Ayodhya glitters on eve of Ram temple bhoomi pujan

A day before the much-awaited foundation laying ceremony of Ram temple in Ayodhya by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, vedic rituals continued on Tuesday with Ramacharya puja at Ram Janmabhoomi here.

Ayodhya residents also marked the occasion by celebrating it as Chhoti Diwali’. The entire city glittered in the lights of diyas that were lit by seers on the banks of river Saryu and by locals outside their houses. Almost all temples in the temple town have been decorated.

Twenty-one priests started the Ramacharya puja at around 9.30 am. These rituals continued for three hours. They were followed by Purvang anushtan, Sri Ram Shodash Matrika, Vishnu puja and Chaturved parayan.

The three-day Vedic rituals, which began on Monday, will end with the Ram temple bhoomi pujan on Wednesday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will perform the bhoomi pujan at around 12.40 pm.

Simultaneous vedic rituals began at Hanuman Garhi temple on Tuesday.

“Lord Hanuman is considered to be the protector of Ayodhya. So, before the construction of Ram temple begins, we are performing this puja at Hanuman Garhi to seek his (lord Hanuman’s) permission to start construction work of Ram temple,” said Anil Mishra, member of Sri Ram Janmabhoomi Tirath Kshetra Trust.

Offerings were also made at Chhoti Devkali and Badi Devkali temples, considered to be clan-deities of lord Ram.

Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, chairman of Sri Ram Janambhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, has donated a 40 kg silver brick for the Ram temple bhoomi pujan. Prime Minister Modi will use this brick to lay the foundation stone of the temple. However, the brick will be removed after the ceremony.

Several devotees have donated silver bricks to the trust. All of them will be used for the ceremony on Wednesday.

“Later, these silver bricks will be encashed and the money will be used for construction of the temple,” said Mahant Kamal Nayan Das, successor-designate to chairman of the trust.

Modi is expected to reach Ayodhya at around 11.30 am and will stay there for three hours.

Before the PM’s arrival for bhoomi pujan, priests will complete several Vedic rituals, including Maha Ganpati, Ambika pujan, Varun pujan, Shodash matrika, Sapath Grahan matrika, Ayush mantra jaap, Nav Prastar Khand Shila pujan and graha shanti puja.

In Ayodhya, Modi will first offer prayer at Hanuman Garhi and thereafter he will go to Ram Janmabhoomi where he will perform the bhoomi pujan at around 12.40pm.

For the ceremony, a water-proof pandal has been put up at the venue. A stage has also been set up from where Modi is expected to address the gathering.

The guests will be allowed entry to the venue from 10 am and they will have to undergo Covid-19 test before entering the venue. Rapid testing kits will be used which will give results in 15 minutes. District health department will deploy its team for carrying out the tests.

Meanwhile, Shankaracharya Jayendra Saraswati of Kamikochi, Tamil Nadu, has sent silver coins to the temple trust.

Jayendra Saraswati has sent these coins on behalf of the Ashok Singhal Foundation, an organisation named after Ashok Singhal, late president of the VHP.

To mark the occasion, coins will be distributed on Wednesday to seers attending the bhoomi pujan.

Meanwhile, about 1.11 lakh ladoos are being prepared at Mani Ram Das Chhavni Peeth for distribution among locals after the bhumi pujan. The temple trust has also placed order for one lakh packets of Bikaneri laddus for distribution after the ceremony. Each packet will have four laddus. The trust will also send laddus to all embassies in New Delhi to mark the occasion.