Discover the history and architecture of the Lotus Temple in New Delhi, India, officially known as the Bahá’í House of Worship.

Designed by Iranian architect Fariborz Sahba, its 27 white marble petals transformed the sacred lotus into one of Delhi’s most recognizable landmarks.

This episode follows the project from the purchase of its site in Bahapur to Sahba’s search for a form that could represent spiritual unity without belonging to any single religion.

Explore the temple’s nine-sided plan, nine pools, natural cooling system and extraordinary concrete shell structure. Learn how engineers Flint and Neill calculated its complex curves, how Larsen & Toubro constructed them in reinforced concrete, and how Pentelic marble from the same quarries as the Pantheon in Greece, was cut in Italy before being assembled in India.

We also examine the Lotus Temple’s connection to Bahá’í architecture, its comparison with the Sydney Opera House, and how a building once considered virtually impossible to construct was completed in 1986 on time and below budget.

An episode for anyone interested in modern Indian architecture, structural engineering, sacred spaces, the Bahá’í faith, New Delhi history, or essential places to visit in Delhi.

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