Yuddha means war, and Ayuddha means Peace. Ayodhya is the place of perfect Peace, where Ram, Divine Consciousness, returns to dwell eternally in union with His Nature, Sita. That is the story of the Ramayan, and we never miss an opportunity to visit the place of Perfect Peace, Ayodhya, whenever we get the opportunity.
In the Spring of 2024, we got such an opportunity, just after the consecration of the new Ram Temple was taking place. On our return from visiting Kailash, we stopped in Ayodhya. Actually, the new temple is still under construction, but even so, it is filled with the love of devotees from around the world who wanted to participate the construction of the Temple by sending a brick from every village of India.
After braving the crowds to get the darshan, our intrepid group found a suitable spot in which to recite the Sundar Kanda. What a joy to sing to Ram in Ayodhya! Always without fail, when we sing the mantras that the Rishis sang in the places in which they were originally sung, we transform ourselves into fellow Rishis, doing what they did, in the way they did it, in the same places where they did it, shouldn’t we feel that this is our story as well?
In the famous Adya Stotram which is a part of the Kali Puja, Ayodhya is specially celebrated. Here She is called Maheshwari, the Great Seer of All.
We always avail the opportunity to visit the Kali Maheshwari Mandir, where Mahakali, Mahalakshmi, and Mahasaraswati have been celebrated as Chandi since ancient times. The Pujaris of this mandir have known us since many years, and have been chanting from our edition of the Chandi Path.
This is a very special temple, and it is always a joy to sing the Chandi Parth at the special Shakti Pithas and Siddha Pithas where worship has continued without stopping for thousands of years. It is especially rewarding to be welcomed by priests who have been performing the same sadhana as we perform from the same texts as we recite, with the same sense of respect and appreciation.
While it is always a delight to explore the new temples and the large institutional complexes that are growing up in this modern era, it is even more exciting to me to sit and chant in the smaller mandirs of ancient times, which have an unbroken stream of devotion being offered on a regular basis. The environment enhances the feelings of devotion!
Jai Shree Ram Ji ki!
