It’s raining gifts in Ayodhya’s Ramjanmabhoomi Mandir, where the Ram Lalla idol’s ‘pran pratishtha’ took place on January 22. Crafted out of rare metal, a grand bow and arrow that was sent all the way from Odisha’s Jagannath Puri is the latest in the series of gifts, including a Rs 11 crore gem-studded golden crown, a necklace studded with 5,000 diamonds, the world’s largest incense stick, gold and silver ‘charan paduka’ weighing 8 kg, lock and key as well as many others that have poured in as offerings to Ram.
Rare bow and arrow
The bow and arrow, which landed in Ayodhya on January 23, was the centre of attention among devotees and officials with the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust calling it Ram bhakts’ “emotion and love”.
“This bow and arrow is rare. It can’t be found anywhere else in the world. It’s specially prepared for the Ram temple and has been sent by Mahant Ramkrishna Das from Papdiya Math. The bow and arrow has been prepared by one of his followers, who especially prepared it for the purpose while fasting for three months,” said an official of the temple trust.
Precious stone-studded golden crown worth Rs 11 crore
The bow and arrow is not the only rare gift. Among others is the golden crown that costs at least Rs 11 crore. Officials with the trust told News18 that the gem-studded golden crown, which consists of 4.5 kg gold and hundreds of diamonds and precious stones including ruby, pearl, sapphire and emerald, was made and offered by a Surat-based industrialist Mukesh Patel of Greenlab Diamonds. The crown weighs 6 kg and two employees from the firm were sent to Ayodhya by air on January 5 to measure the idol’s head so as to prepare the crown.
Necklace weighing 2 kg, studded with 5,000 diamonds
Another masterpiece gifted to the temple is from a Surat-based diamond merchant. Officials said the necklace, which is studded with more than 5,000 diamonds, weighs around 2 kg and is made of silver. It took 40 artisans and 35 days to make the rare necklace.
8 kg silver and gold gem-studded ‘charan paduka’
A gem-studded ‘charan paduka’ weighing 8 kg is next on the list. What makes this gift even more precious is how it was brought to Ayodhya: a 64-year-old man from Hyderabad embarked on a 7,200-km ‘padyatra’ to Ayodhya, carrying the gold-plated footwear on his head. Officials said the man, named Challa Shriniwas Shastri, came all the way from Rameswaram. He retraced the Ayodhya-Rameswaram route that Ram is believed to have taken during his exile, while stopping at shivlings along the way.
Colossal 400 kg lock and key weighing 30 kg
A colossal lock and key weighing 400 kg and 30 kg, respectively, was offered by an elderly couple from Aligarh district in Uttar Pradesh. It is another unique offering made to the Ram temple. The lock and key was brought to Ayodhya at Karsevak Puram by seer Annapurna Bharti Maharaj, who said the lock had been crafted by Satyaprakash Sharma, a lock manufacturer and his wife Rukmani Sharma. “But, when the 400 kg lock was in the final stage of completion, Satyaprakash died due to cardiac arrest in December and hence his wife, after giving final touch to the lock, donated the lock to the Ram temple,” the seer told the Ram temple trust.
The lock is more than 6 feet in length and more than three feet in width. It is made of around 65 kg of brass and it took almost six months for the couple to manufacture this lock, which is also the world’s biggest lock.
Massive incense stick
Then comes a 108 foot and 3.5 foot incense stick. The unique creation weighs around 3,500 kg and was prepared by Vihabhai Bharwad, a resident of Tarsali in Vadodara. It took almost six months to prepare the monumental incense, which he prepared single-handedly outside his home.
The ingredients composing this extraordinary incense stick include 3,000 kg of Gir cow dung, 91 kg of Gir cow ghee (clarified butter), 280 kg of Deodar wood, among other materials. The local MP, Ranjanben Bhatt, and her team are actively supporting Vihabhai, who dedicates two to three hours daily.
However, transporting this colossal stick was another crucial task for which a long trailer was booked covering approximately 1,800 km via Vadodara, Halol, Kalol, Godhra, Shahera, Arvalli, Modasa, Shamlaji, Kherwada, Udaipur, Chittor, Bhilwada, Dadiya, Kishangadh, Jaipur, Ghosa Mahendipur, Balaji Choraya, Bharatpur, Faterpur Sikri, Agra, Lucknow, Itava, Kanpur, Unao, Barabanki, and finally to Ayodhya.
Bell weighing 2,100 kg
A bell weighing 2,100 kg made of ‘ashtadhatu’ was another unique gift to Ram temple. The bell, especially made to resonate through the temple grounds, signifies a resounding call to prayer. Its deep, soulful clang will serve as a reminder of unwavering faith and devotion.
It is seemingly a never-ending list of gifts with more than 3,000 items, including silver shoes, ornaments, clothes among others, which were sent to the Ram temple all the way from Nepal’s Janakpur, which is said to be Sita’s birthplace.
It also includes a laddu weighing 1,265 kg, sent by a devotee from Hyderabad. A silk bedsheet featuring the Ram temple was gifted by VHP president Alok Kumar to Anil Mishra, who is overseeing the Ram temple project. Kumar said the bedsheet was made by a silk manufacturer from Tamil Nadu.
There’s also a special clock that shows the time in eight countries at once, and represents how people all around the world revere Ram. This gift goes beyond borders, showing how faith brings people together and how devotion is shared across different cultures and continents. A global record holder, chef Vishnu Manohar, prepared 7,000 kg ‘Ram halwa’ for the temple.
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