Sri Meenakshi Temple (Pearland, Texas)

Sri Meenakshi Devasthanam
Religion
Affiliation	Hinduism
Deity	Meenakshi (Parvati)
Location
Location	Pearland, Brazoria County
State	Texas
Country	United States
Location in Texas
Geographic coordinates	29.522919144347274°N 95.297626°W / 29.522919144347274; -95.297626
Architecture
Architect(s)	S. M. Ganapathy Sthapathi
Type	Dravidian architecture
Completed	1982, 1995
Website
www.meenakshi.org

The Sri Meenakshi Temple (also called the Sri Meenakshi Devasthanam) is a Hindu temple located in Pearland, Brazoria County, Texas, within the Houston metropolitan area. The temple's presiding deity is Meenakshi Devi, an aspect of Parvati whose consort is Sundareswarar, an aspect of Shiva. Meenakshi Devi is also the presiding deity of the famous Meenakshi Temple in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India. The Sri Meenakshi Temple in Pearland is the only temple outside of India dedicated to Meenakshi Devi. Built in 1982 and designed by Indian architect S. M. Ganapathy Sthapathi in the South Indian Dravidian style of Hindu temple architecture, it is the third-oldest Hindu temple in the United States.

The temple's main shrine is dedicated to Meenakshi Devi, Sundareswarar, Venkateshwara (a form of Vishnu), and Lakshmi. Other shrines within the temple complex are dedicated to Ganesha, Rama, Ayappa, Durga, Nandi, and Garuda. In addition to the main shrine, the temple has four additional corner shrines – one at each corner. The temple also has sculptures of the Tamil Alwar and Nayanar poet-saints and gurus of Vedanta philosophy (Adi Shankaracharya, Ramanujacharya, and Madhvacharya).

The Sri Meenakshi Temple attracts Hindu devotees and visitors from across the Houston metropolitan area. It is considered one of Greater Houston's most prominent religious landmarks as well as a major visitor attraction in Pearland.

History

The Sri Meenakshi Temple Society was established in 1977. The land for the temple, a 5-acre site, was acquired between 1976 and 1978. A plan for the site was drawn up by Ranjit Banerjee, a professor of architecture at the University of Houston. The temple's first permanent structure was a Ganesha temple. The first Mahakumbhabhishekam (inauguration ceremony) for the main shrine, designed by Indian architect S. M. Ganapathy Sthapathi, was performed in 1982, making it the third-oldest Hindu temple in the United States. Fundraising campaigns for the temple often included prominent Indian classical musicl artists, including Parveen Sultana, M. Balamuralikrishna, Seerkazhi Govindarajan, and M. S. Subbulakshmi.

The temple expanded in subsequent years, with the rajagopuram and corner temples being completed in 1995. The Sri Meenakshi Temple's architecture reflects the Dravidian architectural style of South Indian Hindu temples.

Other facilities

In addition to the temple and other shrines, the Sri Meenakshi Temple is home to a peacock sanctuary, a kalyana mandapam (function hall), library, and a canteen that serves South Indian vegetarian food.