Ayodhya

Why it is one of the Sapta Puri

A verse of the Garuda Purana calls seven cities givers of liberation: "ayodhyā mathurā māyā kāśī kāñcī avantikā, purī dvāravatī jñeyā saptaitā mokṣadāyikāḥ". Meaning: Ayodhya, Mathura, Maya, Kashi, Kanchi, Avantika and the city of Dvaravati, know these seven as givers of liberation. Ayodhya is the first name in the list.

We read the verse in two places in the Uttara Khanda (Preta Kalpa) of the Garuda Purana: chapter 38 (verses 5-6) and chapter 49 (verse 114), in the Venkateshvara Press text. In both places the context is the tirthas where dying brings liberation. In the Kashi Khanda of the Skanda Purana (first half, chapter 7) Shivasharman, a brahmin of Mathura, resolves to visit the seven cities (verses 42-43) and goes to the other six.

Ayodhya in the texts

According to the Valmiki Ramayana (Bala Kanda 5.5-7) the land of Kosala lay on the Saryu, and its capital Ayodhya was founded by Manu himself. In the Bala Kanda (18.8-11) Kausalya gives birth to Rama on the ninth day of the month of Chaitra, under the Punarvasu nakshatra. In the Kashi Khanda of the Skanda Purana (first half 7.44-45) Shivasharman begins his pilgrimage to the seven cities at Ayodhya and bathes in the Saryu.

The main temples and ghats

The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi temple stands on the site believed to be Rama’s birthplace (Incredible India); according to the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra trust the temple is 161 ft high including its spire, and passes for darshan and aarti are free. Hanumangarhi is about 1 km from Ayodhya railway station; Hanuman is believed to live here guarding Ayodhya, and the image shows the child Hanuman in mother Anjani’s lap (Ayodhya district). According to UP Tourism the temple is built like a fort.

Kanak Bhawan lies north-east of the Janmabhoomi, in Ramkot; the palace is believed to have been given to Sita by Kaikeyi after her wedding, and its main images are of Rama and Sita (Ayodhya district, UP Tourism). Ram ki Paidi is a row of ghats on the Saryu; on it stands the Nageshwarnath temple, said to have been founded by Kusha, whose present building was put up in 1750 by Naval Rai (Ayodhya district). According to UP Tourism, Guptar Ghat is held to be the place where Rama entered the Saryu (jal samadhi).

How to reach Ayodhya

• Air: Maharishi Valmiki International Airport, about 10 km from Ayodhya Dham (Ayodhya district).
• Rail: Ayodhya Dham and Ayodhya Cantt are the main stations; by rail Ayodhya Dham is 135 km from Lucknow, 164 km from Gorakhpur, 157 km from Prayagraj and 191 km from Varanasi (Ayodhya district).
• Road: about 130 km from Lucknow and 636 km from Delhi (Ayodhya district).

Main festivals

Where the sources differ

• In popular recitation the second line is also heard as "purī dvāravatī caiva". The Garuda Purana text in which we checked it reads "purī dvāravatī jñeyā". The verse says "saptaitā" (these seven), so "purī dvāravatī" is one city, the city of Dwarka, not Jagannath Puri.
• The Ayodhya district website calls this city the first or the foremost of the seven. The Garuda Purana verse only lists the seven names and ranks none; the other cities’ own sources also call their city the first.
• Who gave Kanak Bhawan: Ayodhya district and UP Tourism say Kaikeyi; the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra trust’s page says it was a golden palace given by Janaka at the wedding. The trust also calls Nageshwarnath the temple of Ayodhya’s "presiding deity".
• Some older government pages still name Lucknow as the nearest airport; they predate Ayodhya’s airport.

Frequently asked questions