By Ananya Sharma 
Ayodhya, December 31: Ayodhya did not wake up to celebration on Tuesday. It woke up to routine faith. The fog stayed longer than usual, and the cold made people move slowly. Outside the Ram Temple, tea sellers poured steaming cups, volunteers adjusted their scarves, and pilgrims stood quietly in line. Some had travelled all night. Some had come from nearby villages. Nobody seemed in a hurry.
Inside the complex, Rajnath Singh raised a flag at the Annapurna Temple to mark the second anniversary of Ram Lalla’s Pran Pratishtha. Yogi Adityanath stood beside him. It happened without drama. No slogans. No pause for photographs. The priests continued chanting, and the queues kept moving.
If you were not told it was an anniversary, you might have missed it. This year, the date fell on Pratishtha Dwadashi, according to the Hindu calendar. That is why the observance came on December 31, not January 22, the date most people remember from 2024. Volunteers explained this patiently to visitors who kept asking the same question.
What The Day Looked Like Inside
The rituals followed one another quietly. Ganapati Puja, Mandal Pujan, Vishesh Abhishek, then Prakatotsav Aarti. No rush. No announcements. Just priests doing what they do every day.
Rajnath Singh offered prayers at the Ram Lalla sanctum, then at the Ram Darbar. People nearby said he did not speak much. He stood with folded hands, waited for the rituals to end, and moved on. Later, he walked through parts of the complex, watching volunteers guide devotees and police manage the crowd. By late morning, the lines were long. Old men leaned on railings. Women fed children from plastic packets. Some people sat down on the floor, tired but calm.
Nobody complained. This is what they had come for.
Why The Flag Was Raised At Annapurna Temple
The flag was hoisted at the Annapurna Temple, a shrine dedicated to the goddess of food and nourishment. Temple officials said the gesture was symbolic. Not about power. Not about celebration. Just about marking the day.
Later, at Angad Tila, the exit point of the complex, the Defence Minister spoke briefly. Those who heard him said he spoke in simple words about faith and discipline, and about what Lord Ram represents to ordinary people. Many devotees had already begun leaving by then.
From Delhi, Narendra Modi sent his greetings. By now, such messages are expected. People read them on their phones, share them once or twice, and return to their day.
Not Just One Day
The anniversary is part of a longer religious programme running from December 27 to January 2. Every evening, something happens in Ayodhya.
There are Ram Katha sessions where people sit on mats for hours. Bhajan programmes by singers like Anup Jalota and Suresh Wadkar pull in crowds. Ramlila performances by artists from South India and Chhattisgarh bring different accents and styles to a story everyone already knows.
Officials say five to six lakh devotees are expected during this period. Police are everywhere. Medical camps are set up. Volunteers keep answering the same questions again and again.
A Town That Is Still Adjusting
Two years after the consecration, Ayodhya is still changing. New hotels have come up. Roads are wider. Autos are always full.
Shopkeepers say business has improved. Older residents say the town feels crowded all the time now. Some welcome the change. Some miss the quieter days. These are the conversations you hear at tea stalls, not during aarti.
An Anniversary That Felt Like Any Other Day
What stayed with many people on Tuesday was how normal everything felt. After darshan, devotees left quietly. Priests prepared for the next ritual. Security staff waved in the next line. There was no big ending. No final announcement. And perhaps that is the real shift. The Ram Temple is no longer just a headline or a historic moment. It has become part of everyday life. People come. People pray. People go home.
The temple stays.
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- Ananya Sharmahttps://hindustanherald.in/authors/ananya/
- Ananya Sharmahttps://hindustanherald.in/authors/ananya/
- Ananya Sharmahttps://hindustanherald.in/authors/ananya/
- Ananya Sharmahttps://hindustanherald.in/authors/ananya/
