Residents of Chirimiri, a small town in Chhattisgarh known for its scenic beauty and decades-old coal mines are organising daily “Ram Naam Sankirtan” in the surrounding areas, where every morning people from the small town gather and sing Bhajans of Prabhu Sri Ram.
Every morning, hundreds of people, including women from separate colonies, gather in the premises of a local temple and then proceed to nearby surroundings, singing Bhajans with traditional musical instruments. The sole purpose of the campaign is to educate and motivate the masses to go and visit the sacred land of Ayodhya, where a magnificent temple of Bhagwan Rama is being built.
In the gathering called in the morning, the struggle of the Hindu community to free the Ram Janambhoomi Sthan (spot) is conveyed to the residents through rhymes; this includes the stories of the sacrifices made by the Karsevaks in the holy city of Ayodhya. The residents who took part in the drive can be seen repeating the rhymes of the song while holding the saffron flags.
Speaking with the Organiser representative, Anshu Raje, who runs a shop in the town, informed that the route of the ‘Prabhat Feri’ changes daily so that the devotees can cover the entire town before the ‘Pran Pratistha’ ceremony.
“The drive was commenced on January 1 and it will continue till the ‘Pran Pratishtha’ ceremony is held on January 22, 2024 in Ayodhya. Initially, the number of members were less, though within no time it augmented briskly where a significant number are of the Matrishakti (women)”, added Raje
The devotees gathered under the ‘Prabhat Feri’ carry traditional musical instruments like ‘Dholak’ and ‘Manjhira’, while a megaphone is used to recite the Bhajan or rhymes of the song. Additionally, arrangements for a small feast for those who have participated in the drive are also facilitated by one of the devotees, while similar arrangements would be made by another person on the next day.
Further, arrangements have also been made to live telecast the ‘Pran Pratistha’ ceremony on large size LED screens, following which a Bhandara (Food feast) will also be organised at the heart of the town, according to another member of the Prabhat Feri Ramnaam Sankirtan campaign team.
A few kilometres away from the small town of Chirimiri lies Manendragarh, another small town in the newly created Manendragarh-Chirimiri-Bharatpur (MCB) district of Chhattisgarh, where a similar campaign will be launched by the residents within a week’s time. “The campaign of Ramnam Sankirtan will commence from January 15”, informed, a social worker of the town familiar with the upcoming drive in the small locality.
Kilometres away on the eastern side lies Baikunthpur, the headquarter of the Korea district, where a similar drive was recently carried out by the residents. “It’s been like a festive atmosphere when we approached the people with holy Akshat and extended the invitation to visit the sacred land of Ayodhya”, said Vishal Gupta who runs a fitness centre in the heart of the small town.
“The people in the surrounding area were wholeheartedly participating in the drive; they are elated and have been participating in Maha Aarti and Kirtan at local temples as well, that reflects their devotion and undying love for the Lord Rama,” added Gupta while expressing their happiness over the festive mood of the town.
In all, as the nation gears up for the auspicious consecration ceremony of Bhagwan Sri Ram at the holy city of Ayodhya, its seems like no terrain including the Vanvasi heartland where Rama along with Lakshman and Jaanki spent a brief period of time while at Vanvas has been untouched by the unmatched wave of devotion.
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