Ram temple and the Indian ethos

Ram temple has been the dream of millions of Indians who are Hindus, Sikhs,Buddhists, Jains and even some Muslims if not Christians,Jews etc. Why I said some Muslims, is because some of them regard and pay respect to Lord Ram as one of their ancestors. I learnt that some Muslim women of Varanasi have been performing "Shri Ram Aarti" for the past 14 years every day and sing Ram dhun.

Maryada Purushottam Ram has a special place in the ethos, culture, literature,traditions and whatnot of this country from Himalayas to Kanyakumari.He is a symbol of love and compassion and is celebrated that way in all Asian countries of Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia and Phillipines ,as I know of. Even Thailand's Royal Kings use the name of Ram in their titles.

Ram has been a symbol of Unity and Gandhiji in modern days extensively used Ram for uniting the people of India under the banner of Purna Swaraj for Bharat. Gandhi in his Autobiography says that Ramayana and Harichandra play left indelible marks in shaping his personality defining his principles of Sathya and Ahimsa. All through his struggle for Independence he stressed the need for Ram Rajya and what it symbolises for. In his own words,

"BY RAMARAJYA I do not mean Hindu Raj. I mean by Ramarajya Divine Raj, the Kingdom of God. For me Rama and Rahim are one and the same deity. I acknowledge no other God but the one God of truth and righteousness.

Whether Rama of my imagination ever lived or not on this earth, the ancient ideal of Ramarajya is undoubtedly one of true democracy in which the meanest citizen could be sure of swift justice without an elaborate and costly procedure. Even the dog is described by the poet to have received justice under Ramarajya. (YI, 19-9-1929, p. 305)

By political independence I do not mean an imitation to the British House of commons, or the soviet rule of Russia or the Fascist rule of Italy or the Nazi rule of Germany. They have systems suited to their genius. We must have ours suited to ours. What that can be is more than I can tell. I have described it as Ramarajya i.e., sovereignty of the people based on pure moral authority. (H, 2-1-1937, p. 374)

My Hinduism teaches me to respect all religions. In this lies the secret of Ramarajya. (H, 19-10-1947, p. 378)

If you want to see God in the form of Ramarajya, the first requisite is self-introspection. You have to magnify your own faults a thousand fold and shut your eyes to the faults of your neighbours. That is the only way to real progress. (H, 26-10-1947, p. 387)" (Link)

The above defined the course of Gandhiji's path in his life and in his independence movement mobilising the masses.

So Ram is deeply imbibed in Indian culture and Ayodhya is the holy point from where this has emanated and engrossed the whole country. Like Gandhiji , Lord Ram had covered the length and breadth of this country , of course mostly by foot meandering through the thickly infested forests- Dhandakaranya, Janasthan- and then to Sri Lanka.Like Gandhiji, he stood firm on his beliefs and promises come what may. Like Gandhiji, he led a life of renunciation and penance to keep up his promise.Like Gandhiji, he wanted to shun violence and pardon his opponent for his misdeeds by giving him an opportunity to return Sita back .

Gandhiji truly imbibed all the best moral characteristics Lord Ram stood for and that is why even when he was shot he died uttering "Hey Ram".

Gandhiji said Unto the Last and this inclusive concept started from Ram nam.In Vishnu Sahasranam , Parvati asks how a simpleton who does not know 1000 names of Vishnu will ever worship the Lord and Eswar obliges Her saying that Ram naam is equal to 1000 names of Vishnu .So the last man standing shall worship by chanting Ram naam so that nobody is left behind.

So constructing a Ram temple in Ayodhya in independent India has been the dreams of millions of indians for over 500 years and the foundation stone laying on 5th August has been the culmination of this dream.