Minnesota Hindu Milan Mandir
![Satya Seat Satya Seat](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/fullsize/f3b05f1da194eabe18e8af40520dc733.jpg)
![Satya Seat Satya Seat](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/square_thumbnails/f3b05f1da194eabe18e8af40520dc733.jpg)
![Balroop Ashram Balroop Ashram](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/fullsize/7f53a982911f25e3a7d01e44d8b733c3.jpg)
![Balroop Ashram Balroop Ashram](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/square_thumbnails/7f53a982911f25e3a7d01e44d8b733c3.jpg)
![Satya Balroop Portrait Satya Balroop Portrait](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/fullsize/2e9d9d5b5a36c45878a4aaa14415ff62.jpg)
![Satya Balroop Portrait Satya Balroop Portrait](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/square_thumbnails/2e9d9d5b5a36c45878a4aaa14415ff62.jpg)
![A Minnesota Winter A Minnesota Winter](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/fullsize/0c1c54d02741bc0c14bb12b4904cbcb6.jpg)
![A Minnesota Winter A Minnesota Winter](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/square_thumbnails/0c1c54d02741bc0c14bb12b4904cbcb6.jpg)
![Minnesota Hindu Milan Mandir when it was located in the a converted garage of the founder's private home in Eagan, MN. Minnesota Hindu Milan Mandir when it was located in the a converted garage of the founder's private home in Eagan, MN.](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/fullsize/dd5bea68587739e7aada1646eff1a3fc.jpg)
![Minnesota Hindu Milan Mandir when it was located in the a converted garage of the founder's private home in Eagan, MN. Minnesota Hindu Milan Mandir when it was located in the a converted garage of the founder's private home in Eagan, MN.](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/square_thumbnails/dd5bea68587739e7aada1646eff1a3fc.jpg)
![Dholak Dholak](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/fullsize/aa263ee24e028b0deb54dc198eea573d.jpg)
![Dholak Dholak](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/square_thumbnails/aa263ee24e028b0deb54dc198eea573d.jpg)
![Mandir Back Mandir Back](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/fullsize/e15e70baaa510290bac3535902050b44.jpg)
![Mandir Back Mandir Back](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/square_thumbnails/e15e70baaa510290bac3535902050b44.jpg)
![Lingam Lingam](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/fullsize/7b1f448d79ed2b19179c109dbc9bd74f.jpg)
![Lingam Lingam](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/square_thumbnails/7b1f448d79ed2b19179c109dbc9bd74f.jpg)
![Guru Chair Guru Chair](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/fullsize/beed2931f457f742a40203f4996c188d.jpg)
![Guru Chair Guru Chair](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/square_thumbnails/beed2931f457f742a40203f4996c188d.jpg)
![Guru Poster Guru Poster](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/fullsize/49d0afbcc182c3d2f17946a712c00726.jpg)
![Guru Poster Guru Poster](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/square_thumbnails/49d0afbcc182c3d2f17946a712c00726.jpg)
![Guru Seat Guru Seat](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/fullsize/68a55eca1e25ad27818a76b101cc34af.jpg)
![Guru Seat Guru Seat](https://religionsmn.carleton.edu/files/square_thumbnails/68a55eca1e25ad27818a76b101cc34af.jpg)
The Minnesota Hindu Milan Mandir started out as a small gathering of devotees in a living room in the suburban neighborhood of Eagan, Minnesota. As it grew, the space was relocated into a garage. Today, it is a large temple housed in a converted church in Farmington, Minnesota. Formally, it is a branch of the Bharat Sevashram Sangha, which is a guru-based movement that was founded in 1917 in, what is now, Bangladesh. Swami Pranavananda Ji Maharaj, a spiritual ascetic who is believed by devotees to be an incarnation of Lord Shiva.
Bharat Sevashram Sangha was established in Guyana in the 1950s with the intention of spreading the teachings of Guru Maharaj, as he is affectionately called; the movement emphasizes the development of an intimate relationship with God and the realization that the divine power rests within every living being. Swami Maharaj also preached spiritual development through meditation and selfless service (seva) and at Milan Mandir he is worshiped as a divine guru.