Temple of Understanding / Sri Sri Radhanath Temple of Understanding

Temple of Understanding in Chatsworth

The Hare Krishna temple, known as the Sri Sri Radhanath Temple of Understanding, is found in the largely Indian area of Chatsworth roughly 20 kilometres south of the city of Durban. It is one of the major tourist attractions when in Durban and for a couple of very obvious reasons.

One is the incredible architecture of the temple - marble tiles, gold-tinted windows, brass ornaments, crystal chandeliers and golden statuettes are more than a little impressive, they are decadently lavish. The other reason is the excellent vegetarian restaurant at the temple. The Hare Krishna Temple was designed in the shape of a Lotus plant and built in 1969. It is regarded as the largest Hare Krishna temple in Africa, and it makes a fascinating visit, not least because of the beautiful gardens, which were added six years after the temple was built.

Enormous, colourful panels on the ceiling of the temple represent the pastimes of Lord Krishna, and imported Chinese lanterns and gold-plated rooftops add a further element of opulence. The restaurant is worth a visit alone. It offers an incredible range of Indian vegan foods and fresh fruit juices. It is also part of the non-profit Hare Krishna organisation, so the meals are inexpensive, and also provide food for the poor and destitute of the city.

Getting around Chatsworth can be pretty taxing, as it is given to circuitous routes and not easy to find your way, but the temple is well sign posted from the N2 freeway and along Ambassador Road.