The new idol of Lord Ram was installed inside Ayodhya's Ram Janmabhoomi temple on Thursday, several days before the consecration ceremony scheduled for January 22. The first image of the 51-inch idol, carved from black stone by artist Arun Yogiraj of Mysuru, depicts the deity as a standing five-year-old child, with the face covered by a veil. The image surfaced online on Friday. Today, the Ram Lalla idol was positioned in the sanctum sanctorum amid the recitation of prayers.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to participate in the consecration ceremony, known as 'pran pratishtha,' at the Ram temple on January 22. The temple is anticipated to be open to the public from the following day.
The term 'pran pratishtha' signifies instilling the idol with divine consciousness, a crucial ritual for every idol worshipped in a temple.
The Prime Minister has appealed to the public to refrain from visiting Ayodhya on January 22, emphasising a desire not to cause any disruptions to Lord Ram. He suggested that everyone is welcome to visit starting from January 23.
He has also urged every Indian to illuminate a diya in their homes on January 22.
The temple trust has extended invitations to over 11,000 guests, including cricket icons Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli, as well as Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan.
The event will be graced by the presence of all the trustees of the temple trust, seers from approximately 150 sects, and more than 500 individuals involved in the construction of the temple, collectively referred to as the "Engineer Group."
The rituals leading up to the consecration ceremony have already commenced at the temple, erected at a site revered by many as the birthplace of Lord Ram.
