US: ‘Overseas Friends of Ram Mandir’ distributes laddoos at Times Square ahead of Pran Pratishtha

New York [US], January 22 (ANI): Ahead of the ‘Pran Pratishtha’ ceremony of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, the members of the ‘Overseas Friends of Ram Mandir’ distributed laddoos at Times Square in New York on Sunday (local time).

Prem Bhandari, the member of the organisation said that the event is being celebrated with much fanfare in the US as well.

He also lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi for connecting people across the globe with this event.

“We never thought that we would witness this divine day in our lifetime. The Pran Pratishtha ceremony will take place very soon. People in Times Square are also celebrating this and the place is looking no less than Ayodhya. People of the Indian diaspora are celebrating this event at various places,” Prem Bhandari said.

“Lord Ram is returning after ‘vanvaas’ (exile) and all this is taking place due to the leadership of PM Modi. He has made the whole atmosphere in ‘Rammay’ across the world. He has connected not just 140 crore people but the Indian diaspora abroad too with this event. This day is no less than Diwali,” he further added.

Meanwhile, the United States is gearing up ahead of the Pran Pratishtha ceremony, with almost a dozen events planned across the United States to celebrate the historic occasion.

There are events lined up all the way from New York Times Square to Boston, as well as in Washington, DC, Los Angeles and San Francisco, that will happen at the same time as the ceremony in India happens.

The billboards have gone up in Texas, Illinois, New York, New Jersey, and Georgia, among other states. Additionally, Arizona and the State of Missouri are set to join this visual celebration, which began on January 15, according to the VHP, American chapter.

The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), US chapter, in association with Hindus from across the US, has put up more than 40 billboards in 10 states and more, displaying the message around the grand ‘Pran Pratishtha’ ceremony at the birthplace of Shri Ram Lalla in Ayodhya.

To commemorate the inauguration of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, the Hindu American community across the US has organised several car rallies and has planned many more events in the run-up to the ‘Pran Pratishtha’ in Ayodhya.

Notably, the process of Pran Pratishtha has already started from January 16. While the ‘Prayaschit’ and Karmakuti puja were performed on January 16, the idol entered the premises on January 17.

On January 18, Ram Lalla’s idol was installed in the sanctum sectorum of the grand new temple. Aushadhivas, Kesaradhivas, Ghritadhivas were organized on January 19, Dhanyadhivas on January 19, Sugardhivas, Fruitdhivas, Pushpadhivas on January 20 and Madhyadhivas and Shayadhivas on January 21.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will perform rituals marking the ‘Pran Pratishtha’. A team of priests led by Lakshmikant Dixit will lead the main rituals.

Along with PM Modi, RSS Sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat, Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and other dignitaries will be present on the occasion.

Special guests from cricket world, film world, saint society, politics, art, literature and culture and other fields have also been invited for the ceremony.