From sweets to diyas, Ram Mandir inauguration rings in 'second Diwali'

Cut-outs of Lord Ram, saffron Jai Shri Ram flags, posters, banners, tableaux, and processions — the pran pratishtha or consecration at Ram Mandir in Ayodhya resonated with fervour in many parts of the country.

About 136 kilometres from Ayodhya, in Lucknow, the capital city of Uttar Pradesh, firecrackers went off the minute the consecration of Ram Lalla’s idol was performed. In the prominent markets of Patrakarpuram, Hazratganj, Aminabad, and Jankipuram, traders distributed sweets. And preparation for lighting up diyas in the evening was in full swing.

“It is like a second Diwali for us, and we will light diyas in the evening,” Vinay Tiwari, a resident of Aminabad, said.

 

The main thoroughfares, public places, markets, and private buildings were adorned with large cut-outs of Lord Ram, Ram flags, posters, banners, etc, displaying the frenzy around Ram Mandir.

Bhandaras (community kitchens) had been organised in Lucknow and other cities to mark the celebration, Sanjay Gupta, Uttar Pradesh president of traders’ association, Adarsh Vyapar Mandal, said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi greets actors Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, and other invitees

Giant laddoo and more, in Delhi

At the Hanuman temple in Connaught Place, the day started with a puja and Sundarkand. A screen streaming the ceremony live from Ayodhya was put up in the temple courtyard, drawing large crowds.

According to the priests, over 100,000 people had visited the temple by 12 noon, surpassing the daily crowds of 5,000 devotees by a long shot.

Connaught Place, the capital’s largest open-air market, was decked up in Jai Shri Ram flags; a large screen live-streaming consecration at Ayodhya was also put up in the Inner Circle.

The New Delhi Traders’ Association’s plan of holding a light and sound show was cancelled, but the association lit up over a 100,000 diyas to commemorate the event. An 11-kilogram laddoo was also offered to the deity at the market.

At nearby Khan Market, Monday morning started with a puja at the Gopal temple situated in the market, followed by a rathyatra with the deity’s idol.

Under the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), which represents some 70 million traders, various business organisations initiated different programmes.

CAIT's National Secretary-General, Praveen Khandelwal, said that various Shri Ram programmes were to take place across Delhi’s markets on Monday — from the recitation of Sundarkand to the singing of Hanuman Chalisa, bhandaras, and live screening from Ayodhya.

Across the country, 10,000 LED screens, recitations of Sundarkand, Hanuman Chalisa, and kirtans at 50,000 locations, 10,000 musical events featuring Shri Ram songs and bhajans with 5,000 processions and 25,000 bhandaras were organised by traders.

Markets mostly shut, Mumbai celebrates

Mumbaikars dressed in saffron, white, and red congregated at Shivaji Park in Dadar amidst the much-awaited pran pratishtha ceremony back in Ayodhya.

Young men and women, riding bikes festooned with saffron flags, led multiple processions around the park. They followed the replica of the Ram temple, which was placed on a truck.

A majority of visitors here said they were here to see the two-dimensional illuminated replica of the temple illuminated with neon purple, green, blue, and saffron lights.

Around Dadar, there were massive posters and cut-outs of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Lord Ram on the roads. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde also found mention at the bottom of these posters.

Over 70 per cent of the markets were open in Mumbai on Monday, but only to celebrate the inauguration of Ram Mandir.

“Many markets in Mumbai live screened the event and lit diyas,” said Shankar Thakkar, CAIT secretary-general, Maharashtra chapter. He added that the APMC market in Navi Mumbai also live telecast the consecration ceremony of Ram Mandir.

Ram Mandir and a rally, in Kolkata

Founded in 1941, the Ram Mandir on Central Avenue in Kolkata was the centre of attraction on Monday. Hemant Jalan, trustee, Seth Soorajmull Jalan Trust, which runs the Ram Mandir, said that there were bhajans in the morning followed by a live telecast of the consecration ceremony at Ayodhya. “Then we had an aarti, and prasad was distributed to the devotees.”

West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose was also there and flagged off a ‘Ramayana Yatra’.

Outside Ram Mandir, the celebration was in full swing with processions, tableaux, chants of Jai Shri Ram, backed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders.

BJP MLA and Leader of Opposition in West Bengal, Suvendu Adhikari, led a sanatani-shobha yatra from Baikunth Nath Temple to Ram Mandir to ‘honour Lord Ram’s homecoming’ at Ayodhya Dham.

If the first half of the day was dominated by celebrations around Ram Mandir, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee’s rally for harmony was the focal point after 3 pm. Banerjee offered prayers at the Kalighat temple in South Kolkata and kick-started the rally from Hazra Park. She stopped at a church and a mosque and took a scooter ride to a gurdwara.

About 4,000 policemen had been posted on Monday for security. However, tension prevailed briefly at Jadavpur University over live screening of Ayodhya ceremony by Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad students.

Pearl garlands to political drama in southern states

Telangana and Andhra Pradesh sent a long list of gifts for the ceremony in Ayodhya, including a pearl garland by a Hyderabad-based jewellery merchant, 100,000 laddoos by Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams Trust Board, 118 wooden doors for the temple, among others. Celebrations in the states, however, were around pujas in temples.

In Tamil Nadu, Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, was scheduled to watch the live telecast, but state authorities denied permission for the installation of LED screens. On Monday, however, the Supreme Court granted permission, and Sitharaman watched the ceremony from Kanchipuram.

Although no state holiday was declared by Karnataka, temples received a government directive to perform a special puja on January 22, marking the consecration of the Ram idol in Ayodhya. The Associated Management of Primary and Secondary Schools in Karnataka also advised private schools in the state to make arrangements for a live telecast of the consecration ceremony instead of declaring a holiday.

In Kerala, celebrations by Hindu organisations were focused on temples with live telecasts of the event. Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan and BJP leaders in the state visited various temples.

(Virendra Singh Rawat, Akshara Srivastava, Ajinkya Kawale, Sharleen D’Souza, Ishita Ayan Dutt, Peerzada Abrar, Shine Jacob, Ayushman Baruah contributed to the story)