Ayodhya - History at War

Before the Nov period, we were faced with possible the worst spell of October heat but generally temperatures follow suit with most other parts of UP. Climate is extreme with very hot summers and very cold winters. While summer temperatures go as high as 50 degrees, we were glad that in October, the maximum heat we faced was 33 degrees.

As you leave the highway and enter Ayodhya, what you see is a typical village in Eastern UP, living conditions are substandard and poverty is visible on the streets. But as you lift your eyes a little higher than your straight line of vision, you are greeted by hundreds of minarets and domes that form the low skyline of this town. As we drove through the main street in Ayodhya, shops lined either side of the road and we stopped just outside of a gate that said ‘Parking for Tourist Vehicle’. I must say I was impressed – such organized parking is often not even found in Metros. As we drove into the town, dozens of young boys and men almost started clambering onto the car offering their services – as a guide of course. These young men rattle off complex Indian names and historical dates at the tips of their tongues in order to verify their suitability to be your guide. At this point, we’re not stirred. I find this more of a nuisance and less of service. However, this is one such charm that I doubt you’ll find anywhere outside of India.

Within Ayodhya main town, neat red signboards indicate the places of worship and those worthy of sightseeing. Clear white lettering on the board shows the exact distance in metres from a particular site. While a guide is really not needed, these fellows will offer you 3 – 4 hours of your time for anything between 11 and 50 rupees! It makes you wonder how someone would survive with a monthly wage of Rs 3000/- given that he gets two clients a day. We decided to engage a guide.

Hanuman Gadi

The first temple we saw was Hanuman Gadi – a beautiful temple dedicated to Lord Hanuman. Located at a slight height – maybe around 100 steps – this temple is primarily orange – the colour associated with Hanuman.  Intricately woven into the orange pillars and ceilings are multicolored carvings. The structure looks like a red fort on the outside and was earlier the residence of many devotees. Even today a few of the Sadhus live inside of this temple. The main exit of the temple offers panoramic views of Ayodhya and one of its main temples which is now closed to outsiders.

Hanuman Gadi from the outside

Lord Hanuman Color Therapy

An old temple which prominently towers over most other buildings

Kanak Bhavan

About seven hundred metres from here was the Kanak Bhavan. Dedicated to Sita, this temple stands for Palace of Gold. This palace was given to Sita as a wedding gift at the time of her ‘Mooh Dikhayi’ – a Hindu wedding custom where the brides face is revealed to all the relatives. In olden times, this was not done until after the wedding was over. The Kanak Bhavan, true to its name, shines a golden yellow hue in the sun. It closes for siesta from 11:30am to 4:30pm so be sure to visit this first if you’re only here on a day trip. We reached at 11:45 but managed to convince the guards to let us in for a quick peak.

Checkers with Goddess Sita

The elaborate palace gates which closed the minute we exited

Sarju River

Much alike the banks of the Ganges in Varanasi, devotees in Ayodhya flock to the banks of the Sarju river. The width of the river was massive with a few sandy islands visible in the distance. This river ultimately goes and meets the Ganges at Kashi in Benaras. You can buy holy books and audio cassettes here, you can eat local sweets deep fried in huge Kadhais, feed a cow for five rupees as well as take a boat ride. With the sun moving higher up in the sky, walking around in the dusty streets would not have been such a great idea and so the Sarju Nadi tour provides a superb respite post noon. The Sarju river is a 3 km drive away from the spot where we parked our car.

The first glimpse as we stepped off the taxi

Boat rides on offer for Rs 50/- for around 20 minutes

There are various Ghats along the river and each of these is known to serve a different purpose. For example, the Ram Ghat is the one where the dead are cremated. There is another ghat which is purely for the purpose of bathing.

Role reversal – looking from water to land

Nageshwar Nath Temple

As we were rowed across the Sarju river, 3 beautiful domes come into view. Our guide, Pankaj Pandey, who has also accompanied us on the boat ride, informs us that the four ‘Gumbaz’ along with the tall temple are all part of Nageshwar Nath. According to popular belief, this temple was built by Lord Rama’s son Kusha. While bathing in the Sarju river, he once lost his bracelet which was then found and returned to him by a young girl who was a devotee of Lord Shiva. Kusha built this temple in gratitude to her. Today, millions of pilgrims walk for around a month to reach her and then dedicate holy water to the snake god.

Teen Gol Gumbaz – The Three Minarets

Sri Ram Janam Bhoomi Karyashala

A Karyashala stands for a workshop. So simply put, this spot is the workshop for what will be the next Ram Mandir. What almost looks like a combination of a brick kiln and a junkyard, is a plot of land where everywhere you look, you see huge brown pillars. There is an architectural model of the actual temple placed in a glass casing right as you enter. As informed to you earlier, the Ram Mandir land is currently under a dispute being fought out in the Supreme Court. The Hindus are hoping to win the case and that as soon as they do, the temple will be built. The fact is there isn’t much building required so to say. The columns and ceiling blocks are already built and will just have to be assembled by engineers. The new temple will consist of 212 vertical pillars.

Scaled down

Pillar to Pillar

The Intricate Artwork on the Cieling

Other than these, this plot has maintained memories of the Babri Masjid. They have kept some slabs from the mosque in order to show tourists and as a tribute to the Hindus that died on 6th Dec 1992.

Remnants of Babar’s legacy

The new Ram Mandir is also intended to have bricks with devotees names inlaid into it. A lot of tourists get their family names engraved into these bricks for which they pay around 3000 rupees a brick. There is a Shila Pooja held post which you become a life member and are entitled to free food and stay whenever you return to Ayodhya for life.

Mandir Masjid

We finally reached the controversial spot – the heart of Ayodhya where no one knows whose story was the truth. Was there a Ram Mandir there before the Babri Masjid? After the Masjid was torn down by the BJP, is there going to be another Ram Mandir there? Only the Supreme Court can give us the answer to this question. But as of now, this is a high security zone. You pay Rs 2/- per article that you deposit for safekeeping. No Mobile phones, cameras, metal objects or even belts – tighter than airport security I tell you! You pass through metal detectors and security guards. We walked for what felt like a kilometer atleast and passed around 5 checkposts on our way, only to reach a tent with an idol of Lord Rama. And all this protected by the CRPF and the BSF (Border Security Forces) each armed with huge rifles! To tell you honestly, I could not fathom the reason for it. But strange sights are entertaining all the same. Near the tent, a poojari gave us some Prasad and we were made to keep walking towards the exit.

Sri Aurobindo Ashram

Very close to the exit of the controversial area, is the one compund that has maintained its peace and sanctity since 1989 – the Aurobindo Ashram. Here, there is no preaching about a God, just of Meditation and oneness with the inner self.

Khudaivala Murti Temple

This is the temple where the actual idols that were apparently dug up from under the Babri Masjid are found. There were statues of Lord Ram, Lakshman and Sita and a 12 foot long statue of Lord Hanuman. This temple however is one where the caretakers try to fleece you into giving money. Don’t get deterred. Politely tell them you’re not interested in having some big pooja worth Rs 5000/- and they will get the message.

To sum up, Ayodhya is a quaint little temple town where you almost forget that you live in a secular democracy. Every single person is talking about their Hindu brothers that died and the fact that it being Lord Ram’s birthplace, there has to be only a Hindu temple there. Some will go to the extent of saying that there are no Muslims for a ten kilometer radius around Ayodhya – I doubt there’s much truth to that statement. But Ayodhya has over 700 temples and every house here has its own temple architecture and has a little temple in it, thereby adding upto 8000 temples in total.

A rich man’s house in Ayodhya

A little piece of advice – ladies, preferably wear Indian clothes when in Ayodhya if you don’t want to get letched at by every man there!

If you’re a die hard non vegetarian, you will be disappointed in Ayodhya as it is primarily vegetarian. Foods available are largely simple with a lot of concentration on North Indian sweets. Most common meals consist of Puri Bhaji and Chole. As is common in most parts of UP, the food is oozing oil and butter so be prepared to get fat!