Priests and local people offer prayers near the holy stone Shaligram (a representation of Lord Vishnu in Hindu religion) after its arrival from Nepal, at Karsewak Puram in Ayodhya, Thursday, Feb. 2, 2023. Shaligrams are expected be used for the construction of idols of Ram and Janaki for the Ayodhya’s Ram temple. Found only on the river banks of Kali Gandaki River the Shaligrams reached Ayodhya on heavy-duty trucks from Nepal’s Janakpur, the birthplace of Sita. (Photo: PTI)
AYODHYA: Special rocks from which the idol of Lord Ram will be carved out and placed in the sanctum sanctorum of the Ram Temple has arrived from Nepal, a senior functionary of the temple trust here said.
The rocks or ‘shilas’ arrived here late on Wednesday night.
Special prayers were held on Thursday afternoon following which the rocks were presented to the Shri Ram Janambhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust. Fifty-one vedic teachers also worshipped the rocks, officials said.
Mahant Tapeshwar Das of the Janaki Mandir in Nepal presented these rocks to Champat Rai, general secretary of Ram Temple Trust, they said.
The idol of Lord Ram’s ‘baalroop’ (child form) carved out of these stones will be placed in the sanctum sanctorum of the temple which is expected to be ready by January next year.
Vishwa Hindu Parishad’s national secretary Rajendra Singh Pankaj had started from Mustang district of Nepal on January 25 with the consignment of the two sacred rocks.
These rocks, that are 60 million-years-old, reached Ayodhya from Nepal on two different trucks. One rock weighs 26 tonnes and the other weighs 14 tonnes, Prakash Gupta, office in-charge of temple trust had earlier said.
The two rocks were found in the Gandaki river at a place close to Saligrama or Muktinath (place of salvation) in Nepal’s Mustang district.
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