Raising the roof in Switzerland

Building work on our new temple and retreat space is now underway.
The temple is near the village of Fideris, in the Swiss Alps – get a birds eye view on Google maps.

Since 1984, Guru and members of the Community have been hosting spiritual seminars with a group of Swiss devotees, known formally as the Swiss Association of Skanda Vale. After years of planning and saving, in 1994 the group purchased a mountain chalet as a permanent seminar venue, with the long-term aim of converting it into a temple. Last year we consecrated the foundations of the chalet with a yagam ceremony. Watch a video of the consecration ceremony.

Earlier this summer, members of Swiss Association began construction work to extend the chalet. The new temple space will be on the top floor of the building. The most demanding part of the project involves raising the roof to provide a suitable space for a gopurum; the roof then extends outside, providing a canopy to cover our newly installed murthi of Lord Ganesh.

Progress has been rapid and, as you can see from the picture below, the standard of workmanship has been typically, awesomely, Swiss!