According to Swami Vivekananda, the temples of Sri Ramakrishna should be built for enabling the devotees to advance spiritually for realizing the truth with no hatred towards other faiths. The guidelines for building the temple of Sri Ramakrishna at Belur Math were laid down by Swami Vivekananda himself. Keeping this as basic, various other architectural features familiar to the region are added while maintaining its universal outlook. So various architectural elements and motifs found in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain temples and the churches and cathedrals of Europe are synthesized in this Universal Temple.

Abutting the main road in the west, the imposing 60 feet wide entrance gateway is placed in such a manner that its centre line corresponds with the centre line of the temple. From this gateway it is possible to have not only the full view of the temple but also a partial view of the top part the Vimanam (central tower) over the Garbha Mandira (Sanctum Sanctorum). From the centre of this gate one can have a clear view of the marble image of Sri Ramakrishna installed in the shrine. The central part of the gateway is 20 feet wide on either side of which there is a whatchman cabin.

The whole structure of the gateway is designed in chaste Vijayanagar style belonging to the Dravidian idiom of temple architecture.

The treatment of this temple's forecourt is similar to the ones found in front of the monuments of Mughals at Agra and Delhi ie. Tajmahal, Itimad- ud-Daula and Akbar's Tomb in Agra, Red-fort at Delhi. It's 30 feet wide central lawn is flanked by 15 feet wide pathways paved with coloured ceramic tiles, and is well protected by an elegantly ornamented low parapet wall with eight light pedestals.

a) Swami Ramakrishnananda Auditorium

The floor of the prayer hall of the temple is at a height of 10 feet from the ground level. The space below the floor level of the prayer hall and other parts of the temple floor is used as auditorium and rooms for shrine purpose. The front part of the ground floor, right below the front portico and the entrance lobby of the prayer hall has space for keeping more than 2000 pairs of footwear. In the space below the central grandstaircase, facilities have been provided for the devotees for washing their feet.

The major part of the area below the prayer hall, has been developed as an auditorium which is intended for conducting spiritual talks, bhajans and such programmes. This auditorium is named after Swami Ramakrishnananda, a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna and the founder of Chennai Math. An ornamental wooden picture frame containing a potrait of Swami Ramakrishnananda is placed in the centre of the 40 feet wide stage. It is possible to accommodate 600 persons in this auditorium.

The service staircase in the rear of the ground floor provides access to all rooms in the rear of the Garbha Mandira and the central tower above the Garbha Mandira. In this floor an adequate number of rooms are set apart for carrying out the services connected with puja.

b) Central Stairway

Whenever temples are constructed in the midst of built up parts of human settlements (villages, towns and cities), the silpa sastras reccommend that the level of the temple floor should be higher than the ground floor level of the houses around it. This adds to the grandeur of the temple. The prayer hall of the Chennai temple is at a height of 10 feet from the level of the paved path around the temple. The prayer hall is to be approached by a 16 feet wide stairway having 24 steps and paved with marble slabs. The railing of the stairway is decorated with balusters resembling the water pot (Kamandalu) usually carried by wandering monks.

The side entrances of the prayer hall are also to be reached through 6 feet wide staircases, symmetrically placed on both sides of the temple. Their architectural treatment resembles the central stairway. On the two sides of the main stairway, two elegant pavilions, resembling the Mandapas, attached to the Garbha Mandiras of the small temples of Orissa, have been built according to the Kalinga idiom. These shelters are mainly intended for distributing Prasad to the devotees.

a) The Portico

The central stairway of this temple lands in the wide colonnaded portico through which devotees will have to enter the prayer hall. This portico which assumes the role of a Mukhamandapam of the traditional Hindu temple, is supported by four ornamental columns rising to a height of about 20 feet. This concept is inspired by the facades of the Saint Peter's Cathedral in Rome. The architectural motifs in these columns closely follow the ones found in Jain temples and the tombs and mosques of Gujarat.

For entering the prayer hall from the portico one will have to pass through a beautifully carved 8'.6" x 9'.0" wooden door. The symbols of several religions are prominently displayed on this door and they reveal that any person belonging to any religion, sect or creed is welcome to come to the prayer hall and participate in the prayer and worship.

The sun window over the ornamented architraves of the main door is similar to the sun window motif above the main entrance door of the Belur Math temple. The architectural composition of this part of the main entrance and the two side entrances to the prayer hall are based on the designs of the entrances of the Buddhist rock-cut Chaityas at Ajanta.

b) Prayer Hall

The plan of this temple with a long flight of steps in the front terminating at the wide colonnaded entrance portico, its rectangular prayer hall (60' x 110'), its square shrine and Puja-preparation rooms etc. resembles the plans of the cathedrals and churches of Europe conceived in the shape of the Latin cross.

As in the case of Buddhist Chaitya halls this prayer hall is divided into naves and aisles and the naves have a ribbed vaulted roof rising up to a height of 42 feet in the shape of a pointed arch resembling Anjali Mudra. The aisles of the prayer hall resemble the Parikrama path of the Buddhist Chaityas. Both the sides of the naves have a flat roof. The number of columns in the prayer hall is reduced to a minimum so that most of the people sitting there will have a clear view of the marble image of Sri Ramakrishna.

The portraits of sixteen disciples of Sri Ramakrishna with carved wooden frames are fixed to the four sides of the four central columns of the prayer hall.

Up to a height of 9 feet from the floor level, the dadoes of the interior walls and the architraves of the windows are clad with marble slabs and the floor of the prayer hall is paved with white marble slabs. The ornamentation of the high gable wall surfaces (28' x 22') in the eastern and western ends of the vault roof over the nave of the prayer hall is based on the rock-cut Bhima Ratha at Mahabalipuram, the gables in Gothic churches of Europe and Buddhist Chaityas.

The prayer hall is well lighted and ventilated by several large windows (3'.0"x6'.6") and 18 small windows (1'.6"x3'.0") in its vaulted roof. All these windows have been ornamented with circular arches and brackets resembling Panjara, Mukha Nasi, and Alpa Nasi motifs which are usually found in the Vimanas and Gopuras of South Indian temples. The prayer hall is also fitted with an adequate number of ceiling fans for air circulation and lights to provide soft illumination which will not distract those seated in meditation.

In short, one standing at the threshold of the main entrance, will be met with the inspiring view of an aesthetically enriched interior of the prayer hall focussing its lines towards the centre of the shrine.

c) Garbha Mandira

The central part of any Hindu temple is its Garbha Mandira. In this temple of Sri Ramakrishna, the Garbha Mandira is large and square in shape with each of its sides measuring 39 feet. The white marble image of Sri Ramakrishna is installed in the Garbha Mandira and in all respects it is identical with the one in the Belur Math temple. This is made by M/s. G. Paul & Sons who made the image at Belur Math. Sri Ramakrishna is seated on a fully bloomed lotus which is placed over a beautifully carved marble pedestal. This marble pedestal is placed in the rear half of the Garbha Mandira.

The beauty of the image is further enhanced by framing it by four columns which are fashioned after the graceful marble columns adorning the Maha-mandapas of the Jain Temples of Mount Abu, These columns support the richly decorated shallow central dome. All wall surfaces of the shrine, right from floor level, extending right up to the ceiling, are panelled with marble slabs.

For Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi and Swami Vivekananda, separate shrines are provided on either side of the Garbha Mandira. This is a special feature of the Sri Ramakrishna temple at Chennai. These shrines open on to the prayer hall.

a) Stone Slab Clothing the External Walls

The plain surfaces of all external walls are clad with sand stone slabs brought from Dolpur in Rajastan and Agra in Uttar Pradesh. The external plain surfaces of the walls are clad mainly with Dolpur white stone slabs. The treatment of the ornamental cornice (Prastara) at the top of all external walls, with 3 feet wide sloping weather shades supported by decorative brackets and 3'.6" high parapet walls above, with ornamental panels, are similar to the pattern found in the Belur Math temple. This architectural treatment is also influenced by the highly ornamented Prastharas of Tamil Nadu temples with Sala motifs, and the parapets of the ancient palaces and temples of Rajasthan with beautifully carved stone brackets.

b) Windows and Doors

The large prayer hall is provided with adequate light and air through windows and doors bigger than those which are usually found in traditional temples. The features of the Mukha Nasi, Alpa Nasi and Netra Koshta motifs which are found in the Vimanas of the rock temples of Pallavas at Mahabalipuram and the Chola temples built during the 10th and 11th centuries, have been adopted with necessary modifications and simplications. Certain features like those which have been adopted for decorating the windows of the Belur Math temple have also been introduced in this temple.

c) The Front Facade

The front facade for the temple which is set back by about 180 feet from the main road was shaped by synthesising various features of the European Cathedrals and some suitable motifs from Hindu temples.

The treatment of the part of the facade over the ornamental cornice consisting of wide weather shade and decorative parapet, closely follows the Salahara treatment usually found on the top of Mukha Mandapas of South Indian temples. The two end towers and the central rectangular tower forming part of the treatment of the upper part of the facade assume the place of the Karnakootas and Bhadrasalas which are also found in the upper parts of Mukha Mandapas. The small pavilions with pyramidal roofs existing in between the end and middle towers may be assumed to be the Kshudra Nasika motifs (with Netra Koshtas) of the South Indian temple Vimanas.

In the niches provided in the walls of the small towers at the top and also in the middle of the Bhadrasala like central tower in the front facade, the images of Durga, Hanuman, Vighneswara, Garuda and Kali are installed. The images of Sri Rama and Sri Krishna are placed in the niches in the western walls of the small towers with the pyramidal roof located in between the end and central towers. The design of the decorative lamp pedestals which are found at the head and the base of the staircase railings and also in many other parts of the temple is based on the design of Karnakoota motifs found in the Vimanas and Gopuras of Tamil Nadu temples.

The Vimana over the Garbha Mandira soaring up to a height of 102 feet is the climax of this majestic temple. The Bhavatarini (Kali) temple at Dakshineshwar which was built by Rani Rasmani, during the first half of the 19th century is a good example of Navaratna temples in Bengal. In this temple and its precincts Sri Ramakrishna spent the major part of his life. The features of this temple and the Belur Math temple are fused in the Universal Temple.

Tamils have their own cultural heritage and there is every justification in reflecting certain essential features of their culture in the religious edifices in Chennai the capital of Tamil Nadu. Hence the concepts of "Tritala Vimana" of the temples of Tamil Nadu, belonging to the Dravida idiom of temple architecture, have been introduced in designing the 102 feet high Vimana of this temple. The central tower or the Vimana takes the place of the Sikhara which is the crowning part of the Vimana. The small towers at the corners of the two receding floors of the Vimana below the crowning central dome represent the Karnakoota motifs of the South Indian temple Vimanas. The central rectangular miniature towers between the square miniature towers at the four corners of the second floor of the Vimana, resembling Chandi mandaps of Bengal, can be considered to be "Bhadrasala" of the Vimanas of Tamil Nadu temples.

In fact these small towers at the four corners of the two tiers of the Vimana are designed in the shape of temples with Eka Tala (single storeyed) Vimanas with Deva Koshtas (niches) where idols of subsidiary gods and goddesses are installed. These niches contain images of the Ashtadikpalakas ie Indra, Agni, Yama, Nirti, Varuna, Vayu, Kubera, Isana and also Vishnu, Dakshinamurthy, Surya, Rajarajeswari, Subrahmanya, Ganapati representing the Shanmatas as codified by Adisankara. The aim of this dominant feature of the temple is to make it look majestic and graceful like the bejewelled crown of the Lord.

The pinnacle of the central dome of the Vimanam consists of a 5 feet high lantern made of stainless steel, with a 3'.6" high gold coated copper Kalasa. During nights, this lantern may function as a light house indicating the very place where seekers of spiritual illumination can come for refuge.

(Excerpts from an article by Sri G. Venkataramana Reddy, the honorary chief architect of the Universal Temple.)