Sri Vishnu Shiva Mandir (The Hindu Temple and Cultural Centre ACT)
Mawson, Canberra, Australia
- Deities
- Vishnu, Shiva, Ganesha, Krishna, Venkateswara (Balaji/Vishnu), Rama, Hanuman, Murugan
- Traditions
- vaishnava, shaiva
- Worship status
- active
- Address
- 82 Mawson Drive, Mawson, ACT 2607.
- Coordinates
- -35.3635, 149.096
- Darshan hours
- Monday-Friday evenings 6:00-8:00pm; Saturday-Sunday 10:00am-12:30pm and 6:00-8:00pm.
- Best time to visit
- Year-round; the temple observes Ganesh Chaturthi, Krishna Janmashtami, Onam Sadhya, Shiva Abhishekam ceremonies, and an annual Akhand Ramayan Paath (24-hour continuous Ramayana recitation).
- How to reach
- At 82 Mawson Drive in the Mawson suburb of Canberra, ACT, reachable by car or local bus.
- Festivals
- Ganesh Chaturthi (August/September), Krishna Janmashtami (August/September), Onam Sadhya (August/September), Akhand Ramayan Paath (varies)
Location
Open in Google MapsWidely regarded as among the first Hindu temples established in Canberra, Sri Vishnu Shiva Mandir — operating publicly as The Hindu Temple and Cultural Centre ACT — has served the Australian Capital Territory’s Hindu community since 1989 from its site at 82 Mawson Drive in the Mawson suburb. As its name indicates, the temple’s central dedication spans both Vishnu and Shiva, the two great devotional currents of Vaishnavism and Shaivism, with additional shrines reported for Ganesh, Krishna, Satyanarayana Swamy, Parvati, Murugan, Maha Devi, the Rama-Sita-Lakshman triad, Hanuman, and Venkateswara — a broad roster reflecting the pan-Indian character typical of diaspora temples serving a capital-city community drawn from across India’s regional traditions.
Beyond regular worship — daily puja conducted by a resident priest, with visiting pandits conducting festivals and utsavas in the Agama tradition — the centre operates as a genuine community hub: it houses a public library serving as a resource centre for South Asian art and literature, and offers yoga classes, language classes, hall bookings, and catering services. Its festival calendar includes Ganesh Chaturthi, Krishna Janmashtami, Onam Sadhya, periodic Shiva Abhishekam ceremonies, and an annual Akhand Ramayan Paath — a continuous 24-hour recitation of the Ramayana.
Sources
- historical record: Cross-checked directly against the temple's official website (vishnushivamandir.org.au), which confirms the address as 82 Mawson Drive, Mawson ACT 2607; daily puja conducted by a resident priest with visiting pandits for festivals and Agama-tradition utsavas; operating hours as Monday-Friday 6-8pm and weekends 10am-12:30pm plus 6-8pm; and services including yoga classes, language classes, hall bookings, catering, and a public library described as a major resource centre for South Asian art and literature. Confirms upcoming festival observances including Ganesh Chaturthi, Krishna Janmashtami, Onam Sadhya, Shiva Abhishekam, and an annual Akhand Ramayan Paath.
- historical record: Cross-checked against a general travel-guide secondary source describing the temple as founded in 1989 and among the first Hindu temples established in Canberra, with a deity roster including Ganesh, Krishna, Satyanarayana Swamy, Parvati, Murugan, Maha Devi, Rama/Sita/Lakshman, Hanuman, and Venkateswara alongside its namesake Vishnu and Shiva.
- historical record: Coordinates added this pass via OpenStreetMap/Nominatim geocoding of Mawson Drive in the Mawson suburb, ACT 2607 (approximately -35.3635, 149.0960); this is street-level, not building-exact, since a precise match for house number 82 specifically was not returned.
For review
- The temple's official website did not itself state a founding date or the full deity roster; the 1989 founding date and expanded deity list are sourced from a single secondary travel-guide source not independently cross-checked against a second source this pass.