MISSISSAUGA: Ram Mandir on Derry Road in Mississauga is a unique religious place.
Besides serving as a spiritual place for the Hindu community, it also runs services and programs to meet the social and cultural needs of all segments of the local Hindu community.
This place is spick and span. Very orderly. Everything here runs like clockwork.
“Even on our busiest day of Maha Shivratri when we get 10,000 to 15,000 devotees, you won’t notice anything disorderly. Everything here runs smoothly. And cleanliness is God for us. You might have noticed how neat this temple is,” says chief priest Pandit Roopanauth Sharma who manages this place with four dedicated priests and other support staff.
“Ram Mandir is not associated with any particular Hindu community. Devotees of all backgrounds – India, Fiji, Guyana, Trinidad, South Africa, Suriname, etc., all come to pray here,” adds Sharma who himself comes from Guyana.
Not surprisingly, this temple – where about 5,000 devotees pray each week – was started by Sharma and about a dozen Hindu families from Guyana and Trinidad when they bought an industrial unit at Timberlea Blvd, Mississauga, in the 1980s to meet their spiritual needs.
Then they bought this piece of land in 1998 and Ram Mandir shifted to its current location in 2000.
“When we bought this 2.5-acre plot for $500,000, we had just $10,000 in the bank. But thanks to three guarantors from our community, we took out a mortgage to buy this property,” says Sharma.
But they never borrowed from any bank to build this temple. Instead, they went to the bank after the temple was built, so as to repay the interest-free loans and establish credit credentials.
“At our bhoomipujan (groundbreaking) ceremony in 2019, we appealed to people if they could lend us money interest free to build this temple. They responded very well,” he says.
The then Mississauga Mayor Hazel McCallion too came for the groundbreaking ceremony in 2019.
The temple was designed by architect Desmond Roy Chaudhary who actually visited India to see various Hindu temple structures before finalizing this design.
Built over 18,000 square feet, this temple has no pillars, giving the visitors a very sense of space.
Sharma, who had a highly successful corporate career before he took up full-time responsibility of this temple about 10 years ago, says Ram Mandir has never done any fund-raising for the past 15 years.
“We always had excellent cash flow that met all of our financial needs.”
To mark its 25th anniversary next year, Ram Mandir will install a 15-feet high idol of Lord Ganesha on its patio.
“We will be spending $850,000 to cover the patio for the installation of Lord Ganesha’s idol this year in June-July,” says Sharma.
Open from 7.30 am to 9 pm everyday, the temple with its diverse activities in spiritual, social, cultural, and senior care programs, fulfils the needs of the Hindu community in the adjoining areas of Mississauga and Brampton.
Registered as a religious charitable organization, it has 14 elected and six nominated directors to run its affairs.
Interestingly, the temple has over 500 registered volunteers who help it during the big festivals. Even the GTA’s four community colleges run their co-op programmes with the temple to get training for their students in project management and social work.
Apart from the regular rituals (havan, yagna, kirtan and pooja), the temple elaborately celebrates Ram Navami, Navratri, Diwali, Hanuman Jayanti, Ganesh Chaturthi, Janmashtami and other important Hindu festivals.
“But Shivratri is our biggest celebration of the year as thousands of devotees come here,” says Sharma.
More than being a spiritual place, this temple also caters to the educational, social and cultural needs of all segments of the community.
It provides learning opportunities to the youth in dance, vocal and instrumental music by professionally trained teachers. Hindu scriptures are also taught by the priests at the temple.
The temple also engages community members for a healthy dialogue on subjects pertaining to religious beliefs and spreads the message of brotherhood by debunking the myths about Hinduism.
Started with 15 kids, its Bal Vikas Programme has over 70 kids registered for the program in the current session.
Paid summer camps for kids from age group of 5-12 are also run here, with the focus on prayers, yoga, meditation, language learning (Hindi, English French), dance training and arts and crafts skills. These camps also teach them about the Ramayana, the Mahabharata and the Gita through story-telling methods.
The temple also runs specialized programmes – outside physical activities, tours, yoga and meditation – for seniors to keep them engaged. A senior club helps them with counselling if needed.
Apart from this, seniors also benefit from its free meals programmes. Free food is delivered at their homes on Tuesday and Sunday as well as served at the temple on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
One of the largest donors of food to the Mississauga Food Bank, Ram Mandir joined hands with the Canada India Foundation during the COVID pandemic to deliver free dry rations at the doorstep of the needy people.
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