Jaipur sculptor carves out statue of Lord Ram on tip of pencil ahead of Ram Temple Pran-Pratishtha

JAIPUR: With the Pran-Pratishtha ceremony of Ram Lalla in Ayodhya all set to begin on Monday, a Guinness World Record-holder sculptor from here carved out a statue of Lord Ram on the tip of a pencil. The sculptor, Navaratna Prajapati, took five days to complete it. The statue, just 1.3cm in height, is the smallest one in the world, says Prajapati.

"It took me 5 days to complete it. And it is just 1.3cm in height. This is the smallest statue in the world," Prajapati told ANI. "I will gift this to the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust and try to get it a place in the Shri Ram museum," he added. Ahead of the Pran-Pratishtha ceremony, Lord Ram devotees across the country made offerings to the temple. On Saturday, the world's largest lock, weighing 400 kg, and 1,265 kg of laddu Prasad reached Ayodhya.

Both are offerings to the temple. While the lock is from Aligarh, the ladus are from Hyderabad. But what is in common between the two is the devotion of the people associated with them to Lord Ram. The laddu prasad was made by Sri Ram Catering Services in Hyderabad. Nagabhushanam Reddy, the owner of the catering services, talked about the laddoo prasad and the story behind it while speaking to ANI as he reached Ayodhya. "God has blessed my business and my family. I had pledged to prepare 1 kg of laddoo for each day till I am alive," Nagabhushanam Reddy told ANI.

"I have brought a food certificate as well. These laddus can last one month. 25 men prepared the laddoos for 3 days," he added. The lock was made two years ago by an elderly couple, Satya Prakash Sharma and his wife Rukmini Sharma, who were residents of Norangabad, Aligarh. Satya Prakash Sharma passed away recently. His wish was that this lock should be gifted to Ayodhya Ram Mandir. A host of leaders and dignitaries from all walks of life have been invited to the grand temple opening in Ayodhya.

Vedic rituals for the Pran-Pratishtha ceremony of Ram Lalla in Ayodhya began on January 16, a week before the main ceremony. The idol of Ram Lalla was placed in the 'Garbha Griha' of the Ram Temple on Friday amid joyous chants of 'Jai Shri Ram.'

Varanasi priest Lakshmi Kant Dixit will officiate the main rituals during the 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony, while PM Modi will also perform rituals at the ceremony.