple.

Renovation

In 2015, the temple was renovated as a part of Eduljee Dinshaw Road project. The façade of the temple was brought from India and during the renovation the dimensions of the temple were kept intact. The temple was then inaugurated by Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad on 13 December 2015.

Religious significance

The temple is dedicated to Darya Lal ( Jhulelal) who is an incarnation of Varuna Deva. The temple also hosts

Lord Hanuman Hanuman (; , ), also known as Maruti, Bajrangabali, and Anjaneya, is a deity in Hinduism, revered as a divine ''vanara'', and a devoted companion of the deity Rama. Central to the ''Ramayana'', Hanuman is celebrated for his unwavering devotio ...

and

Lord Ganesh Ganesha or Ganesh (, , ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped Deva (Hinduism), deities in the Hindu deities, Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in the Ganapatya sect. His depictions ...

. According to Gowswami Vijay Maharaj (caretaker of the temple), the temple hosts Lord Hanuman because when Hanuman flew to Lanka to save Sita from the clutches of Ravana over the sea, he was flying so fast that the Varuna Deva mounted his makara and asked who he was. After that every devotee who comes to worship Varuna Devta also pays their respects to Hanuman.

References

{{Hindu temples in Pakistan Krishna temples Hindu temples in Karachi Heritage sites in Karachi