Our generation grew up in a small town infused with a sense of patriotism and dharmik activism.
I heard about the movement to build a temple in Ayodhya as early as the 1980’s, with the slogan “mandir vahi banayenge,” saman nagarika kayada (one nation, one law) and remove Article 370.
Realizing that these tasks were daunting, the resilient dharmik activism continued to grow, striving to turn them into reality.
The telecast of the Ramayana on television caused a stir, bringing the entire country to a standstill. The secular government must not have realized the impact it would cause. They also indirectly increased the spirit for Ayodhya.
There are many spiritual and political leaders who were vehemently opposing the temple in Ayodhya.
Their argument was, “Why insist on Ayodhya when Sri Rama should be in everyone’s heart?” They were right, but they were also wrong. It’s not just a philosophical adjustment but a cultural one that is real and has to be rectified. So, the temple had to be there in Ayodhya.
We had three encounters with those who were vocal about building the temple, with two of them spearheading it actively.
Vishweshwar Tirth Swamiji of Pejawara Matha was a saintly person, an epitome of vairagya, yet extremely sensitive to the downtrodden. He was assertive in his wishes about the Sri Rama temple. Though initially held from going to Ayodhya, but the day when the egoistic building of Babar came down, swamiji was there.
The day before his last Paryaya in Udupi, he spoke to some devotees, expressing that he had requested the quick building of the Sri Rama temple, cleansing of the Ganga, and stopping cow slaughter to the Prime Minister. Today, Swamiji is not there to celebrate the hard endeavor of his own self. However, the trust made his disciple one of the main trustees of the Ayodhya Trust.
The second person was Ashok Singhalji. He was the main architect in firing the spirit of the kara sevak. A well-educated and pious person, he dedicated his life to this cause.
When many pilgrims came to Ayodhya, he met with one of our leaders, exuding confidence and assurance that the temple would be built within no time. The temple is built, but Singhalji is not here; however, his legacy continues.
The third person, though not actively participating as a professor, made his impact through his writings and speeches all over Karnataka on Ramayana and Mahabharata. He made it obvious to his audience that they must rise beyond simply listening to these stories and act for the cause of Sri Rama’s temple and His ideas.
His speeches on Ramayana and writings are extremely life-centric, urging individuals to work with society instead of being selfish for self-perfection alone. For those who know Kannada, should read his works- he is Dr Narayanacharya, who is no longer with us to witness this amazing event, was always eager to be in Ayodhya. So, he named his own house Ayodhya, consistently writing and speaking about Sri Rama, His Dharma, and their relevance for Bharat.
There are countless numbers of contributors who had their encounters with such saintly personalities and should be remembered during the celebration.
During the coronation of Sri Rama as the king of Ayodhya, the Ayodhya vasis were celebrating and threw colored powder into the sky, including red and pink. Sita mata had tears in her eyes. Even in the midst of celebration, she felt the sacrifice of Jatayu, who lay down bleeding while bravely fighting Ravana, and the red powder made it obvious.
Celebration without tears of gratitude is not the legacy of Sita Rama.
𝗝𝗮𝗶 𝗦𝗶𝘁𝗮 𝗥𝗮𝗺𝗮 🙏
𝗚𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘀𝗮𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 🙏
– Govinda Das
