LUCKNOW: The Ram Rath Yatra, which was started from the holy city of Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu last month, culminated in the temple town of Ayodhya on Wednesday.
The Rath brought along a bronze bell emblazoned with “Jai Shri Ram” and weighing around 613 kg along with idols of Lord Ram, Goddess Sita, Lakshaman, Lord Hanuman, and Lord Ganesha for their installation in the grand Ram temple.
Amid the chants of ‘Jai Shree Ram,’ the gigantic bell was handed over to the temple trust members by Rajlakshmi Manda, general secretary of the Chennai-based Legal Rights Council. The bell was custom-made by the experts for the Ram temple. Manda claimed that the echo of the bell would be heard in a periphery of 8-10 km with the sound of ‘OM’.
Manda had embarked on the Yatra on September 17 from Rameswaram. She drove the Ram Rath herself covering 4,555 km in 21 days passing through 11 states. She added that it was her luck that she got the opportunity to play the charioteer of Ram Rath and drove it herself from Rameswaram to Ram Janmabhoomi.
“Before the start of the yatra, special poojas were performed in front of Ramanathar Mandir at Rameswaram. We have donated this bell to the Ram temple. It measures 4.13 ft in height and 3.9 ft in width. It’s our special gesture to mark the beginning of the construction of Ram temple as it was age-old dream of Hindu devotees across the world and which is now taking shape,” said Manda.
“The five idols of Ram Darbar which we have brought along with the bell weight 210 kg,” said Manda. Huge cranes were used to unload the bell from the Ram Rath and handed over to the temple trust members in Ayodhya. A total of 18 persons had accompanied the Rath Yatra from Rameshwaram to Ramjanmbhoomi.
Notably, the city of Rameswaram has a special significance in Hindu mythology. It is the place where Lord Ram and his Vanara Sena started the construction of the bridge on the sea to connect the Indian subcontinent with the island nation of Sri Lanka ruled by demon King Ravana. Rameswaram was the place where Lord Ram offered prayers to Lord Shiva and performed pooja.