Ayodhya's grand ceremony: Lord Ram to receive offerings

AYODHYA: As Ayodhya prepares for the grand consecration ceremony next month, Lord Ram is set to get special offerings from the places of his maternal grandparents and his in-laws in Chhattisgarh and Nepal.

This includes around three thousand quintals of rice from his maternal grandparents' place in Chhattisgarh's Chandkhuri and around 1100 plates from his in-laws' place in Nepal's Janakpur, sources said on Thursday.

While Chandkhuri is considered the home of Lord Ram's maternal grandparents, Janakpur, a center for religious and cultural tourism in Nepal, is considered to be the birthplace of Lord Ram's wife Sita.

Around 3 thousand quintals of rice from Chhattisgarh's Chandkhuri, and clothes, fruits, and 1100 plates from his in-laws' place in Nepal's Janakpur, will be sent for Lord Ram as special offerings for the inauguration ceremony of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya on January 22, 2024, said sources.

Nepal will also send special souvenirs consisting of various types of jewelry, utensils, clothes, and sweets for the event, they added.

Apart from this, a bell weighing 2100 kg, made of 'ashtadhatu' from Etah district, a 108-foot-long incense stick from Vadodara, Rs 2 crore, and a gold bow and arrow worth Rs 5 lakh from Mahabir Trust in Patna would also reach Ayodhya, sources added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to attend the consecration ceremony of the Ram Temple on January 22. Preparations are underway in full swing for the event, which will draw dignitaries and people from all walks of life.

As per temple officials, the consecration ceremony will be held over a span of seven days starting from January 16. On January 16, the host appointed by the temple trust, Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra, will conduct the atonement ceremony.

The 'Dashvidh' bath, Vishnu worship, and offering of cow will be held on the banks of the Saryu River.

Following that, on January 17, a procession carrying the idol of Lord Ram in his child-like form (Ram Lalla) will reach Ayodhya. Devotees carrying Saryu water in Mangal Kalash will be reaching the Ram Janmabhoomi temple.

On January 18, formal rituals will kick off with the Ganesh Ambika puja, Varun puja, Matrika puja, Brahmin Varan, and Vastu Puja.

On January 19, the holy fire will be lit, followed by the establishment of 'Navagraha' and a 'havan' (holy ritual surrounding the fire).

The sanctum sanctorum of the Ram Janmabhoomi temple will be washed with Saryu water on January 20, after which the Vaastu Shanti and 'Annadhivas' rituals will take place.

On January 21, the Ram Lalla idol will be bathed in 125 urns and will finally be laid to rest. On the final day, January 22, after the morning puja, the deity of Ram Lala will be consecrated in 'Mrigashira Nakshatra' in the afternoon.

Speaking about the Ram Temple, Union Minister Anurag Singh Thakur on Thursday said that the long wait of 450 years has come to an end, and the much-dreamt-of Ram Temple has come to completion.

"The long wait of 450 years has come to an end, and the grand Ram Temple that many generations of Indians had imagined or dreamed of has come to completion," Thakur said.

He said that people from every corner of the country who want to visit the Grand Ram temple will start coming after the consecration day and that devotees should come only after receiving proper information.

"Those who have received the invitation on January 22 must go for darshan, and after that, as soon as the temple opens to the public, people must come for darshan.

There should not be much crowd on the first day because there will be an event there. No one should be inconvenienced.

People should go to Ayodhya for darshan of Lord Shri Ram only after getting information," he said. Speaking about the projects undertaken by the Narendra Modi government in the field of religious tourism, the Union Minister said, "In the last 10 years, the Modi government has opened the Kartarpur Corridor, built the ropeway to Hemkund Sahib, and constructed the Buddhist Circuit.

After the divine and grand Somnath Dham, Kashi Vishwanath Dham, Kedarnath Dham, and Mahakal Lok, now the divine and grand Ayodhya Dham has been constructed."

"When crores of people come here to have darshan of Lord Ram, then the construction of Ayodhya Dham, which is going on, will help.

The railway junction there is named after Lord Ram. A new airport has been completed so that people can commute conveniently," he added.