There was an upsurge of faith at the banks of river Saryu in Ayodhya when the Shaligram shilas (rocks), from which the idols of Lord Ram and Sita are to be carved out, were worshipped there.
These shilas have been brought from the river Kali Gandaki in Nepal. The Shaligram shilas are considered to be very sacred and have been gifted by Nepal to India.
Mahant Ram Tapeshwar Das of Janaki Temple in Janakpur, the capital of ancient Mithila in Nepal, worshipped the Shaligram shilas before they were handed over to the Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust general secretary Champata Rai.
Deputy Prime Minister of Nepal Vimalendra Nidhi was also present on this occasion.
Prior to this, 51 Vedic acharyas worshiped the rocks along with Mahant Girish Pati Tripathi of Ayodhya Teen Kalsa Tiwari Temple.
After the worship, a meeting was organised in which all the speakers explained the relationship between Ayodhya and Janakpur. Mahant Ram Tapeshwar Das of Janaki Mandir even raised the slogan `Dulha-Dulhan Sarkar ki Jai’
Mahant Ram Roshan Das, the successor of the Janaki temple, said that the Shaligram rock was considered an incarnation of Vishnu and therefore pran pratishtha of Shaligram shila was not done.
According to Hindu mythology, a Shaligram, or Shaligram shilas are typically fossils of ammonite shells from the Devonian-Cretaceous period of 400 to 66 million years ago. The fossils are considered holy by Hindus because Madhvacharya received it from Vyasadeva, also called Astamurti, and also they resemble symbols associated with God Vishnu, mainly the shankha (conch shell).
It is considered that Lord Vishnu had taken the form of Shaligram shila to defeat the demon king Hayagriva. Since then, the stone has been worshipped as a symbol of Lord Vishnu's power and is considered to have divine properties.
On this occasion, former deputy prime minister of Nepal said that earlier he wanted to present Dhanush to Ram Lalla in line with the legacy of Shri Ram associated with Janakpur, but after two years of dialogue with the Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, it was decided that Nepal should present the Shaligram from which idol of Ram Lalla will be carved out.
Trust general secretary Champat Rai explained in detail the journey of the shila to Ayodhya and expressed his gratitude towards Janakpur temple, Government of Nepal and the people there.
