The construction of Ram Mandir at Ayodhya is the ultimate culmination of centuries of struggle of our countrymen to revive her ancient culture, religion and traditions. The Ayodhya issue has political, historic and socio-religious reverberations. Our country under the dynamic leadership of Mr. N. Modi has ensured that only with the intervention of apostle of justice, Supreme Court, the process of the construction of the Ram Mandir should begin. With the court involving the central government to take the responsibility in this regard it has lived up to its reputation of not harming the sanctity of constitutional secularism. Had the present government wanted it could have forcefully ordered the building of the temple since the inception of its rule but as per its mode of operation it has adopted the constitutional option to legally mediate the process of conflict.
The issue involved here is not only the building of the Ram Mandir at Ayodhya but the very revivification of our ancient culture and religion based on diversities and tolerance. The Ram Mandir infact is symbol of unity.It holds significance not only for the Hindus but also the Jains, Sikhs,Budhists as well as the Muslims. A number of Jain religious preachers have associated themselves with Ayodhya. Lord Buddha during his lifetime had made several visits to Ayodhya. The year 1510 witnessed the visit of Guru Nanak to Ayodhya. Evan Allama Iqbal, the Islamic philosopher and Urdu/Persian poet has penned down poetries inhonour of Lord Rama and has addressed Him by the name of “Imam-e-Hind”,(Imam of India).InfactAyodhyahas played a crucial role in securing the social amalgamation of our country. This finds reflection in the fact that the holy book, ‘Ramayana’ finds itself being translated in a number of different languages including Urdu. Lord Ram today is a symbol of national unity. It no doubt binds the Hindu emotionally and culturally but we as Indians have always stood for tolerance and natural unity with a strong those of humanitarianismand belief in equality and freedom.
When the foreign rulers demolished numerous Mandirs centuries ago it was infact trying to destroy our inherent culture and traditional roots. Our country had to wait for centuries to witness this historic event of the Mandir construction, the initiation of which has just taken place.It strongly reflects our pledge to uphold religious freedom and restore the dignity of Bharat Mata which was dishonored by the foreign rulers in the form of the demolition of the Ram Temple at Ayodhya along with a number of other temples, and this has stood tall and emerged victorious.
The Ram Mandir at Ayodhya typifies not merely a temple but its significance lies in the fact that it would be an altar of human virtues and moral values for which Lord Ram dedicated his entire life. His life journey is an integral part of our psyche. As a symbol of eternal sacrifice, an epitome of righteous conduct and as an ideal ruler, ideal son and ideal brother, Lord Ram’s philosophy cannot but touch and influence people of all generations and religious creed. As such more than a temple its appeal would go beyond the barriers of religion, caste and other narrow social determinants. No one can shy away from an optimistic stand that with the initiation of the construction of the Mandir the foundation stone of Ram Rajya has also been laid. With much assurance we can admit that the life and philosophy of Ram has and thus would profoundly impact the culture of the people of our country and beyond our territorial boundaries.
Lord Ram does not merely depict a Hindu way of life, but it embraces universal values, belief and behavior which would equip any individual to deal with the vicissitudes of life in a patient and humble manner. As a symbol of utmost sacrifice Lord Ram devotion towards his parents reached a pinnacle when on the verge of being the king of Ayodhya he sacrificed the luxury of palatial life and accepted fourteen years of exile.Such love and devotion towards one’s parents are a rarity times and thus Lord Ram has proved himself to be a powerful typification of such codes of family life that urgently needs to be infused among the children of the modern generation. We can infactopine that the clear set of life principles embraced and practiced by Lord Ram would act as an anti-dote to the process of dehumanization and mindless competition which largely characterize our society today, making our day to day existence a struggle between our internal life and external society. The Ram Mandir to be built soon would set out a strong and loud message to one and all to be neither narrow nor exclusive in one’s life approach. We should learn to be uncompromising in practicing clear-cut moral standards and confront adversities and misfortunes with an etiquette suffused with virtuousness and devotion. I cannot but pen down an interesting parallel of life journey of Modi with that of Lord Ram. Both had to face a number of adversities and perplexities in life, but both refused to bow down and held their head high to achieve the ultimate goal which they had set forth. Thus, I can safely conclude that as long as the universe exists, the Ram Mandir and what it stands for will continue to inspire one and all. It is no wonder that immense support could be garnered for the upcoming magnificent Mandir. The honesty of purpose epitomized by Lord Ram will definitely enable us to pull through any difficult times. This is not a pious wish but a reality which our fortunate countrymen is going to witness under the benevolent and virtuous leadership of Modi Ji, as it is well put, “Modi Hai to sab Mumkin Hai”
Mr. Modi has effectively lived up to the ideal of Vivekanand, his mentor that “Every improvement in India requires first of all an upheaval in religion. Before flooding India with political ideas; first deluge the land with spiritual ideas.” The beginning of the process of building the magnificent Ram Mandir devoid of religion conflicts has once again reestablished the essence of the Indian society which allows and permits the scope of tolerance, brotherhood to have the way. It also seeks to uphold Modi Ji’s pledge, Sabkasath sab ka vikas. As with the final resolution of the issue would ensure the social, religious, cultural and economic development of not only the town of Ayodhya but it could have countrywide positive repercussions. This is because as we are aware that social peace is an essential pre-condition of economic progress and the path has been paved by our Prime Minister. This hints at a full proof act of assurance that the religious and cultural sentiments of our population would always remain uppermost in the mind of our government.
With the laying down of the foundation of the Ram Mandir, India today is destined to spearhead a rejuvenated phase of societal evolution wherein the foundations of its spiritual heritage would be infused with strong bonds of unity surpassing limitations of sects, diversified views, paths, practices, creed and caste. Such would be the aura of the Mandir that the incandescent spirituality of our motherland would be energized and guide our nation towards wholesome growth and vitality. Ram Mandir would be a shrine of universal religious values, creating a congenial ambience for all individuals to live up to their virtues, unleash their creativity and utilize their wisdom for national growth, a new and a renewed lease of life thus just because an achievable goal.
As a source of creative, integrative and stablishing force the Ram Mandir guarantees the unityof our society, a reality which some of our unfortunate brethren should also acknowledge. The Ram Mandir infact would be a spiritual and a cultural center helping to revive our lost cultural heritage of universal brotherhood. One should not confuse the Mandir would obsolute customs, practices, narrow rituals but one shouldappreciate that with thelaying down of the foundation of the Mandir, Modi Ji has set to achieve a landmarkand it can be well put that the seeds of India’s spiritual renaissance has been sowed. The sheen of our heritage would be renewed. India is now determined to pursue and strengthen its religious identity the pursuance of which was obscured so long by narrow political and social determinants. Thus we can infer that Bharat Mata’s destiny, her present and her future is closely tied with the construction of the Ram Mandir, a spiritual glorious institution which would always remain a guide for our society and equip it to embrace oneness, cultivate the spirit of inclusiveness and encourage one and all to participate in our nation’s growth and in its onward march towards progress and an enlightened humane existence. Congratulations to all our countrymen who have been fortunate to witness this splendid event settling once again the magnanimous nature of our society.
Dr. Shaikh Aquila Ahmad
Director, NCPUL (National Council for Promotion of Urdu Language)
MHRD, Government of India
