Our Ram Lalla will no longer live in a tent: Modi after ‘Pran Pratishtha’ ceremony

 CHENNAI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses people after the ‘Pran Pratishtha’ ceremony at the Ram Janmaboomi temple in Ayodhya and said that from now on Ram Lalla will no longer live in a tent and will now stay in this divine temple.

"'After centuries of waiting, our Ram is here. Our Ram Lalla will no longer live in a tent, he will now stay in this grand divine temple. The sunrise of January 22 has brought a wonderful glow. January 22, 2024, is not a date written on the calendar. It is the origin of a new time cycle," he said.

"Today, I also apologise to Lord Shri Ram. There must be something lacking in our effort, sacrifice and penance that we could not do this work for so many centuries. Today, the work has been completed. I believe that Lord Shri Ram will definitely forgive us today," he added.

The PM also thanked the judiciary for “upholding the honour of justice”.

"The legal battle over the existence of Lord Ram went on for decades. I would like to express my gratitude to the judiciary of India for doing justice. In that period, the separation lasted only for 14 years. In this era, Ayodhya and the countrymen have endured hundreds of years of separation. Many of our generations have suffered this separation," he said.

"I have firm belief and immense faith that today, the devotees of Prabhu Ram are completely absorbed in this historic moment. The devotees of Prabhu Ram, in every corner of the country and the world, are deeply feeling this. This moment is divine and this moment is the holiest of all," Modi stated.

"This temple is not just a temple of god. This is the temple of India’s vision, India’s philosophy, India’s direction. This is a temple of national consciousness in the form of Ram. Ram temple’s construction reflection of Indian society’s maturity; it’s an occasion of not merely triumph but humility too," he further said.

The PM also asked people, who would say that the temple's construction will set off firestorm, to reconsider Ram as energy and not fire and solution not dispute. "Ram temple's construction reflection of Indian society's maturity.l it's an occasion of not merely triumph but humility too," he said.

He also said that over the last 11 days, he had the opportunity to listen to Ramayana in different languages and in different states.

"Defining Lord Ram, saints have said that Lord Ram resides in everyone. People of every era have lived Lord Ram. People of every era have expressed Lord Ram in their languages," the PM said.

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat spoke before PM Modi said that India will soon become a nation that helps the entire world in times of crisis.

"I am given the task of talking sense amidst the talks of passion, said RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat during Ram temple inauguration in Ayodhya," he said.

"Today after 500 years, Ram Lalla has returned here and due to his efforts we are seeing this golden day today, we pay our utmost respect to him. The history of this era has so much power that whoever listens to the stories of Ram Lalla, all their sorrows and pains will be erased," Mohan Bhagwat added.

Earlier, the idol of Ram Lalla was unveiled at Ram Janmaboomi temple in Ayodhya in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. PM Modi led rituals at the Pran Pratishtha ceremony in the sanctum sanctorum of the grand temple.

The ceremony was held in presence of Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat.

From the sanctum sanctorum, Modi next headed for another location to address a gathering of about 8,000, which included seers, people linked to Ram Janmabhoomi movement and celebrities from fields like entertainment, sports and industry

The ceremony was attended by representatives of all major spiritual and religious sects of the country. People from all walks of life, including representatives of various tribal communities also attend the ceremony.

Senior BJP leaders, including party chief J P Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah watched the live streaming of the ceremony.

Top Opposition leaders skipped the ceremony. But Himachal Pradesh minister Vikramaditya Singh, who is the son of state Congress chief Pratibha Singh, arrived at the venue.

Fifty traditional musical instruments from across the country were part of a devotional ''Mangal Dhwani'' that resonated during the consecration ceremony.

Orchestrated by Ayodhya's celebrated poet Yatindra Mishra, the grand musical rendition was supported by New Delhi’s Sangeet Natak Akademi, New Delhi.

The instruments included pakhawaj, flute and dholak from Uttar Pradesh, veena from Karnataka, algoja from Punjab, sundari from Maharashtra, mardala from Odisha, santoor from Madhya Pradesh, pung from Manipur, nagada and kali from Assam and tambura from Chhattisgarh.

The run-up to the consecration ceremony, which takes place just months before the Lok Sabha elections, was marked by sparring between the ruling BJP and the Opposition.

The Opposition called it an RSS-BJP event.

The run-up to the temple’s inauguration – only the first phase of the construction is over at this stage – also saw much religious fervor.