Hindu Temple, Dubai

About Hindu Temple, Dubai

The Hindu Temple in Jebel Ali, Dubai, opened in 2022 in the city's 'worship village', where it stands alongside other places of worship. Its main deity is Shiva, worshipped as a linga, and the temple houses sixteen deities in all — including Ganesha, Ayyappan, Guruvayurappan, Vishnu, Lakshmi, Rama, Krishna, Venkateshwara, Durga, Murugan, Mookambika, Hanuman, Jhulelal, Jalaram Bapa and Sai Baba — reflecting the many communities of Dubai's Indian population. A knowledge room keeps the four Vedas beside images of Saraswati and Vyasa.

The design blends Indian and Arabic styles: carved pillars, Sri Yantra lattice screens, an Arabic mashrabiya façade and nine brass kalashas on the domes. The main prayer hall on the first floor has 108 brass bells and a pink lotus sculpture, and opens onto a terrace with a tulsi plant where yajnas are performed. The marble murtis were carved in Jaipur, Kanyakumari and Madurai.

At busy times the temple has used online time-slot booking for visitors, especially around Diwali — check its official channels for the current process and dress code before you go.

History

Hindu worship in Dubai began in 1958, when Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum allowed a temple complex on the first floor above the old souk in Bur Dubai, housing Shiva and Krishna shrines and a Gurdwara. The new Jebel Ali temple, costing about 60 million dirhams, opened on 5 October 2022 at Dussehra–Diwali time. The Bur Dubai Shiva temple closed in January 2024 and its services moved to Jebel Ali; the Krishna temple remains in Bur Dubai.