Belur Math, Monastery in Howrah, India

Belur Math is the headquarters of the Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission in Belur, Howrah, on the west bank of the Hooghly River. Its 16-hectare campus holds temples to Ramakrishna, Sarada Devi and Swami Vivekananda, a museum and the main monastery. The Ramakrishna Temple, 34.3 metres high and built of chunar stone, has a central dome modelled on Florence Cathedral's Duomo, a facade drawing on the Sanchi stupa and Ajanta, and a ground plan shaped like a Christian cross.

Swami Vivekananda founded the monastery in the late 19th century as headquarters for the Ramakrishna Mission. The complex became the starting point for spreading Vedanta philosophy and spiritual education across India and worldwide.

The complex takes its name from the village where it stands and shows architecture that merges different religious traditions into a single structure. Inside the central temple, monks and visitors gather daily for shared prayers and chanting.

Local trains and buses bring visitors to the entrance, which sits within walking distance from the riverbank. The site opens daily in the morning and closes in the evening, with temples feeling especially calm during prayer times.

The Ramakrishna Temple's design was meant to resemble a temple, a mosque or a church depending on the viewer's position. Its central dome draws on the Duomo of Florence, the entrance on Sanchi and Ajanta, and the ground plan is a Christian cross. The three umbrella-like domes recall the thatched roofs of Kamarpukur, Ramakrishna's birthplace.