Hari om everyone,
We started today's class with meditation and chanting Chapter 4 of Bhagavadgeeta.
The Kyun Kyun (QQ - Quirky Question) of the day was - What is it that even a blind person can see? And no, the answer is not darkness :). Think, think!
Answer: Dream! There is no stopping for that. Any kind of disability does not come in the way of having a dream or making it a reality. This reminds of Helen Keller's saying - "The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision."
We were asking this question to set the stage for our upcoming, very important discussion...
We were talking about the Ram Janmabhoomi praNa-prathiShThaa of bhagavaan Rama that will happen at His birthplace, Ayodhyaa in a few hours. And, WE will get to witness it in OUR lifetime!
It was a dream of many visionaries that will be culminating in the consecration of Rama's vigraham in the temple today.
Today is HISTORIC day! We are all living through a monumental moment that will later become a part of History!! We are blessed indeed!!!
This is the result of the struggle of MANY generations of people, for over 500 years! They have toiled in various ways to bring justice and reconciliation for the misgivings of the past. Some salient points we discussed were
- What used to be a Rama temple was destroyed by Babar, a Mughal king, in 1528 AD. As a victory monument, he built a mosque over the temple in Ayodhyaa.
- Karsevaks broke the masjid dome and flew Saffron flags over the Babri masjid domes.
- A monkey wouldn't let the Saffron flag be taken down from the top of the dome
- There was another monkey who wouldn't budge from the Indian flag atop a court that was deliberating the case many years ago
- Abhiram Das and a few of his friends snuck a little vigraham of Ram Lalla stealthily and installed it inside the premises on Dec 22, 1949
- At that time, no one knew how the vigraham got there. Everyone thought it was a miracle!
- People started regular prayers and poojas in Ram Chabutra (a tent on the premises of Babri masjid). Rama was, literally, homeless and lived in a tent from then until now!!
- There are people who have taken varieties of sankalpas (oaths) for the building of the temple
- A lady from Jharkhand, named Saraswati devi, was on Maun Vrat (oath of silence) for 30 years for Ram Mandir, will now speak during Mandir's inauguration!
- One old person is reaching Ayodhyaa all the way from Karnataka by walk, a distance of about 2,000 km!
- Another gentleman is making Rangoli covering over 2 km everyday all over Ayodhyaa
- There are many such inspiring stories of devotion...
- The contributions of some key people are very crucial
- K K Muhammed, the archeologist - his survey attested the existence of a temple over which Babri masjid was constructed. He was bestowed Padmashri award by the Nation.
- K Parasharan, the 92 yr old lawyer - he won the Ram janmabhoomi for Hindus 🙏. He argued on behalf of Rama for 4.5 hrs on barefeet because he was fighting the case for Lord Rama
- Arun Yogiraj, a young sculptor from Karnataka - he has carved the current vigraham from a single saaligrama stone!
- Our Prime Minister, Narendra Modi - he is doing a rigorous tapasyaa for 11 days leading up to the praaNa-pratiShThaa today. He has been fasting and only consuming coconut water (just twice a day) and sleeping on bare floor with one blanket. He is going to all the puNya-kShetrams (holy places) and getting divine blessings for his countrymen!
We discussed many such important aspects of the momentous event we are going to be witnessing. Just as a cloth with 13 stripes and 50 stars is not just a cloth but becomes a flag - a symbol of the country, after praaNa is invoked into the statue, it becomes a sacred vigraham. The little Ram Lalla idol kept by Abhiram Das ji will also be consecrated in the main temple. We also spoke about the netronmeelana (revealing of the eyes of the Lord's Vigraham) that will happen only after the consecration.
More importantly, we heard in Gurudev's own words, 'Why do we need a temple for Rama in Ayodhyaa?!' Click here for that video.
As the Founding President of the Vishwa Hindu Parishat, our Gurudev was a pioneer in vocalizing the need to rebuild the Rama temple at a press conference!
Blessed are we to be witnessing this sacred moment that will come once in a lifetime!!
Our students had A LOT of questions about what we had presented.
They wanted to know - God is everywhere, then why do we need a temple in that particular place?
So, we asked - air is everywhere, why do you need it filling your car tire when you have a flat? ;)
Then we said, 'temple is NOT for Rama, it is for us devotees. The temple upholds what He stands for, His values and His life. We emulate what we revere! So, due respect for that is certainly required!'
Also, 'it is the very soul of our culture. It is an attestement for the culture that has been handed down to us for generations. When that is destroyed, we can't be bystanders of our own downfall, but we have to be upstanders.'
There were many valuable points raised and discussed. Please speak with your children about what aspect appealed to them most.
Although we had run overtime, they wanted to do a rapid 'Unique Statement Review'. They pretty much reiterated everything we had discussed in class.
Below are the pictures of both Ram Lalla vigrahams -
Today is no less than a Deepavali that was celebrated when Rama came home eons ago! He is getting a home today after 500 years. So, it certainly calls for big celebrations 😊💥🌟🧨
May the whole world become a Rama Rajya where peace and prosperity are established! 🙏
Jai Shri Ram 🏹 🌺 🙏
Regards,
Rashmi and Sirisha.
Rashmi and Sirisha.
