Consecration of the Ram Mandir

The Prana pratishtha (consecration) ceremony of the Ram Mandir (ISO: Rāma Maṁdira Prāṇa Pratiṣṭhā) was held on 22 January 2024, in a traditional sacred ceremony, wherein priests recited mantras invoking the Rama.^[1] The prana pratishtha ceremony, which is considered to invoke of divinity, is an essential ritual before the inauguration of a Hindu temple.^[2] The ceremony involved the prana pratishtha of the primary temple deity, Ram Lalla — the childhood form of Rama, also known as Balak Ram, and subsequent opening of the temple for visitors.^[3][4]

The temple stands in the city of Ayodhya, which has also been a disputed site of the 16th-century Babri mosque which was destroyed by a Mob in 1992.^[5][6][7] The event was organized by Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra.^[8]

The Lord Ram idol is 51 inches tall made of Krishna‐shila Granite and weighs approx 150-200 kgs.^[9]

On 22 June 2023, Temple Construction Committee chairman Nripendra Misra announced that the ground floor of the three-story temple was complete and was expected to open for devotees in January 2024.^[10][11] The Ram Mandir Teerth Kshetra Trust announced that Hindu astrologers, according to Hindu Panchang, had selected 22 January 2024 as the auspicious date for the consecration ceremony.^[10][12] In October 2023, the committee members formally invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to perform the Prana Pratishtha of the newly made idol in the sanctum sanctorum.^[13]

The trust along with the Government of Uttar Pradesh and the city administration carried out extensive preparations to accommodate the large crowds of devotees and the influx of invited guests from all over the world.^[14][15] The Government of Uttar Pradesh announced a public holiday in the state and applied strict security measures in and around the temple premises.^[16] The security in Ayodhya was increased due to the expected movement of VIPs.^[17][18] The Government of India along with some state governments declared a half-day holiday marking the event for its employees.^[19]

In preparation for the Pran Pratishtha ceremony, the Government of Uttar Pradesh earmarked ₹100 crore (US$13 million) for 'Ramotsav', a series of religious events spanning 826 local bodies across Uttar Pradesh and the Ram Paduka Yatra.^[20] Commencing in December 2023, the events culminated in celebrations from Makar Sankranti on 16 January 2024, until the inauguration of the Ram temple on 22 January.^[21] The yatra will follow the Ram Van Gaman Path, a route believed in Hindu tradition to trace Rama's 14-year exile from Ayodhya.^[22]

The Government of India declared a half day holiday on this event for its employees. Several states including Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Maharashtra, Assam, Tripura, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi, Jharkhand, and Gujarat also declared a public holiday for Pran Pratishtha Ceremony of the Ram Mandir on 22 January.^[23][24]

Out of the three idols, the one prepared by sculptor Arun Yogiraj was selected to be placed in the sacred sanctum sanctorum.^[25] After consecration, the deity shall be referred as Bālak Rām.

The consecration ceremony of Ram Mandir was conducted by the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi on 22 January 2024 between 12:15 PM and 12:45 PM IST.^[26][27]

The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust had invited Prime Minister Modi to perform the rituals.^[28] Modi undertook an eleven-day anushthan ritual for the consecration at the Ram Janmabhoomi Temple. During this ritual, he consumed only coconut water and fruits and slept on the ground at night.^[29][30]

Prime Minister Modi urged every Indian to light up diyas to mark the occasion and celebrate it in the spirit of Diwali.^[31]

The ceremony witnessed the attendance of people from various walks of life including actors, politicians, bureaucrats, businesspersons, spiritual leaders, athletes, etc.^[32][33][34] The Ramayan TV series actors Arun Govil, Dipika Chikhlia and Sunil Lahri also participated in the event.^[35]

Shankaracharya heads of the four Mutts refused to participate, citing that the consecration was being performed in a partially constructed temple, without adherence to Vedic ritual protocol. Leading seers including Swami Nischalanand (Puri) and Avimukteshwaranand (Uttarakhand) publicly voiced their objections and stated they would not attend.^[36]

The gathering of the invitees was addressed by the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat and Prime Minister Modi.^{[37][38][39][40]}

Beyond the religious significance, Prime Minister Narendra Modi underscored the temple's role in shaping a new India, one based on social harmony, economic prosperity, and scientific advancement. He urged citizens to draw inspiration from Lord Ram’s ideals to build a strong and vibrant nation.

Yogi Adityanath's address was steeped in religious fervor, celebrating the Ram Mandir as a victory for faith and perseverance. He praised the devotion of millions who contributed to the temple's construction and acknowledged the divine blessings that guided the process.^[41][42]

RSS Sarsanghchalak(Chief) Mohan Bhagwat spoke of the Ram Mandir as a symbol of national pride, marking the revival of India's cultural heritage. He emphasized the importance of preserving India’s ancient traditions and values in a rapidly modernizing world.^[43][44][45]

International coverage of the event emphasized it as a public spectacle commemorating the victory of Modi's Hindu nationalism over secularism & Gandhi's composite nationalism. In sharp contrast to the national media, international news outlets covered the event in a negative manner, heavily emphasizing the fact that the temple was built over a mosque that was "demolished by a Mob". India's Muslim population was emphatically portrayed as victims while Hindus were vilified as aggressors, dismissing the complex Hindu-Muslim interactions, history of persecution of Hindus under Islamic rule, the history of Muslims converting non-Muslim places of worship into mosques, religious violence in the region, the polarising nature of the dispute surrounding the site and the court litigation over it. The BBC, often criticised for promoting anti-Indian sentiments alongside pro-Muslim^[46][47] and pro-Pakistani stance,^[48] portrayed the events exclusively through the eyes of the Muslim residents of Ayodhya, for which it was slammed by Conservative MP Bob Blackman.^[49] Qatar based news agency Al Jazeera described it as 'one of modern India's darkest chapters'. The Chinese Xinhua News Agency took a neutral stance over the issue.^{[50][51][52][53]} The Vishwa Hindu Parishad characterised the coverage of the event by Western outlets (from whom other global outlets picked up directly) as "misleading, biased, and irresponsible journalism".^[54] The Diplomat compared the event with that of the mass outpouring of Catholics to witness the 1917 miracle of the Lady of Fatima & the possible scale of celebration in the entire Eastern Orthodox Church in case of a hypothetical restoration of the Hagia Sophia as a church under the Greek Patriarchate of Constantinople, which (according to the commentator) is "difficult for the Western secular mind to comprehend".^[55] The fact that the groundbreaking ceremony of the Ram mandir was held (on 5th August 2020) a few days after the Hagia Sophia was reconverted back into a mosque (on 24th July 2020) saw global media draw comparisons between India under Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party & Turkey under Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Justice and Development Party.^[56][57][58]

• Ram Mandir
• Ram Janmabhoomi
• Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas
• Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra