LUCKNOW: For Dilip Kumar Valmiki and his wife Manju Devi, consecration of Ram Lalla has crafted a new identity not just for them, but for the entire community that has lived with discrimination at the bottom of the social ladder for generations.
“Never in my life of over 60 years have I received so much respect. Lord Ram has brought dignity to our entire community,” said Dilip, who was one of the 15 ‘yajmans’ for the Pran Pratishtha ceremony, where PM Narendra Modi performed the rituals in the garbha griha (sanctum sanctorum) as the chief ‘yajman’.
Equally delighted was Manju, who is in her mid-50s. “We have heard that ‘bhaav’ (emotion) has the supreme importance in sanatan dharma. For the first time, I found out what ‘bhaav’ means. It is the honesty of emotion with which a puja is conducted,” she said.
The couple travelled from Lucknow to Ayodhya for the ceremony and received a grand welcome upon their return.
Similar sentiments were shared by the Dom Raja of Kashi, Anil Chaudhary. Known as the perennial symbol of commitment from the times of Raja Harishchandra, and keeper of the sacred flame displayed in the pyres on Manikarnika Ghat, the Dom community of Varanasi is among the most marginalised.
“As the representative of my clan, I feel honoured. There was no dearth of celebrities, superstars and businessmen, but then, for once, we felt counted,” said Chaudhary.
The trust had nominated 14 couples from the length and breadth of India to participate in the ceremony. “While the PM performed rituals from the garbha griha, the other ‘yajmans’ sat outside with seers. An ‘acharya’ made us conduct the same rituals that the PM was performing. Later, he also met us,” said Manju.
A spokesperson of the temple trust said the effort was to make the ceremony inclusive and representative of India.
Citing an example, he named Mahadev Gaikwad, who represented over 60 million members of the Ghumantu community across 315 nomadic and 198 denotified tribes of India. Likewise, Ramchandra Khuradi of Banwasi Kalyan Ashram (Udaipur) and Gurucharan Singh Gill (Jaipur) represented Rajasthan and Ram Kui Jemi travelled all the way from Assam.
“Never in my life of over 60 years have I received so much respect. Lord Ram has brought dignity to our entire community,” said Dilip, who was one of the 15 ‘yajmans’ for the Pran Pratishtha ceremony, where PM Narendra Modi performed the rituals in the garbha griha (sanctum sanctorum) as the chief ‘yajman’.
Equally delighted was Manju, who is in her mid-50s. “We have heard that ‘bhaav’ (emotion) has the supreme importance in sanatan dharma. For the first time, I found out what ‘bhaav’ means. It is the honesty of emotion with which a puja is conducted,” she said.
The couple travelled from Lucknow to Ayodhya for the ceremony and received a grand welcome upon their return.
Similar sentiments were shared by the Dom Raja of Kashi, Anil Chaudhary. Known as the perennial symbol of commitment from the times of Raja Harishchandra, and keeper of the sacred flame displayed in the pyres on Manikarnika Ghat, the Dom community of Varanasi is among the most marginalised.
“As the representative of my clan, I feel honoured. There was no dearth of celebrities, superstars and businessmen, but then, for once, we felt counted,” said Chaudhary.
The trust had nominated 14 couples from the length and breadth of India to participate in the ceremony. “While the PM performed rituals from the garbha griha, the other ‘yajmans’ sat outside with seers. An ‘acharya’ made us conduct the same rituals that the PM was performing. Later, he also met us,” said Manju.
A spokesperson of the temple trust said the effort was to make the ceremony inclusive and representative of India.
Citing an example, he named Mahadev Gaikwad, who represented over 60 million members of the Ghumantu community across 315 nomadic and 198 denotified tribes of India. Likewise, Ramchandra Khuradi of Banwasi Kalyan Ashram (Udaipur) and Gurucharan Singh Gill (Jaipur) represented Rajasthan and Ram Kui Jemi travelled all the way from Assam.
