22nd January, 2024 was an important day for Hindus. The Ram temple at Ayodhya was dedicated, fulfilling the dreams of so many Hindus worldwide who desired a temple for Ram at the site where the Babri Mosque once stood.
Being the birthplace of Ram, the temple is dedicated to Ram lalla, or the infant Ram.
The hope of the kingdom — Ram Rajya
I’ve earlier written on this blog about the hope of Ram Rajya. The desire for Ram Rajya is almost a universal desire among the Hindus. It is the age of righteousness and justice.
Does 22nd January represent a step towards that direction?
The bringers of the Kingdom — the BJP?
Mandir wahin banega…
On December 6, 1992, a mob of Hindu extremists destroyed a 500 year old mosque in Ayodhya. Their claim was that the mosque was built by destroying an old Ram temple at the same site.
It is from this day that one can begin to see the rise of a national political party — the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) — as an alternative to the Indian National Congress. Many BJP leaders such as LK Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, and Atal Bihari Vajpayee built their political careers on the promises of a Ram mandir at the very site where the mosque used to stand.
After 1992, the court case was fought by both Hindus and Muslims for a number of years. But the BJP never wavered from its promise of building a temple at the site.
Another politician from the next generation capitalised on this promise. He rose to power, becoming Prime Minister in 2014, and has just recently been elected for a third consecutive term, becoming only the third Prime Minister in the history of Independent India to achieve the feat.
It is Narendra Modi who finally dedicated the Ram temple in 2024.
Maybe this is a step towards Ram Rajya. Is BJP the bringer of the kingdom?
The BJP will not do this by themselves.The Hindus of India must come together. The call is sounded out for Hindus to mobilize, come together, and create the Hindu Rashtra, that might eventually become Ram Rajya.
At the end of the day, it is human effort that is needed to save the Hindu faith and build the temple and Ram’s kingdom of righteousness.
It is vital to do so, because Hindu khatre me hai
The hope of a different kingdom — the Kingdom of God
Tera Rajya aaye…
Christians too have a hope. They too hope for a kingdom — a kingdom of righteousness and justice.
The bringer of the kingdom — Jesus
But unlike the Hindus, the Christian hope does not depend on the mobilization of Christians to bring about the kingdom. The Christian hope is a picture of a sure future, not a wished-for future.
And thus, every time that Christians pray, your kingdom come, they express their deep longings rather than a wish they are uncertain about.
It is possible, though, for Christians to forget that they are not the ones who bring about the kingdom.
Jesus preached, the kingdom of God is here. He is the king who brings the kingdom. And He is sovereign.
It is very likely for the church to conform to the patterns of the world in thinking that unless we do something, nothing will change. It is very likely for me to confirm to the patterns of the world in thinking that unless I do something, nothing will change.
Far too often, I’ve been guilty of working on Ayodhya projects.
But the kingdom of God is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden, and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.” (Luke 13:19)
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