Recently, the ancient city of Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh, Bharat was once again in news globally for the Pran Pratishtha of the most popular deity (Sri Ram) in the Garbhagrih (Sanctum Sanctorum) and opening of the newly constructed magnificent Ram Mandir (Temple) for the darshan by the devotees. According to the traditional cultural and religious Hindu belief, duly supported by numerous documents, inscription (petrograph) and archaeological evidences, the site of temple was the birth place of an iconic king of the ancient Solar (Ikshavaku) dynasty, whom the most of Hindu adherents consider as the incarnation of god Vishnu. During the Mughal rule, an existing temple at the site was destroyed on order of the emperor Babur in 1580 and a mosque was erected in the latter’s name. Following the centuries of struggle, conflict and litigation unresolved by the state, the dilapidated structure at the site was demolished by the agitated karsewaks (Hindus & Sikhs) in December 1992, leading to widespread violence and casualties across the Indian sub-continent. Ever since, following a long-drawn legal battle, the apex judiciary of India awarded the (disputed) site to Hindu side simultaneously asking the state to provide an alternate land for Muslim side in Ayodhya for the mosque construction

Most Hindus have an ingrained and unshakeable faith in Maryada Purushottam Ram, who besides being an icon of ethics and virtues is also considered an incarnation of god Vishnu, whose saga has inspired the psyche and conduct of millions in India and elsewhere culturally and spiritually for thousands of years. Most of the followers believe the disputed site as Lord Ram’s birth place; hence the utterly contentious and acrimonious dispute was agitating the mind of Hindu masses for centuries and the site was under bitterly contested litigation for the last seven decades in various courts. The dispute was also one of the main reasons of deteriorating relations and communal conflicts between the two major communities in India i.e. Hindus with the majority community tag and Muslims with the minority tag despite having nearly two hundred million population in the country. The Ramayana (composer: Sage Valmiki) is based on the life events and allied tales of the legendary King Sri Ramchandra who is has been deified and fondly remembered by masses as Maryada Purushottama (most dignified person) owing to his high moral and ethical standards set through his own conduct in personal and public life.

Sri Ram and Ram Mandir: Historical Perspective

Among the dozens of ancient civilizations of the old and new world, if any civilization has successfully preserved and continued its time proven customs and traditions along with the apt values and virtues, despite constant grave political, socio-economic and religious threats from the alien forces more so during the last eight centuries of 2nd millennium CE, this is undoubtedly the Hindu civilization. No other civilization in the world had ever been as diverse and complex on account of its social, cultural and religious traditions. The Hinduism is now universally accepted and regarded as the oldest surviving culture and religion in the world. This also poses an obvious query as to what is that underlying mysterious power and strength that has enabled Hindus to survive the worst threat and constant onslaught from the Islamic invaders and Colonial powers over the centuries, who did everything to wilfully destroy Indian culture and religion. The author’s own long-drawn opinion is that while the rest of the world capitalized solely on the materialism for their progress and prosperity, the Sanatana culture of Bharat (India) pursued for a balanced approach towards materialism and spiritualism for the same objectives. Needless to mention, the latter approach worked.

1. Legend of Sri Ramchandra 

More popularly remembered as Ram or Rama or Sri Ram, Sri Ramchandra is an iconic personality and the most successful king of the ancient Solar dynasty – so popular and pleasant that majority Hindus exchange greetings in his name in the modern age. He was born to Queen Kaushalya and King Dashrath at Ayodhya, the ruler of the erstwhile Kingdom of Kosala. Sri Ram married Princess Sita and his other famous siblings were Bharata, Lakshmana and Shatrughna. According to the traditional Indian historians, he was born in 5,674 BCE during the Ramayana age (the estimated span of 5,677 to 5,577 BCE). The date of his birth is celebrated by the most Hindu households as Ram Navami with great enthusiasm and fanfare. His entire span of life and associated events are documented in the Epic Ramayana originally authored by Sage Valmiki, the book also has the honour of being known as the Adi-Kavya or the first epic poem of the Indian literature. The story of Ramayana covers his birth, growing with parents and brothers, education and marriage, fourteen years exile along with the wife Sita and brother Lakshamana following the manipulations by the ill-advised step-mother, abduction of Sita by the Rakshasa King Ravana, consequent ferocious battle and destruction of Ravana empire along with his accomplices, return to Ayodhya establishing an ideal reign (Ram-Rajya) following coronation.

Undoubtedly, Sri Ram was born in the most illustrious and powerful royal family of the time, yet he had to face many challenges since the early stage of life itself which inter alia included exile for fourteen years into impoverished and difficult situations, the pain of abduction of his spouse Sita, and ferocious war with the most powerful enemy of the time King Ravana. In addition, he had to face some very difficult ethical and moral dilemmas too necessitating personal sacrifices such as his separation from Sita and a few unethical killings in public interest. Later on, Sri Ram and his life events became a popular subject of study and narration through many illustrious Hindu texts, including Puranas, epics and other texts.  The emergence and popularity of Adbhut Rasa in the ancient Sanskrit poetry and drama apparently led to the exaggeration of certain narratives gradually transforming his historical legend into historico-mythological legendary character. Such most illustrious and popular text being Sri Ramcharit Manas which was written by the Saint and Poet Tulsidas during the Bhakti Kaal, when Hindu culture and religion was facing grave threat from the atrocities of Mughals. Sri Ram became so popular and widely revered by the masses and deified with the passage of time. He is now worshipped as an incarnation of god Vishnu, and the tradition continues, especially in the South Asia and Southeast Asian region.

2. Ram Temple Legend

Saturday, the 9th November 2019 will certainly be remembered as a historical event in India owing to the Supreme Court judgment on the “Title Suit” of Ram Janmbhumi – Babri Masjid dispute (also referred to as Ayodhya dispute) pending in various courts post-independence for the last seventy years. The judgment is unique too for two reasons: First, according to the judges, a subject which was purely a matter of faith and religious belief was decided on only facts and evidences; secondly, the bench comprised of five judges, including a Muslim judge,  had delivered the verdict unanimously, a rare feat seldom observed in higher judiciary dealing with the contentious issues. Simultaneously, a narrative was purportedly projected and floated by a section of media and intellectuals that feuding parties, more particularly the minority Muslim community, have accepted the verdict with broad-mindedness and magnanimity. Of course, the narrative was blown out very soon with many blasphemous and threatening remarks from the leaders and clergy of the minority community. The Supreme Court indeed deserves full credit and laurel, more particularly the then Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, for showing enough grit and resolve to decide the contentious issue through a long and sustained hearing over forty continuous days in an unanimous verdict. 

As per historical records, Babur invaded North India in 1525 CE and captured Delhi after defeating Ibrahim Lodi in the First Battle of Panipat in 1526. He founded the Mughal Empire by conquering a major portion of the Northern India. Reportedly, one of his army generals, Mir Baqi invaded Ayodhya, destroyed a pre-existing Hindu temple with Sri Ram as principal deity and built a mosque on the ruins of the temple in 1528-29 under the order of Babur. In many old records prior to 1940s, it existed as masjid-i-janmasthan (mosque at the birthplace) or Janmasthan masjid and later it was popularized as Babri Masjid (Babur's mosque). According to HR Neville, the editor of the Faizabad (Ayodhya) District Gazetteer (1870), “the Ram Janmasthan temple was destroyed by Babur and replaced by a mosque; and that The Janmasthan was in Ramkot and marked as the birthplace of Rama.” The faith, belief and trust of common Hindus in Sri Ram has been so unshakable and immutable that they continued to worship at the disputed site despite its desecration. This led to several recorded and unrecorded violent conflicts and riots between the two communities over centuries.

There is some ambiguity and conflicting claims about the vintage of the Hindu temple before its demolition and erection of the Babri mosque on the demolished site of the Hindu temple. According to some reports, the temple was constructed during the reign of Gupta kings around the 4th century while others hold that the temple was constructed by the kings of Gahadavala dynasy during the 11th century. The Gahadavala dynasty ruled the region during 11th to 12th centuries and is known to have built several Vishnu temples promoting Vaishnavism, some of which even survived till Mughal Aurangzeb's rule. A famous historian and Indologist Hans T. Bakker had concluded that the temple built by the Gahadavalas indeed existed at the birth place of Sri Ram. Later on, the Vishnu Hari inscriptions recovered from the site too strengthened the view of a Gahadavala king having constructed the said temple although an Indian leftist historian RS Sharma, while working on a report (Historians’ Report presented by Muslim side in court as evidence), at the instance of the Babri Masjid Action Committee, opined that the said inscription was of 17th century origin mysteriously "thrust and concealed in the brick-wall" of the Babri mosque. However, during examination, the apex court observed several flaws and inadequacies in the Historians’ report. 

Incidentally, the tales and legends of Sri Ram are not merely limited to Hindus in Bharat; instead, his life, moral conduct and deeds are remembered globally by followers, particularly in the South-Asian countries of Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, Philippines, etc. About the Hindus’ faith and reverence, it may be relevant to quote the Commissioner and Settlement Officer of Ayodhya and Faizabad P. Carnegi, who wrote in his historical Sketch published in 1870 that Ayodhya is to Hindus what Macca (Mecca) is to the Mohamedans (Muslims) and Jerusalem to the Jews. The gazetteers of 1854, 1881, 1892, 1905, the Archeological Survey Report of 1891 etc. strengthen the view the Babri mosque was constructed after demolishing a Hindu shrine. During the last two centuries, several violent clashes took place between the two communities with Hindus unsuccessfully trying to regain their holy land for the reconstruction of the Ram Temple at the site. This followed a protracted legal battle since 1949 onwards for the possession of the site but due to indecision and lack of will among the successive governments and courts, the issue dragged on for the decades and could be resolved only in November 2020 when the title suit for the disputed site was decided by the Supreme Court in favor of the presiding deity (Ram Lalla).

The perusal of over one thousand pages long court judgment also clearly unravels long history of the communal dispute. While Hindu side had made a very strong case producing evidence much better in quality and quantity compared to what was furnished by the Muslim side, apart from the established fact that Hindus had been uninterruptedly worshipping inside the disputed structure with the firm belief that the inner sanctum was the actual birthplace of Sri Ram. These evidences inter alia included two access Hindu gates and umpteen religious structures at the site, three inscriptions, Vishnu Hari inscriptions, ASI findings from the site, citations from the ancient Hindu scriptures and texts, historical books, revenue records, travelogues and gazetteers, and so on. On the other hand, Muslims side’s case was solely based on the Historians’ report prepared in a hush-hush and lawyers’ painstaking endeavor to challenge and deny every evidence produced by Hindu side. Ironically, during the cross-examination in Supreme Court, the only surviving member of the four Historians’ panel conceded flaws in their report including the fact that some of them had not even visited Ayodhya, and that ASI report was not at all considered by them. 

As it was well-nigh impossible to get any direct evidence after almost five hundred years of the fateful event, although evidences were recorded and kept in view, the apex court relied more on the “preponderance of probability” and powers vested in Article 142 of the Constitution to decide the case. The disputed site was given to the deity and his followers (Hindu litigants) while the state was directed to allot a suitable piece of land nearly double in size in Ayodhya to the Muslim litigants for the construction of mosque. The details of the chronological historical events (fact sheet) associated with the erstwhile Hindi shrine till the date on which the case was decided by the Supreme Court are listed in the author’s earlier piece “Ram Janmbhumi - Babri Masjid Dispute -1: Verdict”. The stated fact sheet represents a summary of conflicts and all major events since the erection of the Babri mosque demolishing the existing Hindu shrine in 1580 to the judgment by the Supreme Court of India in November 2020.

3. Threat to New Ram Temple

All along, while a legal suit was pending in various courts following the demolition of disputed structure, a makeshift Ram Temple at the site was allowed by the judiciary at the disputed site to enable the devotees to continue darshan and offer prayers to the revered deity hitherto fore. This site too remained under constant threat from the radical and militant elements in the minority community, and a group of five terrorists of the dreaded Lashkar-e-Taiba attacked the makeshift temple on 5 July 2005. However, in the ensuing gunfight between the attackers and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel deployed on the security duty, all the five terrorists were shot dead while the CRPF and civilians suffered three and one casualties respectively.

Ever since, the Ram Janmbhumi premises have been under the round-the-clock vigil and tight security to prevent recurrence of similar attacks in future. Following the Pran Pratishtha of the principal deity on 22 January 2024 too, similar threats have been issued by the Pakistan-sponsored terrorists to carry out attacks in India on the Ram Temple and dignitaries who attended the Ayodhya event on 22 January. As reported by the illustrious India Today group and many other media outlets, Farhatullah Ghauri, a fugitive terrorist accused in several terror crimes, as also Lashkar-e-Taiba offshoot The Resistance Front (TRF) have declared the Pran Pratishtha ceremony a “satanic incident” in an attempt to incite people for taking a revenge. A video purportedly released by Ghauri featuring images of Prime Minister Modi and some other key functionaries calls for the jihad against Bharat’s ruling party Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) to convert Bharat to an Islamic nation, simultaneously condemning the liberal Muslim personalities who talk of the tolerance and reconciliation.

The New Ram Temple is an eye sore and under constant threat not only from the Islamic terror outfits, even the recognized political parties and organization have been constantly opposing the new Ram Temple and issuing veiled and open threats. For instance, the All-India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) had issued a threat against the construction of Ram Temple ahead of the Bhumi Poojan in an assertion to undo the alleged (so-called) ‘injustice’ meted out to the community by unanimous decision by the country’s judiciary while members of the same Board had all along maintained through litigation process in the past that they will solemnly abide by the verdict of the apex court. In their controversial remarks, the Islamic body maintained that the demolished structure will remain a mosque for them till eternity, drawing a parallel with the “Hagia Sophiya”, 1500-year-old Orthodox Christian Cathedral in Istanbul, Turkey, forcibly converted into a mosque again recently by the present political dispensation. Somewhat similar utterances have been coming every off and on from the top leadership of the Hyderabad based All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) too.

The veiled threat is so obvious from AIMPLB’s tweet dated 4 August 2020:

#BabriMasjid was and will always be a Masjid. #HagiaSophia is a great example for us. Usurpation of the land by an unjust, oppressive, shameful and majority appeasing judgment can’t change it’s status. No need to be heartbroken. Situations don’t last forever.#

Surprisingly, all this is transpiring after showing unclenching faith in the judiciary and exhausting all legal remedies available besides the fact that apex court verdict was unanimous, with one Muslim judge and one Parsi judge too in the panel of five judges including the Chief Justice of India. Similar and even more radical and hard-hitting statements have been issued against the Ram Temple by some other Muslim bodies and influential Sunni clergy. Perhaps, it was keeping in view such threats from the terrorists and radical elements that Ayodhya was almost entirely kept out of bounds for days from the outsiders (uninvited) with tight security during the Paran Pratishtha ceremony even at the cost of inconvenience to a large number of commuters and keen visitors.

Construction of Sri Ram Temple

In compliance of the Supreme Court verdict dated 9 November 2019, the Government of India constituted a Trust with nomenclature Sri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra in February 2020 for the construction and management of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. The verdict inter alia provided a provision empowering the central government to set up the trust within three months to oversee and manage the construction of the temple. Accordingly, the possession of 2.77 acre of the land under litigation and 67.7 acre earlier acquired by the government under the specific law in 1993 was handed over to the aforesaid Trust. The government had initially appointed twelve trustees (prominent people) from various walks of life, including officials, and three more trustees were nominated subsequently. The key functionaries of the trust include Mahant Nrityagopal Das as chairman, Champat Rai as General Secretary, Nripendra Mishra as chairman of the construction committee, Swami Govind Dev Giri as treasurer, and Kesava Parasaran as the senior spokesperson of the Trust.

Although Some Muslim leaders, clerics and common men still oppose the construction of the Ram Temple, the Supreme Court while delivering their judgment had, among other things, catered that the government must provide five-acre land (nearly double of the disputed site) at a suitable place in Ayodhya to the Muslim side for the construction of mosque. They also observed that the evidence of the presence of a non-Islamic structure (Hindu Temple) indeed existed as per findings of the archaeological report. The Bhumi Pujan (ground breaking ceremony) for the commencement of the construction of the temple was carried out on 5 August 2020 was carried out in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose party has been committed to the construction of the Ram Temple for the decades. Ever since, the construction activity has been carried out under the close supervision of Sri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, including the recent Pran Pratishtha (consecration) of Ram Lalla on 22 January 2024, wherein the prime minister of India was invited to serve as the Mukhya Yajman (chief patron) of the associated rituals. 

Way before the court verdict, the original design of the new Ram Temple was devised by the Ahmedabad (Gujarat) based Sompura family, which is traditionally associated with the architecture of dozens of temples for generations, including the famous Somnath Temple in Gujarat, the chief architect being Chandrakant Sompura assisted by his two architect sons. Following the court verdict, the original design was revisited with certain changes keeping in view the Vastu Shastra and Shilpa Shastras (Hindu texts). The temple architecture provides for the main temple of being 120 metres (380 feet) long (east-west), 76 metres (250 feet) wide and 49 metres (161 feet) in height. It has been designed in the Maru-Gurjara architecture of Nagara style, prevalent in the Northern India since long. For the record, the new Ram Temple will be the world’s third largest temple after the Angkor Wat in Cambodia and the Swaminarayan Akshardham in New Jersey, the United States.

As per information released by the Trust, the temple is three-storied with each floor being twenty feet tall, the main sanctum sanctorum with Ram Lalla (childhood form of Sri Ramchandra) on the ground floor and Sri Ram Darbar on the first floor. The temple has five Mandaps (halls), one each designated as the Nritya Mandap, Rang Mandap, Sabha Mandap, Prarthna Mandap and Kirtan Mandap. It has a total of 392 pillars and 44 doors with statues of deities (gods and goddesses) adorning the pillars and walls. The main entrance is facing the east ascending thirty-two stairs via the Singh Dwar with the provision of ramps and lifts for the differently-abled and elderly devotees. Besides, the Parkota (compound wall) of the length of 732 metres and width 14 feet surrounds the main temple. At the four corners of the rectangular compound too, there are four temples dedicated to Surya Dev (Sun god), Devi Bhagwati (Shakti goddess), Ganesh Bhagwan (god Ganesha) and Bhagwan Shiv (god Shiva)

Some of the other attractions for the devotees in the temple complex include Maa Annapurna Temple and Hanuman Ji Temple at the northern and southern arms respectively and Sita Koop (a historic well). The temple complex will also have temples dedicated to Maharshi Valmiki, Maharshi Vashishtha, Maharshi Vishwamitra, Maharshi Agastya, Nishad Raj, Mata Shabri and Devi Ahilya. In the southwestern part of the complex, the ancient temple of Bhagwan Shiv has been restored and Jatayu image (idol) installed at Kuber Tila. Another remarkable feature is that iron and steel has not been used anywhere in the temple. The foundation of temple itself took months together with a 14-meter thick layer of roller-compacted concrete (RCC), giving it the appearance of artificial rock. Besides, about twenty-one feet high plinth has been provided using granite for the protection against the ground moisture. Some modern facilities include separate water and sewage treatment plants, fire safety, independent power station, a huge Pilgrims Facility Centre with separate bathing area, and adequate washrooms, washbasins, open taps, and so on. A separate complex in the premises caters for the prayer hall, a lecture hall, an educational facility and facilities such as a museum and cafeteria

Despite a lot of purported misinformation and fake news circulating at the instance of opponents in the mainstream national and international media as well as social media, the truth is no government funds have been diverted or used for the construction of the temple. Several organizations, institutions, businessmen and individuals (devotees) have liberally donated money and material for the construction of the temple and allied/associated activities. The temple has been constructed (and opened for Darshan following the Pran Pratishtha of the idol) but a lot of work is still unfinished and going on as scheduled. It has been constructed entirely using Bharat’s indigenous and traditional technology and knowhow. Moreover, special care has been taken with emphasis on environmental-water conservation of nearly 70% of the total area keeping green. M/s Larsen & Toubro volunteered to oversee the design and construction of the temple using sandstone from Rajasthan, while institutions like the Central Building Research Institute, National Geophysical Research Institute and IITs at Bombay, Guwahati and Madras have assisted in various ways such as design, soil testing and concrete supply.

According to the current spell of litigation lasting for nearly seven decades, the presiding deity of the temple has been Ram Lalla Virajman, the infant form of Sri Ram, who is considered as in important incarnation of Vishnu; one of the popular Trimurti gods with Brahma as creator, Vishnu the preserver and Shiva the destroyer. While the old infant image of Sri Ram has been retained in the temple, the idol of Ram Lalla (Balak Ram, 5 years old) had been chosen for consecration on 22 January 2024 and installation as the principal deity in the sanctum sanctorum. This 51-inch idol of Ram Lalla has been created from a special black granite stone brought from the state of Karnataka, which is said to be 2.5 billion years old from the pre-Cambrian era. The stone was diligently and artfully turned into the Ram Lalla idol by an accomplished Indian sculpture Arun Yogiraj from Mysuru, Karnataka, who is said to have taken almost six months in crafting it. 

The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust had commenced the construction of temple in March 2020 following the Bhumi Pujan ceremony and despite a temporary setback owing to Covid-19 Outbreak and consequent prolonged lockdowns, the Trust was able to adhere to the phased construction work including the Pran Pratishtha ceremony officially announced by its General Secretary as 22 January 2024. Prime Minister Narendra Modi who had carried out the ground breaking laying foundation of the temple was also invited for the Pran Pratishtha ceremony as early as October 2023 for formally opening the temple for darshan by devotees. During the period, the temple Trust had also launched a successful nationwide “mass contact and contribution campaign” with the assistance of millions of dedicated volunteers. Several leaders, notable personalities and common men across the length and width of the country generously contributed money and material for the cause, with the then Indian President Ram Nath Kovind himself making a contribution of Rs five lakh.

As the auspicious date of the long awaited Pran Pratishtha of Ram Lalla idol was approaching, not only Ayodhya, the site of temple ceremony, but also the entire nation was caught in the grip of cultural and religious fervour. The awe-inspiring event was a witness of the assembly of around seven thousand VIPs from across the length and width of the country that included spiritual leaders, sportspersons, industrialists, scientists, actors, politicians, Padma awardees, and so on. The key dignitaries associated with the consecration included Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and RSS Chief Mohan Bhagvat. Prime Minister had followed a strict 11-days ‘Anusthan’ sleeping on floor before the scheduled ceremony in Ayodhya on 22 January 2024, besides visiting few important temples and taking a holy dip at the Rameswaram 'Angi Theerth' beach. As Mukhya Yajman, he performed the Pran Pratishtha of Ram Lalla idol under the guidance of a large assembly of priests and performed the ‘aarti’ of the idol inside the sanctum sanctorum.

After performing the religious ritual, the prime minister addressed the gathering at the temple televised across the nation, rather the world at large. Based on the key points of his address, the gist is that all Indians take pledge to lay the foundation of Bharat for the next one millennium in contributing to build a capable, grand and divine India and that the construction of Ram Temple will set off a firestorm whereby everyone should reconsider Ram as energy not fire, a solution not dispute. He stated, “Lord Ram has finally arrived (in his abode) following the wait of centuries. After the patience that we showed for centuries and the sacrifices we made, our Lord Ram has finally arrived." Following his address, he offered prayers at the Kuber Tila Shiva Temple in the same complex and unveiled Jatayu statue.

However, in such a big and complex nation, the construction and consecration of the temple was not without controversies and alleged misuse of donation. Even before the construction of the temple commenced, such voices were raised by certain individuals of some organizations, which remained completely unsubstantiated. Similarly, a number of objections were raised by some social media influencers about the money spent on acquisition of land, design of the construction work and involvement of Muslims, etc. Champat Rai, the General Secretary of the Trust, had effectively responded with clarity to the most of such allegation and criticism clarifying that the temple was being sculpted by experts and there could be no question about their religion. Similarly, efforts made by some Hindu and Muslim leaders such as the Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, Subramanian Swami of BJP and AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi to politicize the issue on various counts too largely remained futile and unsuccessful without creating much noticiable impact in public and elsewhere.

Global Reaction & Response

The Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha evoked keen interest, reaction and response across the globe, nationally and internationally. Significantly, the international media and population did not remain neutral and reacted fervently in favour or against the event. The traditional bias of the left-leaning media of the Western world and the Islamic countries is well known and as such they reported it with a pinch of salt, while people, in general with exceptions here and there, responded favourably about the development including many non-Hindus at various places. Significantly, the live-streaming of the event was organized at more than three hundred locations across the globe in over fifty countries which inter alia included Rath Yatras and massive car rallies organized by devout Hindus with participation of many enthusiastic non-Hindus. So much so, that a live broadcast of the Pran Pratistha ceremony (consecration) was scheduled even at the historic Times Square in New York, USA and a grand Ram Rath Yatra and festivities in the vicinity of Eiffel Tower organized in Paris, France.

As for the Hindu diaspora is concerned, most of them celebrated the occasion enthusiastically with ample gaiety and galore across the globe with only few remaining indifferent and/or coming out with sceptical remarks. On the other hand, while the foreign governments and officials largely remained neutral, many people from different origin and faith too watched, acknowledged and appreciated the rebuilding of the Ram Mandir (Temple) and Pran Pratishtha (consecration) at Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh following the years of the uncertain judicial struggle. Some named the event as a symbol of the civilizational awakening, a great act of de-colonization, or even a proud revival of the Hindu civilization; which was in sync with somewhat similar sentiments expressed by the Indian President Droupadi Murmu, back at home, in a letter to Prime Minister Modi on the eve,

“...The Pran Pratishtha of Prabhu Shri Ram’s murti at the new temple built in His birthplace, Ayodhya Dham, I can only contemplate the unique civilisational journey that will be accomplished with each step taken by you in the hallowed precincts.”

Just to illustrate a few: Daniel Bordman, a Canadian journalist, while supporting the rebuilding of the Ram Temple, named it a win for civilization which is important to retake in a proud revival. A Norwegian Green politician and career diplomat Erik Solheim wrote on the occasion that it was a very proud day for India when the Ram Mandir would be officially opened for public darshan and that he felt and shared the excitement and pride of his many Indian friends, who looked at it as a symbol of the ‘New India’, proud of its history and heritage geared to emerge as a major power in the 21st century. Another well-known award-winning poet and best-selling author of many books, including “The Bhagavad Gita Comes Alive”, American Jeffrey Armstrong remarked that it was an exciting time for the culture of Bharat and that there was a planet-wide Vedic Renaissance inside and outside Bharat reviving the spiritual and cultural heritage of the Sanatana Dharma Culture. According to a celebrated corporate strategist Lars RKT Noreng, the rebuilding of Ram Mandir was a shining reminder that Bharat not only survived the onslaught but has started to thrive well.

Many prominent media houses in the Western and Arab world countries are traditionally known for their long-lasting bias and scepticism in regard to various positive developments in India, more so ever since the present Narendra Modi led government came in power in 2014. Just to illustrate just a few, the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) gave coverage to the event under the title ‘Ayodhya Ram Mandir: India PM Modi inaugurates Hindu temple on razed Babri mosque site’. The CNN (Cable News Network), a US organization that broadcasts news on television internationally, called it ‘a painful reminder of religious divisions’. According to them, while millions of Hindus celebrated the opening of the much-awaited complex, for the country’s minority Muslim population, it’s a painful reminder of religious divisions becoming more pronounced under Modi’s BJP government. Two more pronounced US based critics of Modi government and Hindus viz. The New York Times and Washington Post published several stories covering the event in own characteristic ways, one such news article of the former titled ‘Modi Opens a Giant Temple, a Triumph Towards a Hindu-First India’. The Express Tribune highlighted Reuter’s story titled 'India's Modi leads consecration of Ram temple in Ayodhya’.

It's quite interesting to note that on this occasion, many non-Hindu journalists and other eminent personalities globally defended the Ram Mandir consecration while recording their frank opinion about the age-old bias of the Western media.  Currently in self-exiled mode in Greece, the Turkish journalist Ujay Bulut remarked on X, “The bias and deceitful coverage of India's Ayodhya Ram Temple inauguration by the Western mainstream media is mind boggling …Why is most Western mainstream media being untruthful about the inauguration of this Hindu temple? The lies, half-truths and misguided attacks against the Indian government and Hindu people are truly despicable.” Similarly, Paul Antonopoulos, editor of Greek City Times wrote on X about many India critics recalling how Mughal Emperor Babur destroyed Ram Temple replacing with a mosque. Yet another Athens-based journalist cited it as a major event of Hindu revivalism reminding and listing how several churches were revived in Greece following their independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1830.

Back home in India, the protests and boycott of the event were resorted to by several opposition political parties. It is not a secret that the Government of India, acting in compliance of the Supreme Court verdict of November 2020 on the Ram Mandir issue, had not only constituted an independent Trust to facilitate and supervise the construction of the Ram Mandir on the earmarked piece of land as directed by the apex court but also actively associated itself with a constant vigil, supervision and security so as to ensure that the work is completed unhindered and in a timebound manner. The majority of the opposition parties and Left parties, and more so the legendary Congress, remained critical at various stages right from the very beginning with the allegation that the ruling BJP had hijacked the Mandir issue and using it for their political benefit. As the Mandir Trust had invited Prime Minister Modi to be present and carry out the pious ceremonial invocation of Pran Pratishtha in the capacity of chief yajman (ritualistic patron), the majority of the opposition political leaders opted to criticize it as politicization of the religious event and opted to stay away from Ayodhya on date, most probably out of fear that the ruling party (BJP) might get electoral benefits while the parliamentary elections are due shortly. 

The aforesaid approach of the Congress, Left and other Opposition parties, and their followers, was on the predictable lines. While the Ram Mandir issue was under litigation for the decades, the Congress had an ambivalent approach and official stand at various points of time according to their political will and convenience. However, they had been generally opposing the construction of the Ram Mandir on the disputed site in Ayodhya during the past two decades and pro-Congress lawyers of the national standing did everything to drag, delay or postpone the legal suit in the apex court as counsels of the Muslim side all these years. In fact, earlier during the UPA government led by the Congress, the government had even taken a stand of Sri Ramchandra being just a fictional or mythical character in the Supreme Court in the context of a legal suit about the Ram Setu. Somewhat similar line has been towed by the communist parties and other so-called socio-secular parties of India. Needless to remind here that being secular in India in the eyes of these political parties, a section of media and liberal-intellectuals means towing of a socio-political line largely favouring only one minority community i.e., Muslims, which constitute a major chunk of electorate in the country and usually collectively exercise their franchise.

The ironical part of the aforesaid saga is that although the leaders of opposition political parties, their followers and sympathizers opposed and boycotted the consecration ceremony and opening of the Ram Mandir yet many of them have also made it a point to visit the temple during the next few days to publicly display their faith and allegiance to the deity. Notable among them are the key leaders of the Congress, Socialist parties and Aam Admi Party. The most amusing fact is about the Aam Admi Party Chief Arvind Kejriwal, who had been all along opposing the construction of the Ram Mandir at the site even following the judgment of the Supreme Court, even quoting his maternal grand-mother (Nani) that her ‘Ram’ cannot reside in a temple constructed after demolishing a mosque. Now he has visited the temple along with his family members offering prayers in the newly constructed and opened Ram Mandir and other temples as well in Ayodhya. Similarly, several senior Congress leaders, despite their opposition to the consecration ceremony of Ram Lalla idol, have visited the temple before or after the ceremonial event. Of course, Muslim parties and organizations, barring a few, have not only kept a distance but opposed it too in their own way for the obvious reasons.

The Wire is an Indian news and opinion website proclaiming to be a platform for independent journalism which offers an ideal platform for the critics and disgruntled lot of politicians and so-called liberal intelligentsia in the country for expressing their views against the present dispensation of the Indian government and the ruling Bhartiya Janta Party. The website published a statement of a similar group of some 65 former bureaucrats from various Group ‘A’ Services expressing a ‘deep disquiet’ citing the Indian Constitution over the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s participation as the State’s involvement in the Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha held on 22 January. They said the religion is a private affair and “it is imperative for public officials to be mindful to carefully separate their religious beliefs and practices from their official duties”. According to them, the core principle of the personal religious belief and practice and official duties was breached with prime minister’s participation in the ceremony. 

This is not for the first time and, in fact, a group of similar minded retired bureaucrats and army officers, predominantly loyal to the previous Congress governments have been criticizing the Modi led government on the issues like intolerance, secularism, freedom of expression, and so on, on many occasions in the past. Here it is interesting to note that the same lot of people do not even take notice what to talk of raising similar voice of concern when the prime minister visits shrines or participates in the religious rituals of Islam, Christianity and other minorities. To support their averment, they even invoked the so-called advice of the independent India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru to President Rajendra Prasad not to inaugurate the reconstructed Somnath Temple in Gujarat, once again while completely overlooking or forgetting the fact that the same Pandit Nehru, as prime minister of India, had no qualm about own personal visits or participation in the religious events of other religions, including the Azmer Sharif..

Epilogue

The event of the Pran Pratishtha of Ram Lalla (presiding deity) and opening of the Ram Mandir at Ayodhya is indeed a symbol of the restoration of an ancient Sanatana cultural heritage. Prime Minister of India was so right when he observed that Bhagwan Ram has finally arrived following the wait of centuries and after the patience that Hindus showed for centuries, and the sacrifices they made for the cause. Maryada Purushottama Ram is not just an iconic yugpurush (great man) or deity for the Hindu adherents; instead, he is also a symbol of the virtues, values and ethics that the Sanatana Dharma imbibed and spread in the whole world as a righteous way of life since the Vedic age. No other culture and religion in the world have ever spread the pious messages like the Vasudhaiva Kutumbkam (The whole world is one family), Sarva Dharma Sambhav (All faiths lead to the same destination) or Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinah (Let everyone live happily). What a pity that some religion(s) still follow in this modern age such a narrow doctrine or dictum that they do not even recognize or acknowledge other people’s right of faith and belief system!

Image (c) istock.com