Thiru Ayodhi is a temple dedicated to Sri Ramar; the temple is situated 6 Kms from Faizabad. The temple resides the deity Sri Ramar who is also called Chakravarthy Thirumagan. The deity here faces North; Thaayar of this 108 Divya Desam is Seetha Piratiiyaar.
This place is considered special as the Great epic, Ramayana, started and ended here. Lord Sri Rama was born and set an example for the world of how an ordinary human should be. He displayed a perfect example of how a human should walk on the path of truth, which leads to salvation.
This temple is one of the seven known to be salvation places. It is also believed that these places represent different body parts of Lord Vishnu. For example, Avanthi is the feet of the Lord, Kanchipuram, represents the waist, Thirudwaraka represents the Nabhi, Maya represents the chest, Madhura represents the neck, and Kasi represents the nose, and Ayodhya Kshetram is the Head of the Perumal.
At the end of his lifetime, Sri Rama with his brothers merged into one and got salvation in the Sarayu river.
Sri Ramar or Rama set various examples and taught the world how truth always becomes victorious over evil and lies. Sri Rama was the man of one woman, and he spent his whole life considering Sita, his only wife.
He was the man of his words for whom nothing is more important than a promise made. Here the deity Emperumaan took the avatar of Sri Rama, and Periya piratti took birth to be his wife, Sita. The snake on which Vishnu takes rest, Aadhiseshan became his brother, Lakshmanan. Perumal’s sangu and chakkaram became “Bharadhan and Sathrukkanan.” Hanuman born as the hamsam of Sivaperumaan.
This avatar was sent to Earth by Vishnu to explain to all humans how one must live their life even while having the entire empire. Rama’s character was born to explain how obedient a son should be to his mother even if he has to go into exile because of the mother.
Sri Rama then set an example about friendship by helping Sukreevan and Vibheeshanan. Sri Rama always has a merciful heart toward his devotee Hanuman which explains their depth of compassion and love.
Ayodhya was the birthplace of Rama, and the same place became the place of his Mukthi. Hence this was the final place where Rama’s avatar ended; this is his most important place.
Legends
Once Lord Brahma did great penance for Lord Vishnu. Vishnu appeared in front of Brahma, and both of them hugged each other. Seeing the great devotion of Brahma toward him, Vishnu became emotional and started to cry. Brahma, however, did not let his tears fall, and he collected them in a vessel.
Then later, using his power, Brahma created a pushkarani using a mix of tears and power. This creation is called the Maanasasaras in the Himalayas, and it became the theertham. As it was built using the power of Brahma and the tears of Vishnu, the place was called “Maanasasaras.”
When Itsuraku was the ruler of Ayodhya, he requested for a river to flow in his region. Vasishta Maharishi then went to Brahma and passed on this king’s request. With the help of Brahma, Maanasasaras started flowing in the city.
Since it was flowing in Ayodhi, the river was called “Sarayu Nadhi.” It is believed that the river also talked to Rama and Dasharatha, also called “Rama Gangai.” Historically, there were about 2700 temples on the bank of Sarayu Nadhi.
Swayavambhuvamanu was the first son of Brahma, who asked his father where he should start the creation. Brahma then took his son to Lord Vishnu and asked the same question. Lord Vishnu then handed over the middle part of the heavenly abode, Ayodhi Raajyam.
Since Brahma emerged from the navel of Vishnu, he is considered the son of Vishnu, and Swayavambhuvamanu was the grandson. Hence the wealth of Vishnu belonged to his son and grandson. Upon this, alwar say:
“Ambuyothon Ayodhi Mannarkku Alitha kovil.”
Interesting Places
There are many places to visit in Ayodhi. Near the Sarayu river, there is a small temple of Hanuman called “Hanuman Thekri.”
Ammaaji Mandir is also the place of the old temple where all the alwars sang. Besides his temple, Sri Rama lives in the hearts of every devotee. By reciting his name, everyone can get liberated from this cycle of life and death and return to the heavenly abode of the Lord. So let us say “Sri Rama Ki Jai” and let his love spread deeper inside us.
