Ayodhya was historically known as Saketa.

The legendary city of Ayodhya is the birthplace of

the Hindu deity Rama of Kosala and setting of the great epic Ramayana.
The cities of Ayutthaya (Thailand), and Yogyakarta (Indonesia), are named after Ayodhya.
Kalidasa's Raghuvamsha, mention Ayodhya as another name for Saketa.
Kosala was conquered by the Magadha emperor Ajatashatru around fifth century BC. There
is lack of historical sources about the city's situation for the next few centuries: it is possible
that the city remained a commercial centre of secondary importance, but did not grow into
a political centre of Magadha, whose capital was located at Pataliputra. Several Buddhist
buildings may have been constructed in the town during the rule of
the Maurya emperor Ashoka in the third century BC: these buildings were probably located
on the present-day human-made mounds in Ayodhya. Excavations at Ayodhya have resulted
in the discovery of a large brick wall, identified as a fortification wall by archaeologist B. B.
Lal. This wall probably erected in the last quarter of the third-century BC.

The Dhanadeva-Ayodhya inscription, first-century BC

Coin of ruler Muladeva, of the Deva dynasty minted in

Ayodhya, Kosala. Obv: Muladevasa, elephant to left facing symbol. Rev: Wreath, above
symbol, below snake.
After the decline of the Maurya empire, Saketa appears to have come under the rule
of Pushyamitra Shunga. The first century BC inscription of Dhanadeva suggests that he
appointed a governor there. The Yuga Purana mentions Saketa as the residence of a
governor, and describes it as being attacked by a combined force of Greeks, Mathuras,
and Panchalas. Patanjali's commentary on Panini also refers to the Greek siege of Saketa.

Later, Saketa appears to have become part of a small, independent kingdom. The Yuga
Purana states that Saketa was ruled by seven powerful kings after the retreat of the
Greeks. The Vayu Purana and the Brahmanda Purana also state that seven powerful kings
ruled in the capital of Kosala. The historicity of these kings is attested by the discovery of the
coins of the Deva dynasty kings, including Dhanadeva, whose inscription describes him as
the king of Kosala (Kosaladhipati).

After the Deva kings, Saketa appears to have been ruled by the Datta, Kushan, and Mitra
kings, although the chronological order of their rule is uncertain. Bakker theorises that
the Dattas succeeded the Deva kings in the mid-1st century AD, and their kingdom was
annexed to the Kushan Empire by Kanishka. The Tibetan text Annals of Li Country (c. 11th
century) mentions that an alliance of king Vijayakirti of Khotan, king Kanika, the king of Gu-
zan, and the king of Li, marched to India and captured the So-ked city. During this invasion,
Vijayakirti took several Buddhist relics from Saketa, and placed them in the stupa of Phru-
no. If Kanika is identified as Kanishka, and So-ked as Saketa, it appears that the invasion of
Kushans and their allies led to the destruction of the Buddhist sites at Saketa.

Nevertheless, Saketa appears to have remained a prosperous town during the Kushan rule.
The earliest inscription that mentions Saketa as a place name is dated to the late Kushan
period: it was found on the pedestal of a Buddha image in Shravasti, and records the gift of
the image by Sihadeva of Saketa. Before or after the Kushans, Saketa appears to have been
ruled by a dynasty of kings whose names end in "-mitra", and whose coins have been found
at Ayodhya. They may have been members of a local dynasty that was distinct from
the Mitra dynasty of Mathura. These kings are attested only by their coinage: Sangha-mitra,
Vijaya-mitra, Satya-mitra, Deva-mitra, and Arya-mitra; coins of Kumuda-sena and Aja-
varman have also been discovered.

Around the fourth century, the region came under the control of the Guptas, who revived
Brahmanism. The Vayu Purana and the Brahmanda Purana attest that the early Gupta kings
ruled Saketa.

In the 11th century, the Gahadavala dynasty came to power in the region, and
promoted Vaishnavism. They built several Vishnu temples in Ayodhya, five of which survived
till the end of Aurangzeb's reign. Hans Bakker concludes that there might have been a
temple at the supposed birth spot of Rama built by the Gahadavalas. In subsequent years,
the cult of Rama developed within Vaishnavism, with Rama being regarded as the foremost
avatar of Vishnu.

Vishnu – Hari inscription is said to have been found among the debris of the Babri
mosque in Ayodhya when a group of Hindu activists demolished the mosque in 1992. They
had long claimed that the Muslim ruler Babur had constructed the mosque after destroying
a Hindu temple marking the birthplace of the Hindu deity Rama (an incarnation of Vishnu).
Those who believe that a temple existed at the Babri mosque site consider the inscription as
evidence of their claim, identifying the king as the 12th
century Gahadavala king Govindachandra.

In 1226 AD, Ayodhya became the capital of the province of Awadh (or "Oudh") within
the Delhi sultanate. Muslim historians state that the area was little more than wilderness
prior to this. Pilgrimage was tolerated, but the tax on pilgrims ensured that the temples did
not receive much income.

Under Mughal rule, the Babri mosque was constructed in Ayodhya. The city was the capital
of the province of Awadh (mispronounced as "Oudh" by the British), which is also believed
to be a variant of the name "Ayodhya".

After the death of Aurangzeb in 1707 AD, the central Muslim rule weakened, and Awadh
became virtually independent, with Ayodhya as its capital. However, the rulers became
increasingly dependent on the local Hindu nobles, and control over the temples and
pilgrimage centres was relaxed.

In the 1850s, a group of Hindus attacked the Babri mosque, on the grounds that it was built
over the birthplace of the Hindu deity Rama. To prevent further disputes, the British
administrators divided the mosque premises between Hindus and Muslims.
Ayodhya was annexed in 1856 by the British rulers. The rulers of Awadh were Shia, and
the Sunni groups had already protested against the permissive attitude of the former
government. The British intervened and crushed the Sunni resistance. In 1857, the British
annexed Oudh (Awadh) and subsequently reorganised it into the United Provinces of Agra
and Oudh.

1853: First recorded incidents of communal violence at the disputed site take place.

1859: British officials erect a fence to separate the places of worships, allowing the inner
court to be used by Muslims and the outer court by Hindus.

1885: Mahant Raghubir Das files a suit seeking permission to build a canopy on Ram
chabootra but his plea was rejected a year after by the Faizabad district court.

1949: Idol of Lord Ram surfaces inside mosque. Muslims claim that it was kept there by
Hindus. Muslims protest, and both parties file civil suits. The government proclaims the
premises a disputed area and locks the gates.

January 18, 1950: The first title suit filed by Gopal Singh Visharad asking for the right to
worship the idols installed at 'Asthan Janmabhoomi'. The court restrained the removal of
idols and allowed the worship to continue.
April 24, 1950: The State of UP appeals against the injunction order.
1950: Ramchandra Paramhans files another suit, but withdraws later.
1959: Nirmohi Akhara enters the fray and files the third suit, seeks possession of the site,
doing away with the court-appointed receiver. It claims itself to be the custodian of the spot
at which Ram was supposedly born.

December 18, 1961: UP Sunni Central Board of Waqfs moves in to claim possession of the
mosque and adjoining land.

1986: On a plea of Hari Shanker Dubey, a district judge directs Masjid gates to be unlocked
to allow 'darshan'. Muslims set up Babri Masjid Action Committee.

1989: A fresh suit is filed by former VHP vice-president Deoki Nandan Agarwala in the name
of Lord Ram for declaration of the title and possession in its favour at the Lucknow bench of
the Allahabad HC.

October 23, 1989: All the four suits, pending before a Faizabad court transferred to a special
bench of the HC.
1989: VHP lays foundations of a Ram temple on land adjacent to the disputed mosque.
1990: VHP volunteers partially damage the mosque. Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar tries
to resolve the dispute through negotiations, which fails the next year.
Dec 6, 1992: The disputed mosque is razed by Hindus with the support of VHP, Shiv Sena
and BJP, prompting nationwide communal riots which claimed more than 2,000 lives.
Dec 16, 1992: Justice Liberhan Commission set up to inquire into the demolition of disputed
structure within six months.
July, 1996: Allahabad HC clubs all civil suits.
2002: The HC directs the Archaeological Survey of India to excavate the site to determine if
a temple lay underneath.
April, 2002: Three High Court judges begin hearing.
2002: The HC directs the Archaeological Survey of India to excavate the site to determine if
a temple lay underneath.
April, 2002: Three High Court judges begin hearing.
Jul, 2005: Suspected Islamic militants attack the disputed site. Security forces kill five
people.
Jun, 2009: Liberhan commission investigating events leading up to the mosque demolition
submits its report - 17 years after it began its inquiry and after getting extension for 48
times.
Jul 26, 2010: Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court reserves its order on the suits, fixes
September 24 for pronouncement of verdict.

Sep 17, 2010: HC refuses to defer pronouncement of the verdict as pleaded by one of the
parties R C Tripathi in the suit.
Sep 21, 2010: Tripathi approaches SC against HC order. A bench of Justices Altamas Kabir
and A K Patnaik refuses to take up the case. Matter referred to another bench.
Sep 23, 2010: Difference of opinion between two Justices R V Raveendran and H L Gokhale
crops up on entertaining the petition. Court issues notices to the parties.

Sep 28, 2010: SC dismisses Tripathi's plea for deferment of the verdict by the HC which now
fixes September 30 for pronouncement of the judgement.

September 30, 2010: The Allahabad High Court pronounces its verdict on four title suits
relating to the Ayodhya dispute. Ayodhya land to be divided into 3 parts. 1/3 goes to Ram
Lalla represented by Hindu Maha Sabha, 1/3 to Sunni Wakf Board, 1/3 goes to Nirmohi
Akhara.

December 2010: The Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha and Sunni Waqf Board moved to the
Supreme Court of India, challenging part of the Allahabad High Court's verdict.

May 9, 2011: Supreme Court of India stayed the High court order splitting the disputed site
in 3 parts and said that status quo will remain. The two judge bench of Supreme Court also
remarked that the HC verdict was surprising as no party wanted a split of the site.

In a judgement pronounced by a 5 judge bench of the Supreme Court of India on 9

November 2019, the land was handed over to the government to form a trust for the
construction of a temple. The court instructed the government to also allot a plot of 5 acres
(2.0 ha) in Ayodhya to the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board to construct a
mosque/Masjid.

Ayodhya is an important place of pilgrimage for the Hindus. A verse in the Brahmanda
Purana names Ayodhya among "the most sacred and foremost cities", the others
being Mathura, Haridvara, Kashi, Kanchi and Avantika. This verse is also found in the
other Puranas with slight variations. In Garuda Purana, Ayodhya is said to be one of seven
holiest places for Hindus in India, with Varanasi being the most sacrosanct.

RAM LALLA TEMPLE:

On 5 August 2020, the prime minister of India, Narendra Modi, laid the ceremonial
foundation stone for a new temple at what is believed to be the birthplace of the god,
Ram. It is planned to build a new township, Navya Ayodhya, on a 500-acre (2.0 km2) site
next to the Faizabad-Gorakhpur highway, which will have luxury hotels and apartment
complexes.

Ayodhya Ram Temple is touted to be a combination of new-age technological conveniences

and age-old Indian traditions.

Building material

Bansi Paharpur Sandstone

The superstructure of the Ram Mandir will be made of carved Rajasthan Bansi Paharpur
stone, the rare pink marble stones, world-renowned for its beauty and strength. It will
require a total of 4 lakh sq ft of stone.

The Bansi Paharpur Sandstone is found in the Bayana Tehsil of Bharatpur District in
Rajasthan and it is available in hues of pink and red. The centre, in 2021, gave an in-principal
approval to convert 398 hectares of protected forest land into revenue land to allow the
mining of the pink sandstone in the vicinity of the Band Baretha Wildlife Sanctuary in
Bharatpur, reversing the ban on mining put in place in 2016.

The Bansi Pahadpur Sandstone has been used in various grand structures of the country,
including the Akshardham Temple, the Parliament Complex and the Lal Quila of Agra. Steel
or bricks would not be used in the construction of the Ram Mandir.

While Larsen & Toubro are responsible for building the main structure, Tata Consultancy
Engineers Ltd would develop the allied facilities.

Ayodhya Ram Mandir: Interior

Specifications
The upcoming temple is 360 ft long, 235 ft wide and 161 ft high. In height, the temple will
three times the height of existing structure n the old city.

Style
The temple is designed by chief architect, Chandrakant Bhai Sompura, whose grandfather,
Prabhakarji Sompura, had designed the Somnath Temple, along with his son, Ashish
Sompura. The 79-year-old architect was appointed in 1992. Sompura mentioned that the
Ram Mandir is being built in the Nagara style, following the principles of Vastu Shastra. The
entrance on the east would be built in the Gopuram style, which represents the temples of
the south. The walls of the temple would display artworks depicting the life of Lord Ram.

Shape
The sanctorum of the mandir would be octagonal-shaped, while the structure perimeter
would be circular.

Floors
The mandir will have five domes and one tower with a height of 161 ft. The 3-floor temple
will have a centre – Garbh Griha – built to allow sun rays to fall on the idol of Ram Lalla, the
infant embodiment of the Lord. Like the sanctorum, the Griha Mandap would be fully
covered, while the Keertan Mandap, the Nritya Mandap, the Rang Mandap and the two
Prarthana Mandaps on each side would be open areas.

Ram Lalla idol

There will be two idols of Lord Ram. One will be the actual idol found in 1949 and has been
in the tent for decades. The other will be a huge statue which will be visible from a long
distance, says Jagdish Afle, project manager of the ram Mandir construction work.

The temple bell

A 2,100-kg bell for the Ram Temple is being brought from Etah, a well-known destination for
bell manufacturing in India. The 6-ft tall and 5-ft wide bell would cost Rs 21 lakh.

Doors and window

To build the windows and doors, Teak wood (Sagwan) has been procured from
Maharashtra’s Chandrapur. Not an ordinary wood, Teak has a life span of over 100 years.
Work on building the grand doors and windows is expected to start between June 26 and 30
after a ceremonial ritual.