The facial expressions of Shriramlalla Idol have changed completely after Pranapratishtha

Sculptor Arun Yogiraj narrates his spiritual experience

Shriramlalla

New Delhi – While speaking to the media, Arun Yogiraj the sculptor of Shriramlalla Idol, narrated his spiritual experience, “Shriramlalla (Child Form of Shriram) looked completely different after Pranapratishtha. I realised that it was not my work. After the ritual of Alankaran (wearing ornaments), the expression of Shriramlalla changed completely. After my work finished the look of Shriram was different and after the Pranapratishtha ceremony in the Sanctum Sanctorum, the face was different. Both the forms (before and after Pranapratishtha) are different. God has taken two different forms.

A few revelations regarding Shriramlalla Idol, as told by Arun Yogiraj

Arun Yogiraj

I am unable to express my feelings in words

This moment is the result of 300 years of my ancestors’ asceticism, Perhaps God has sent me to the earth for this very purpose. I was lucky that I was destined to create Shriramlalla Idol in this birth. I cannot express my feelings in words.

We are a 300-year-old sculptor family

Our family is a sculptors’ family. In my house, we have been carving sculptures from stone for the past 300 years, Mine is the 5th generation. My father is my Guru. It was the blessing of Shriram that I got this opportunity to carve out His Idol. When God Himself tells you to make His Idol, it is an exhilarating experience.

‘How will Shriram look in the form of a Child’ was the thought that prompted me to observe children and continued to do so, for a long time

Every day I think of people’s faith in Shriramlalla, I try to visualise the Child form of Shriramlalla blessing me and try to experience His blessings. It was really a challenge to sculpt the Child form of Shriramlalla. In fact, I can carve out a face in merely 2 to 3 hours, but carving out Shriramlalla Idol was different, we collected the details of 5-year-old children, observed and collected their photographs, and nearly 1,000 pictures were preserved. I spent a lot of time with children and observed them, so that I could bring out the faith, devotion, and spiritual expression in the eyes of Shriramlalla. I saw the sparkle in the eyes of the children and their cheekbones when they laughed, and on that basis, gave the final touch to the Idol.

I went on doing my work keeping the faces of 5-year-old children in my mind and brain

When the face of an Idol is carved out, the expressions are important, and the chances of correction are weak. The stone in which the Idol is carved out requires us to spend a lot of time with it. I had complete concentration on my work. I would plan out the next day’s work on the previous night. Went on sculpting the Idol with the faces of 5-year-old children in my mind and brain. That was the source of the Innocent smile of Shriramlalla.

Shriram was the only thought going around in my head for 7 months straight !

Last 7 months I have been carving out Shriramlalla’s Idol in the black stone, and day and night the only thought in my mind was, “The Idol is meant to be Shriram for the entire nation, how can I make the Idol Divine ? The Idol has come to reality only because of God’s blessings.

I used to have my doubts as to whether the people would like the Idol or not

I have a son and a daughter. I would ask my 7-year-old daughter, how the Idol looked, and she said, it looked like a small child. I used to doubt whether people would like the Idol or not. Every Bharatiya has liked it and they paid obeisance to It, which has given me tremendous satisfaction too.

While making this Idol, a monkey would visit me every day

At the time of making of this Idol, a monkey would come and sit here every day at around 5 in the afternoon. Sometimes, due to the cold weather, the monkey would knock on the door when the workshop door was closed. When I told Champat Rai, the Secretary of Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, about this incident, he said, ‘Maybe Deity Hanuman wants to check the Shriramlalla Idol. Whenever I close my eyes to sleep, I would get visions of nothing else other than the Idol’.