Ayodhya: Massive crowd throngs Ram temple as mandir opens its doors for devotees after ‘pran pratishtha’

A massive crowd thronged the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya as the grand temple opened its doors for devotees to offer prayers on Tuesday morning, a day after the ‘pran pratishtha’ ceremony of Ram Lalla.

Devotees gathered in large numbers since 3am to have darshan (viewing) of the new Ram Lalla idol on the first morning after the consecration ceremony, news agency ANI reported.

The ‘pran pratishtha’ of Ram Lalla in Ayodhya was held amid unbridled celebrations, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi performing the main rituals officiated by a select complement of priests.

A large number of devotees, both locals and visitors from other states, gathered near the main gateway along the Ram Path leading to the temple complex late on Monday, seeking entry to the mandir premises.

As a large crowd built up near the ceremonial gateway – decked up for the consecration ceremony – police told the devotees that the temple would open to the public from Tuesday.

For devotees seeking darshan of Lord Ram Lalla, the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra website has provided specific time slots – morning slot from 7am to 11:30am and afternoon slot from 2 pm to 7pm.

‘Aarti’ timings include jagran/shringar at 6:30am and sandhya aarti at 7:30pm. One can obtain passes for the ‘aarti’ both offline and online. The offline passes are available at the camp office at Shri Ram Janmbhoomi, requiring a valid government identity proof.

The ‘pran pratishtha’ ceremony of Lord Ram was held at 12.29pm on Monday. The ceremonial journey leading up to the mega event included a seven-day ritual that commenced on January 16.

The ceremony was attended by people from all walks of life, including representatives of various tribal communities. Major spiritual and religious sect leader were also invited to the consecration ceremony.

Built-in the traditional Nagara style, Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Mandir has a length (east-west) of 380 feet and a width of 250 feet. It stands 161 feet above the ground and is supported by a total of 392 pillars and 44 doors. The pillars and walls of the temple showcase intricately sculpted depictions of Hindu deities, Gods, and Goddesses.

In the sanctum sanctorum of Ram Mandir, the child-like Lord Ram is enthroned.

“We are very pleased. Ayodhya has decked up like a bride. We are touched even more to come to terms with the fact that we are going to have ‘darshan’ of the Ram Lalla,” ANI quoted Tejender Singh, a devotee from Chandigarh, as saying.

Another devotee said he came all the way from Odisha for the darshan of Lord Ram in Ayodhya.

“I have come from Odisha’s Puri to Ayodhya on bike to have darshan of Lord Ram Lalla. It was a journey of 1224 kilometres. I was very eager to have ‘darshan’ of Lord Ram Lalla. When I was asked on my way where I was going, I said that that I was going to have darshan of Lord Ram at the temple which was not built for over 500 years,” he told ANI.

Devotees were also seen taking a dip at the Saryu River by the temple amid intense cold weather.