PM Modi Will Be Main "Yajman" At Consecration Ceremony: Chief Priest

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be the main "yajman" at the consecration ceremony at the Ram temple in Ayodhya on January 22, Laxmikant Dixit, the main priest for the ritual, said in Varanasi on Wednesday.

Mr Dixit refuted reports that Ram temple trust member Anil Mishra, who is performing rituals with his wife in the run-up to the main event, will be the yajman also on the consecration day.

Typically, the yajman is the main host of a puja -- the person on whose behalf the prayers are offered.

Talking to reporters before leaving for Ayodhya, Mr Dixit, the main 'archak' (priest) made it clear that PM Modi will be the main yajman for the 'pran pratishtha' rituals in Ayodhya.

Mr Dixit told news agency PTI over phone that in the past he had performed 'pran pratishtha' at Ram temple in Laxmangarh in Rajasthan and also at an Odisha temple.

The run-up to the Ram temple consecration ceremony began on Tuesday with a series of rituals, led by a member of the temple trust and his wife.

These rituals will reach their finale with the consecration, or 'pran pratishtha', of the idol of Ram Lalla at the new temple in Ayodhya.

"The 'anushthan' has started and will continue till January 22, the day of the consecration ceremony. Eleven priests are performing the rituals invoking all goddesses and gods," Ram temple chief priest Satyendra Das had said.

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