Hyderabad: Ayodhya Shri Ram Mandir “Pran Pratishtha” ceremony (consecration) in Uttar Pradesh has gripped the country including Telangana State.
While all eyes are on the Ayodhya ceremony, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has begun door-to-door distribution of postcards of Shri Ram Janambhoomi Mandir, Ayodhya, the birthplace of Lord Rama and programme details to the people in Hyderabad and other parts Telangana State.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi who is leading the prestigious programme, which drew flak and boycott calls from I.N.D.I.A alliance members for politicising it on the eve of general elections, is trying to make it a national and international memorable event.
Ram Lalla Virajman, the infant form of Rama, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu, is the presiding deity of the temple. According to the ancient Indian epic Ramayana, Lord Rama was born in Ayodhya.
Pran Pratishtha on Jan 22 at 12.20 pm
The Prime Minister will install the idol of Ram Lalla (infant Lord Ram) at its original place, according to Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra treasurer Swami Govind Dev Giri Maharaj. The ‘Pran Pratishtha’ will take place at 12.20 pm on January 22.
VHP, which is coordinating the programme across the country including Telangana State, has begun distribution of the temple post cards and invitation cards to households in Hyderabad and other parts of Telangana State.
Dr Ravinuthala Shashidhar, VHP Joint Secretary told Siasat.com that VHP is distributing the programme material in 12,801 villages in Telangana and 6.54 lakh villages in the country.
“We are distributing Sri Rama Janma Bhoomi Tirtha Keshtra photo cards, pamphlets etc. to all the households in the State and also coordinating visits by devotees to Ayodhya. Given the heavy rush, the Telangana State delegation has been allotted a slot on February 18 for a Temple visit. We are leading a delegation of 2000 devotees,” Dr Shashidhar disclosed.
Over 6000 special guests
Shri Ram Mandir consecration ceremony in Ayodhya on January 22 led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi is turning out to be one biggest power packed event in the annals of the country, with over 6,000 sages and saints, political and other bigwigs invited. The main invitation cards have created curiosity.
The booklets have profiles of key persons involved in the Ram Janambhoomi movement.
Lakhs of devotees are expected in Ayodhya for the consecration ceremony and subsequently. Centre and Uttar Pradesh government have made elaborate security arrangements for the success of the programme and to ensure smooth darshan for devotees on the D Day.
It is said that about 7,000 kg of “Ravva halwa” will be prepared as an offering to Ram Lalla and it will be then distributed amongst the devotees.
Akshat distribution
The organisers have begun distribution of ‘Akshat’ (rice mixed with turmeric and ghee) among 5 crore households across the country, ahead of the consecration ceremony.
General Secretary of Ram temple trust Champat Rai, the volunteers of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and Vishva Hindu Parishad are coordinating and asking people to gather at temples in their neighbourhood, organise havan and puja while reciting the name of Lord Ram at least 108 times on the consecration day.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi appealed to the people to light special diyas (lamps) in their homes to celebrate the day of ‘Pran Pratishtha’ at the Ram temple as ‘Diwali’.
Public funded Ram Mandir at Ayodhya will be one of the unique temples in the world. The temple construction cost is estimated to be about Rs 1800 crore.
The materials used for construction of the temple come from all over the country so are the craftsmen from all communities including Muslims. The Chief Architect for the temple is Chandrakant B Sompura.
Influence of all States
The temple showcases a fusion of North and South, East and West architectural influences. The primary temple structure is carved from pink sandstone of Bharatpur in Rajasthan, teak sourced from Maharashtra forests and chiselled in Hyderabad, the 21-foot-thick plinth made up of Granite to protect the Temple from moisture comes from Karnataka and Telangana.
Temple doors from Hyderabad
There is a Hyderabad connection too. Anuradha Timbers International bagged the order to craft 18 doors of the temple including one for the sanctum sanctorum. The 8-foot-tall doors will be 12 feet wide and six inches thick.
2.77-acre temple site
The total area of the Ram Mandir at Ayodhya is 70 acres and the temple area is 2.77 acres. The dimensions of the temple are 250 feet wide, 380 feet long and 161 feet (49 m) high.
It will be the world’s third-largest Hindu temple designed in the Gurjara-Chaulukya style of Nagara style architecture, primarily found in northern India.
Noted construction company Larsen & Toubro (L&T) is constructing the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya free of charge and the offer was accepted by Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust.
The idol of Ram Lalla for the temple was done on December 29 2023 through a voting process. Karnataka-based sculptor Arun Yogiraj created the idol of Lord Rama.
The Bhumi puja (ground breaking ceremony) for the commencement of the construction of Ram Mandir was performed on August 5, 2020 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Temple construction is supervised by Shri Ram Janambhoomi Teertha Kshetra Trust.
All communities contribute
Nearly all communities are involved in the temple construction work including Muslims.
Two Muslim sculptors from the North 24 Parganas district in West Bengal have crafted idols of Lord Ram. Mohammed Jamaluddin and his son Bittu have been engaged in creating these magnificent statues that will adorn the temple complex.
The father-son duo’s work was discovered online, which led to them receiving an order from Ayodhya.
A Muslim family in Muzaffarnagar district donated private property worth Rs 90 lakh to CM Yogi Adityanath so did many others. The temple has become a cultural cauldron of the country.
