Ayodhya: “Balak Ram” is the name given to the new Ram Lalla idol, which was dedicated at the grand Ram temple on Monday. It features the deity in the stance of a five-year-old boy.
“The idol of Lord Ram, whose consecration was done on January 22, has been named as ‘Balak Ram’. The reason for naming the idol of Lord Ram as ‘Balak Ram’ is that he resembles a child, whose age is five years,” Arun Dixit, a priest associated with the consecration ceremony told PTI.
“The first time I saw the idol, I was thrilled and tears started rolling down my face. I cannot explain the feeling I experienced then,” he added.
The Varanasi-based priest, who has conducted nearly 50-60 consecrations, said, “Of all the consecrations (I have) performed so far, this is the most ‘alaukik (divine)’ and ‘sarvoch’ (supreme) for me.” Dixit said he had the first glimpse of the idol on January 18.
The idol was consecrated on Monday in a grand ceremony led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who said it marked the advent of a new era. The old idol of Ram Lalla, which was earlier kept in a makeshift shrine, has been placed in front of the new idol.
Joining the millions who watched the historic ‘pran pratishtha (consecration)’ ceremony on television in their homes and local temples, the ceremony took place just months before the Lok Sabha elections.
The Adhyatma Ramayana, Valmiki Ramayana, Ramcharitmanas, and the Alavandar Stotram are just a few of the texts that have been studied and researched in great detail to create the idol’s ornaments, according to the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra.
Using Banarasi fabric, the idol is adorned with a red ‘pataka’ or ‘angavastram’ and a yellow dhoti. The “angavastram” are adorned with threads and pure gold “zari,” which are decorated with the auspicious Vaishnav symbols “shankh,” “padma,” “chakra,” and “mayur.”
Although Ankur Anand’s Lucknow-based Harsahaimal Shiamlal Jewellers created the ornaments, the
garments were created by Delhi-based textile designer Manish Tripathi, who worked from Ayodhya Dham for the project.
The 51-inch idol chiselled by Mysuru-based sculptor Arun Yogiraj has been carved out of a three billion-year-old rock. The azure-coloured Krishna Shile (black schist) was excavated from Gujjegowdanapura at Jayapura Hobli in HD Kote Taluk of Mysuru. It is a fine-to-medium-grained, sky-blue metamorphic rock, generally called soapstone because of its smooth surface texture and is ideal for sculptors to carve idols.
The Krishna Shile was found while levelling the agricultural land of Ramdas (78) and a local contractor, who assessed the quality of the stone, drew the attention of the temple trustees in Ayodhya through his contacts.
Yogiraj, who has received effusive praise for his work, told PTI, “I have always felt that Lord Ram has been shielding me and my family from all the bad times and I strongly believe that it was Him who chose me for the auspicious task.” “I spent sleepless nights working on the idol with precision but it was all worth it. I feel I am the luckiest person on Earth and today is the best day of my life. I learnt the art of sculpting from my father. He would have been very proud to see my idol here today,” he added.
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