The Ramayana trail that runs through five Indian states – Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu – is going to have a landmark in Bihar. After the Ram Mandir of Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh, a Ramayana temple is coming up in Bihar, some parts of which fall in the historical Mithila region. Said to be a tribute to the Ramayana, one of the most popular Indian epics, the Viraat Ramayan Mandir in Bihar is one of the largest under-construction temples across India.
Viraat Ramayan Mandir to surpass the height of Cambodia’s Angkor Wat
The upcoming temple in Bihar is not only being modelled on the architecture of Angkor Wat Temple, but also going to transcend its height. While the tallest tower of Cambodia’s Angkor Wat reaches 215 feet, Bihar’s Ramayan Mandir will rise to an astounding height of 123 meters or 405 feet. It will also vertically exceed the 369-foot height of the world’s tallest Shiva sculpture – the Statue of Belief in Rajasthan.
Viraat Ramayan Temple: Cost, area, location
Located in the east Champaran district of Bihar, the temple construction is estimated at a whopping ₹500 crore. Janaki Nagar in north Bihar is the exact location of the under-construction Ramayana temple in the Mithila region. It is funded by the Mahavir Mandir Trust in Patna, the capital of Bihar. The temple complex will as large as nearly 100 acres (2800 ft in length and 1400 ft in width), with a built-up area of 3.76 lakh square for the temple buildings.
Bihar’s Viraat Ramayan Mandir to be larger than Ayodhya Ram Mandir
To be three times larger than the Ram Janmabhoomi Temple, the upcoming Ramayan mandir will be spacious enough to seat up to 20,000 devotees in its prayer hall grander than that of the Temple of Vedic Planetarium at ISKCON headquarters in West Bengal.
Dedicated to Sri Ram, Devi Sita, Lakshman, and Hanuman, the temple complex will have 22 sanctorum, including for Lord Ganesh, Lord Shiva, Ma Durga, and other Hindu deities. All the sanctum sanctorum will be crowned by intricately carved shikharas (spires), embodying the majesty of Bharat’s traditional temple architecture.
Among the attractions of Viraat Ramayan Temple in Bihar, there will be a gigantic 33-foot tall black granite Shivling weighing around 200 tons. In addition to being modelled on the world’s largest non-functioning Angkor Wat temple, the architecture of Bihar’s upcoming Ram-Sita mandir is somewhat inspired by Rameshwaram Temple and Madurai’s Meenakshi Temple.
India’s largest Ramayan temple: A fusion of science and spirituality
Headed by Acharya Kishore Kunal, a retired IPS officer, Bihar’s Ramayan temple project would be a study on powerful combination of science and spirituality. Modern construction techniques to make the foundation earthquake-resistant are being followed to every minute detail, and selection of materials that can withstand adverse forces of nature are being done under his supervision. A massive steel-concrete framework, along with glass and stone finishes, is being used to combine aesthetics with durability.
