Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday the consecration of Ram Lalla’s idol in Ayodhya marks the advent of a new era and gave a call to people to go beyond the Ram temple’s construction to build the foundation of a strong, grand and divine India of the next 1,000 years.
After participating in the idol’s ‘Pran Pratishtha’, Modi in his speech also turned to critics of the Ram temple movement and asked them to reconsider their view that its construction would “set off a fire” in the country, asserting that Ram is “not fire but energy”, “not dispute but solution”.
In his address to a large number of invitees, including seers, leading figures from different fields and those part of the decades-long agitation for building the temple, he said that the momentous occasion is not merely about triumph but also humility and underscores Indian society’s maturity in resolving historical disputes.
“Ram is not fire but energy, Ram is not dispute but solution, Ram is not merely ours but of everyone and Ram is not only the present but also eternal,” he said, adding that the temple is also a symbol of peace, patience, harmony and amity in Indian society.
Ram defines the spirit of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbkam’ (the world is a family), Modi said.
With his speech being heard across the country, he sought to strike an emotional chord with the masses saying “our Ram” has arrived after wait, patience and sacrifices of centuries.
“Our Ram Lalla will no longer live in a tent. Our Ram Lalla will stay in a magnificent temple,” Modi said in his 36-minute speech.
Text: PTI.
Photos: PTI/PMO