Photo of Ram Lalla’s face as 5-year-old emerges ahead of pran-pratishtha

The first glimpse of the face of Ram Lalla was shared on Friday ahead of the pran pratishtha on January 22. In the photos that appeared on social media, the five-year-old Lord Ram can be seen standing with a golden bow and arrow in his hand.

The images are from the workshop where the idol was made by Mysuru’s sculptor Arun Yogiraj. The eyes of the idol will only be uncovered on January 22 — 12.30pm the muhurtam of the consecration.

BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra shared a photo of Ram Lalla’s uncovered face and wrote, “The beautiful photo of Lord Shri Ram fills the heart with joy.”

On Thursday, the 51-inch black stone idol was placed in the sanctum sanctorum covered with a cloth. The first photo of the Ram Lalla that was shared by the Vishva Hindu Parishad was of the black statue, eyes covered with a yellow cloth.

The pre-consecration ceremonies that started a week ago on January 16 entered the 4th day on Friday. The holy fire for the worship will be established today.

Netronmelan, pran-pratishtha

As explained by Givind Dev Giri, a member of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teertha Kshetra Trust, the unveiling of Ram Lalla’s statue will be done by applying honey to a gold bar. The cloth on Ram Lalla’s eyes will be removed on January 22 ahead of pran pratishtha. “The basic method of ‘netronmelan’ is that by applying honey to a gold bar, the eyes become anointed, which looks like ‘kajal’ to the people,” Acharya Giri said to ANI.

Arun Yogiraj’s Ram Lalla idol

The idol of Arun Yogiraj was selected unanimously by a panel as it depicted Ram Lalla most uniquely — as a five-year-old child. The idol weighs around 150-200kg and has been carved from black stone. According to reports, the rock from which the black stone has been chiselled out is a three billion-year-old rock.

Arun Yogiraj observed 6-month fast

Sculptor Arun Yogiraj’s wife Vijetha said during the process of making the idol, the sculptor embraced an ascetic lifestyle and observed a six-month fast — limiting his food intake to fruits, sprouts and everything satvik.