Day after the Mauritian cabinet announced a mandatory 2-hour break for Hindus working in public offices to enable them to attend local events being organised ahead of the opening of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh, it has now been learnt that temples in the island country will organise chanting of verses from the epic ‘Ramayana’ ahead of the grand event in India.
The president of the Mauritius Sanatan Dharm Temples Federation, Bhojraj Ghoorbin, said all temples in the Hindu-majority country will organise the chanting of verses from ‘Ramayana’ as part of events marking the ‘Pran Pratishtha’ of Shri Ram Lalla in Ayodhya on January 22.
“Across Mauritius, all our Hindu brothers and sisters are in a celebratory mood these days. From Makar Sankranti on January 15, all our temples will hold the chanting of verses from Ramayana. On January 22, when Lord Ram will be enthroned at the grand temple in Ayodhya, we will hold celebrations similar to Diwali. The Festival of Lights will be celebrated twice in Diwali this year,” Ghoorbin told ANI.
“The first Diwali would be celebrated across the country on January 22 while the second would mark the actual celebration of the Festival of Lights on October 31. After 500 years of Vanwas (exile), Prabhu Shri Ram is coming to Ayodhya and our celebrations would be unbridled and unprecedented,” he added.
Ghoorbin added that a day before the inauguration of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, a cultural programme will be organised. Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth will attend the event as the chief guest, he added.