Hymns and songs about Lord Ram reverberated in temples, special prayers were held, processions taken out, rangolis made and bhandara events were held Monday as the country soaked in religious fervour on the occasion of the consecration ceremony at the Ram temple in Ayodhya.
To coincide with the historic day, three babies were delivered by caesarean operation at a hospital in Madhya Pradesh's Indore, a 42-year-old woman in Maharashtra's Thane city had a muhurat delivery while a Muslim woman in Uttar Pradesh's Firozabad gave birth to a boy and named him Ram Rahim to signify Hindu-Muslim unity.
Several states declared a holiday for schools, while government offices, other establishments and public sector banks remained closed for half a day.
Some states declared a 'dry day' and asked shops selling non-vegetarian food items to remain closed till evening.
Since morning, people flocked temples that were bedecked with flowers, lamps, flags and posters. In the evening, there was a Diwali-like atmosphere as diyas were lit outside homes, shops and business establishments.
In Kerala, rituals at the Triprayar Sree Ramaswamy temple in Thrissur district were performed from early morning.
Situated on the bank of the Karuvannur or Theevra river, it is dedicated to Lord Ram.
The temple is renowned for the Nalambalam yatra -- a pilgrimage to the abodes of Lord Ram and his brothers Bharat, Lakshman and Shatrughan -- and worshipping at all these temples on a single day in the Malayalam month of Karkidakam is considered auspicious, drawing many devotees.
Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan offered prayers at the Ramadevi Temple in Vazhuthacaud in the state capital.
The Sree Ramaswamy Temple at Ramapuram in Kottayam is also one of four temples where the deities are the four sons of King Dasaratha of Ramayana.
Saffron festoons, flags with the images of Ram, Hanuman, Sita and Lakshman and posters welcoming the arrival of Ram to his birth place dotted several nook and corner in Karnataka. There was a huge turnout of devotees at Ram and Hanuman temples, besides Lord Venkateshwara temples since morning.
Special prayers were held in Bengaluru at Ramanjaneya Gudda temple, Pattabhirama Swamy Temple, Ram temple in Rajajinagar and Ramadevara Devasthana at Malleswaram and Ram temple in Basavanagudi.
Prayers were also performed at several temples in Jammu and Kashmir, including the Shankaracharya temple in Srinagar, and the Hanuman temple on the banks of Jhelum river in Amirakadal area of the city.
A havan was organised at the Sun temple at Mattan in Anantnag district to celebrate the consecration ceremony as the devotees prayed for return of complete normalcy in Kashmir.
Spiritual fever gripped Jharkhand with special prayers organised in more than 51,000 temples across the state.
A massive rangoli of Lord Ram measuring 18,500 sqft was inaugurated by Union Tribal Affairs and Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda on the premises of Sri Laxmi Narayan Temple at Cable Town in Golmuri in Jamshedpur.
Artist Vivek Mishra took nearly two weeks to make the rangoli using over three tonnes of colours.
A huge 3D rangoli featuring Ram Lalla and the Ram Mandir was made by a group of students of Allahabad University and was unveiled in Magh Mela area in Prayagraj
Women devotees in neighbouring Bihar sang 'kirtan' (devotional songs) at the Hanuman Mandir in Priyadarshi Nagar on Bailey Road in Patna since early morning while a procession was taken out from Sri Krishna Pranami Temple took with people carrying kalash and the Ramayana on their heads.
A replica of the Ayodhya temple has been displayed near Dak Bunglow Chowk in Patna where Sri Ramnavami Shobhayatra Abhinandan Samiti.
In the evening, tableaux of Lord Ram, Goddess Sita, Lord Hanuman and others were taken out.
All major intersections of Mathura, home to the Krishna Janmasthan Temple, were decorated and bhandara set up in many parts of the city. At the Radha-Krishna mandir inside the temple complex, the idols were given the appearance of Lord Ram and Sita.
In West Bengal, a grand procession featuring a tableau depicting Lord Ram offering obeisance to Goddess Durga was taken out from Baikuntha Nath Temple near Ganesh Talkies in Kolkata and it culminated at the over 80-year-old Ram temple on Chittaranjan Avenue.
The procession with placards and flags having images of Lord Ram was led by BJP leaders of the state and Chou performers and a large number of women draped in yellow and red saris accompanied it.
Special prayers were organised in various places in Assam and people burst crackers as the consecration ceremony streamed live on various platforms.
The state government declared a half-day holiday while schools, colleges and universities remained closed for the day.
A 'dry day' was also declared and shops selling non-vegetarian food items remained closed till 4 pm.
In shakipeeth Kamakhya temple atop Nilachal hill in Guwahati, special prayers and yajna were organised.
Prayers and festivities were also organised in Batadrawa, the birthplace of Vaishnavite saint and social reformer Srimanta Sankardev.
Arunachal Pradesh also soaked in religious fervour. In capital Itanagar, markets were closed voluntarily and a large number of private schools also declared a holiday.
LED screens were put up at various places and the ceremony at Ayodhya was live-streamed.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav offered prayers at the temple in Orchha, which is also called as Chhoti Ayodhya, in Niwari district.
Devotees believe that Lord Ram stays at Orchha during the day and goes to Ayodhya in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh at night.
In the morning, 'prabhat pheris' (processions) were taken out in localities of various districts where men, women and children dressed in colourful attires and holding saffron flags sang devotional songs in praise of Lord Ram amid the beating of drums.
Soon after the consecration ceremony, devotees burst firecrackers across the state to celebrate the pran pratishtha of Lord Ram in Ayodhya.
In Delhi, the ruling Aam Aadmi Party organised a series of events -- from shobha yatras to bhandaras, 'Sundar Kand' recitals to aartis -- across the 70 assembly constituencies to mark the consecration ceremony.
A three-day Ramlila event at ITO's Pearey Lal Bhawan will also culminate in the evening.
Religious events were organised across Rajasthan with bhajan, kirtan and Ramayan recitation performed in temples in many places. Processions were also taken out at different places, including Jaipur.
In the state's Jaisalmer district, Border Security Force soldiers recited Ramayana at Tanot Mata Temple located on the India-Pakistan border.
In Himachal Pradesh, an 'Akhand Ramayan' recital was organised at a temple devoted to Lord Ram in Shimla.
Immersed in devotion, people in Haryana and Punjab also thronged temples, organised processions and community feasts.
