51-inch-tall, carved from dark stone: All about the Ram Lalla idol chosen for the Ram temple

The Ram temple consecration in Ayodhya is set for 22 January.Champat Rai, general secretary of the Ram Temple Trust, is giving out details of the idol that will be installed in the Ram temple.But what do we know about the idol?Let’s take a closer look:The idol of 'Ram Lalla' has been carved by Arun Yogiraj – a famed sculptor from Karnataka.The idol is 51 inches tall and weighs 1.5 tonnes, as per News18.Rai said the worship of the idol will begin on 16 January and it will be placed in the sanctum sanctorum on 18 January.“Water, milk and ‘Achaman’ will have no adverse effect on the idol,” Rai said. “The length of Lord Shri Ram’s idol and the height of its installation have been designed in such a way on the advice of eminent space scientists of India that every year on Ram Navami, the ninth date of Shukla Paksha of Chaitra month, Lord Surya himself will anoint Shri Ram as sunrays will directly fall on his forehead at 12 noon making it shine.”

The Times of India quoted Rai as saying the idol is dark in complexion and is in standing posture.

“The idol made of Lord Shri Ram Lalla is in the form of a five-year-old child. The statue is 51 inches tall, made of black stone, and is very attractively made,” Rai told media as per Hindustan Times.News18 quoted Rai as saying that the idol has the innocence of a five-year-old child.Rai added that the idol was chosen considering the softness of the face, look in the eyes, smile and body.[caption id="attachment_13568412" align="alignnone" width="640"]

A staffer at a manufacturing unit displays a model of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple, at Faizabad in Ayodhya district. PTI[/caption]As per India Today, the idol, which will be displayed before the ceremony, will be placed on a lotus-shaped platform.However, a formal announcement regarding idol is yet to come.But Chandresh Pandey, one of the sculptors of the idol in contention, has said his design is out of the race."This idol has been made in Jaipur. There was a condition that only that design would be selected, which would be made inside Ayodhya. This idol has a fusion of Lord Ram and Lord Vishnu with a touch of childlikeness. I could not prepare it in Ayodhya because my wife had collapsed. So, I prepared the idol in Jaipur," he said.Pandey said, "This design, however, is out of the race as of now, but Champat Rai, the General Secretary of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra, has accepted my idol."He added that, apart from the abovementioned condition, this statue is not fit to be installed because the trust has already finalised the design.Rai said the idols of Sita, Hanuman and Lord Ram's brothers would also be placed on the first floor of the grand temple.However, that would take at least another eight months, as per Hindustan Times.‘Inextricable relationship’With Karnataka home to a grand Hanuman temple and believed to be the birthplace of the deity, Joshi termed the selection of the idol shaped by a sculptor from the state for the Ram Temple as an "example of Rama-Hanuman's inextricable relationship"."Where Rama is, there is Hanuman, The selection of the idol for the Prana Pratishtapana of Lord Rama in Ayodhya has been finalised. A renowned sculptor of our country, our proud Mr @yogiraj_arun, the idol of Lord Rama carved by him will be installed in Ayodhya," the Union Minister posted from his official handle on X on Monday."This is another example of Rama-Hanuman's inextricable relationship. There is no mistaking that this is an important service to Ramlallani from Karnataka, the land of Hanuman," Joshi added in his post.Meanwhile, idols of elephants, lions, Lord Hanuman and Garuda, said to be 'Vahana' of Lord Vishnu in Hindu mythology, have been installed at the entrance gate of the grand Ram Temple.Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to attend the consecration ceremony of the temple on 22 January.With inputs from agencies