Ayodhya – The Birthplace of Sri Ramachandra

Ayodhya is one of the seven sacred cities of Bharata Varsha, which lead one to the gateway of liberation. These seven cities are known as moksha-puris; other cities being Mathura, Kashi, Ujjain, Kanchipuram, Dwarka and Haridwar. Ayodhya is more celebrated due to its fame as the birthplace of Sri Ramachandra. It is also revered as one of the 108 Divya Desham Kshetras glorified by the Alwars.

Introduction to Ayodhya

Ayodhya is situated on the banks of River Sarayu, in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. This sacred city is well connected by railways and state transport from all over India. The city was first called as Saket and was named Ayodhya after the King Ayudh of the Solar Dynasty. The name literally means one which cannot be defeated in a war (a + yuddha).

As per the Valmiki Ramayana, this great city was established by Vaivasvata Manu the first King of the Solar Dynasty. The city was twelve yojanas (144 kilometers) long and three yojanas (36 kilometers) wide. The city was expanded by King Dasharatha, father of Sri Ramachandra. It has been the capital of great kings of the Solar Dynasty since the time of Vaivasvata Manu. After Sri Ramachandra departed back to His abode, the city got deserted and was re-established by King Kush. After Kush, the city was again lost and re-discovered by the King Vikramaditya of Ujjain, around 2500 years before. King Vikramaditya excavated this city and constructed temples commemorating the pastimes of the Supreme Lord Rama, the epitome of dharma and maryada.

Description from the Valmiki Ramayana

The Bala-kanda of Valmiki’s Ramayana narrates as follows:

“Within the Koshala province, Vaivasvata Manu had built his capital city, Ayodhya, on the banks of the river Sarayu. Later on, under the rule of Ikshvaku’s descendent, Maharaja Dasharatha, the city flourished wonderfully. The city was well laid out with broad and straight avenues that were washed by perfumed water sprayed from the trunks of elephants. The arched gateways to the city were made of marble, and the gates were made of gold and silver, inlaid with valuable jewels. Ayodhya’s walls were strongly fortified, and thousands of warriors were posted to protect the city from invaders.”

“Throughout the city there were seven-storied palaces, surrounded by beautiful parks and gardens, within which were ponds filled with lotus flowers. The sounds of parrots and peacocks could be heard everywhere, along with the vibrations of musical instruments. Gentle breezes carried droplets of water from the numerous fountains, cooling the passers-by in the heat of summer. In this way, Ayodhya appeared to rival Amaravati, the abode of Indra, the king of heaven.”

“The streets of the city were always filled with travelers. Kings and princes from all parts of the world came to pay their annual tribute, as well as respects, to the emperor. In this city, all the four social orders – the brahmanas, kshatriyas, vaishyas and shudras – participated cooperatively for the peace and prosperity of the kingdom. No one was cheated and no one was miserly. Arrogance, atheism, as well as harsh behavior and speech were conspicuous by their absence.” (Excerpt Taken from the book Ramayana told by Purnaprajna Dasa)

Rediscovery by King Vikramaditya

After the rule of King Kush, Ayodhya was lost. Lord Ramachandra appeared in the dreams of King Vikramaditya of Ujjain and blessed him with the vision of His grand and opulent kingdom. Lord Rama instructed the devoted king to re-habilitate the city of Ayodhya. King Vikramaditya carried out the order of the Lord and discovered the sacred city. He first approached the banks of River Sarayu and came across the temple of Sri Nageshwar Nath Mahadev. Through this temple, the King identified the other places of pastimes of Lord Ramachandra in Ayodhya.

The History of Ayodhya’s Struggle

The history records that many religions like Buddhism, Jainism have thrived in Ayodhya and the city has lost its original charm of being the capital city of Lord Rama. As per the recent history, Ayodhya has witnessed seventy six battles thus claiming lives of more than three lakh soldiers or devotees.

In the year 1528, Mir Banki, the commander-in-chief of Babur’s army broke the temple of Sri Rama and took over its control and constructed a Babur Gumbaz on it. Queen Jayaraja Kumari of Hasvar attacked the Muslim’s army along with thirthy thousand female soldiers and re-claimed the entire city. However on the third day Humayun attacked and won the city thus re-establishing the control of Muslims.

During the reign of Akbar, twenty times Hindus tried taking back the city but were unsuccessful nineteen times. However on the twentieth attempt, Hindus took control over the place and constructed the temple over it. The situation was peaceful during the era of Jehangir and Shahjahan. During the time of Aurangzeb, he sent a large army under the leadership of Janbanz who was defeated by the ten thousand saints led by Swami Vaishnav Dasa. Then Aurangzeb sent fifty thousand soldiers under the leadership of Ali Khan. This time also Swami Vaishnava Dasa and Sikh soldiers of Guru Gobind Sikh defeated the Mughal Army. Further for four years Aurangzeb did not look back at Ayodhya.

After four years, Mughal army suddenly raided Ayodhya and took its control. During the reign of Nawab Shahdutt Ali, King Gurudutt Singh of Ameti fought with the Mughal Army and took back the control of Ayodhya. Like this from time immemorial there has been fight over the control of Ayodhya. In the year 1857, Mir Ali and Ramsharan Das tried giving back the birthplace of Lord Rama peacefully to the devotees of Lord Rama, but British did not allow.

In 1912-13 during the colonization of British, devotees tried taking back the birthplace of Lord Rama twice but were unsuccessful in their attempts. Finally in the year 1992, the Babri structure was demolished and since then worship is continuing in the birthplace of Lord Ramachandra.

Ancient Temples in Ayodhya

Sri Ram Janmabhoomi

Nath Nageshwar Temple

Dasharath Mahal

Kanak Bhavan

Hanuman Gadhi

Sahastradhara

Ram Ki Paidi

Guptar Ghat

Mani Parvata

Sugriva Tila

Sheetla Mata Temple

Choti Devkali Temple

Chandrahari Temple

Surya Kunda

Vasishta Kunda

Nandigrama / Bharata Kunda

Kalarama Mandir

Makhadua Dham

How to reach: The nearest airports to Ayodhya are the Lucknow Airport, Allahabad Airport and Varanasi Airport. There are scheduled flights from Delhi Airport to these Airports.  State transport buses ply from Lucknow, Allahabad and Varanasi regularly on daily basis. One can also reach Ayodhya by rail. Although Ayodhya has its own railway station, the nearest big railway station with better connectivity is Faizabad. From Faizabad one can reach Ayodhya by local transportation like autos.

Ayodhya as per Archeology

Read more about the Archeology findings at Ayodhya at Veda – Vedic Knowledge Online

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