Santa Barbara Temple

Quietly nestled against a scenic mountain range, the Vedanta Center in Santa Barbara overlooks the Pacific Ocean. A convent of nuns maintains the temple and bookstore and facilitates public activities on the property. Activities include daily worship, meditation, and vesper services, Sunday spiritual talks, scripture classes, and pujas (special worship services). The Society celebrates Durga Puja every year in the Santa Barbara temple. The activities of the temple will be shared digitally until further notice. Please check our upcoming events page for further information.

Dedicated in 1956, the temple has received several awards for its design and is a special point of interest for architects from around the world. The bookstore is open on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 11 am–5 pm, and Sunday from 10:30 am – 12:30 pm.

REACHING US:

You can reach the bookstore by following these directions:

From the 101: Take the Sheffield exit to reach the Vedanta Temple and the bookstore. You may want to check the best route before your visit.

Contact Information

927 Ladera Lane
Santa Barbara, CA 93108
(805) 969-2903
santabarbara@vedanta.org

Hours:

Monday – Sunday 6:30 am – 7:00 pm.

Sunday Talks are at 11:00 am, readings are at 5:00 pm Wednesday and Saturday. Worship is at 6:30 am and Vespers Service is at 6:00 pm daily.

We are streaming classes and talks on Zoom and YouTube.

Subscribe to Santa Barbara Email List:

Bookstore:

Thursday – Saturday 11:00 am – 5:00 pm

Sunday 10:30 am – 12:30 pm

925 Ladera Lane
Santa Barbara, CA 93108
Phone: (805) 969-5697
Email: sbbooks@vedanta.org or gifts@vedanta.org

The Bookstore at the Vedanta Temple is located next to the temple. It is well-stocked with religious classics and hard-to-find books on the major religions of the world. The store also carries incense, religious statues, music, and imported gifts.

Visit the Bookstore website at www.vedantabookstore.com

Calendar of Events

Sun	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat
	October 2026
				1	2	3 Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Santa Barbara Temple October 3, 2026 @ 5:00 pm - 5:30 pm We will be reading The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. You can join us in person, or you can join us online. Join us on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/santabarbaravedantatemple Contact sbnews@vedanta.org for zoom information.
4 Sunday Talk: In the Middle of What? Sunday Talk: In the Middle of What? Santa Barbara Temple October 4, 2026 @ 11:00 am - 12:00 pm Speaker: Swami Chidbrahmananda We have Sunday school in person only, for kids ages 4 and up. You can join us in person, or you can join us online. Join us on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/santabarbaravedantatemple Contact sbnews@vedanta.org for zoom information.	5 Temple Closed Due to Recarpeting Temple Closed Due to Recarpeting Santa Barbara Temple October 5, 2026 - October 9, 2026 @	6	7 Cancelled Due to Recarpeting. They Lived with God by Swami Chetanananda Cancelled Due to Recarpeting. They Lived with God by Swami Chetanananda Santa Barbara Temple October 7, 2026 @ 5:00 pm - 5:30 pm Class is cancelled this week due to Temple re-carpeting.	8	9	10 Karma Yoga Day Karma Yoga Day Santa Barbara Temple October 10, 2026 @ 9:15 am - 2:00 pm Please join us in work as worship at the convent. Join us for coffee in the convent around 9/ 9:15, and we will start assigning jobs. If you work with us in the morning, please join us for lunch in the convent at 1 pm. 9:15 am Coffee and Job assignment 12 pm Meditation 1 pm Lunch To understand more about the idea of Karma Yoga, please read this talk by Swami Vivekananda, "The Ideal of Karma Yoga." Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Santa Barbara Temple October 10, 2026 @ 5:00 pm - 5:30 pm We will be reading The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. You can join us in person, or you can join us online. Join us on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/santabarbaravedantatemple Contact sbnews@vedanta.org for zoom information.
11 Sunday Talk: Music, Emotions, and Spiritual Practice Sunday Talk: Music, Emotions, and Spiritual Practice Santa Barbara Temple October 11, 2026 @ 11:00 am - 12:00 pm Speaker: Swami Atmavidyananda We have Sunday school in person only, for kids ages 4 and up. You can join us in person, or you can join us online. Join us on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/santabarbaravedantatemple Contact sbnews@vedanta.org for zoom information.	12	13	14 They Lived with God by Swami Chetanananda They Lived with God by Swami Chetanananda Santa Barbara Temple October 14, 2026 @ 5:00 pm - 5:30 pm We will be reading the book "They Lived with God" by Swami Chetanananda. Join us on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/santabarbaravedantatemple Contact sbnews@vedanta.org for zoom information.	15	16	17 Durga Puja Durga Puja Santa Barbara Temple October 17, 2026 @ 11:00 am - 3:00 pm Durga Puja Followed by flower offering and prasad lunch You can join us in person, or you can join us online. Join us on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/santabarbaravedantatemple
18 Sunday Talk: “I am the Born, I am the Unborn” Sunday Talk: “I am the Born, I am the Unborn” Santa Barbara Temple October 18, 2026 @ 11:00 am - 12:00 pm Speaker: Swami Sarvadevananda We have Sunday school in person only, for kids ages 4 and up. You can join us in person, or you can join us online. Join us on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/santabarbaravedantatemple Contact sbnews@vedanta.org for zoom information.	19 Sandhi Puja 10:27 to 11:15 AM Sandhi Puja 10:27 to 11:15 AM Santa Barbara Temple October 19, 2026 @ 10:27 am - 11:15 am You can join us in person, or you can join us online. Join us on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/santabarbaravedantatemple	20	21 They Lived with God by Swami Chetanananda They Lived with God by Swami Chetanananda Santa Barbara Temple October 21, 2026 @ 5:00 pm - 5:30 pm We will be reading the book "They Lived with God" by Swami Chetanananda. Join us on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/santabarbaravedantatemple Contact sbnews@vedanta.org for zoom information.	22	23	24 Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Santa Barbara Temple October 24, 2026 @ 5:00 pm - 5:30 pm We will be reading The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. You can join us in person, or you can join us online. Join us on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/santabarbaravedantatemple Contact sbnews@vedanta.org for zoom information.
25 Sunday Talk: Aspects of the Divine Mother Sunday Talk: Aspects of the Divine Mother Santa Barbara Temple October 25, 2026 @ 11:00 am - 12:00 pm Speaker: Pravrajika Vrajaprana We have Sunday school in person only, for kids ages 4 and up. You can join us in person, or you can join us online. Join us on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/santabarbaravedantatemple Contact sbnews@vedanta.org for zoom information.	26	27	28 They Lived with God by Swami Chetanananda They Lived with God by Swami Chetanananda Santa Barbara Temple October 28, 2026 @ 5:00 pm - 5:30 pm We will be reading the book "They Lived with God" by Swami Chetanananda. Join us on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/santabarbaravedantatemple Contact sbnews@vedanta.org for zoom information.	29	30	31 Imitation of Christ - Swami Yogatmananda Imitation of Christ - Swami Yogatmananda Santa Barbara Temple October 31, 2026 @ 9:30 am - 4:30 pm Swami Yogatmananda, Head of the Vedanta Society of Providence, RI, will give this talk. You can join us in person, or you can join us online. Join us on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/santabarbaravedantatemple Contact sbnews@vedanta.org for zoom information.