The Largest Sikh Gurdwara in Scotland – and is thought to be one of the largest faith buildings of any kind in the country.
It took six years to build the £8million Singh Sabha Gurdwara in Finnieston, Glasgow, and it was 10 years in the planning.
Among those attending the official opening is First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.
The building has classrooms, a library, office and a ceremonial pool, as well as areas for worship. When it’s not being used for worship by the country’s 10,000 Sikhs, the gurdwara will be open to everyone seven days a week, in keeping with the religion’s philosophy to provide a service to the community.
That spirit was apparent yesterday when the invitation to attend the opening of the gurdwara – which means house of god – was extended to the whole community.
The lavishly decorated temple was built on a site that was part of Glasgow Eye Infirmary which was destroyed by fire in 1971 and later used as a car park.
Almost all the materials used in the construction were imported from India.
Scotland’s first Gurdwara was opened in 1947 by a small Sikh community, including the late Hansa Singh, whose son Ranbir Singh was at the ceremony.
He said: “My father would have been so proud to see the opening of the new Gurdwara and the raising of the Nishan Sahib in the Gurdwara forecourt, a right which he campaigned for in the early years.
“This is the sign of progress and it is incredibly beautiful to see.”