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On
the right bank of the river Ghaghra or Saryu, as it
is called within sacred precincts, stands the holy city
of Ayodhya, believed to be the birth place of Lord Rama,
the seventh incarnation of Lord Vishnu.
The ancient city of Ayodhya, according to the Ramayana,
was founded by Manu, the law-giver of the Hindus. For
centuries it was the capital of the decendants of the
Surya Vansh of which Lord Rama was the most celebrated
king. Ayodhya during ancient times was known as Kosaldesha.
The Atharvaveda describes it as "a city built by
gods and being as prosperous as paradise itself".
The illustrious ruling dynasty of this region were the
lkshvakus of the Surya Vash. Accoridng to tradition
lkshvaku was the eldest son of Vaivasvata Manu, who
established himself at Ayodhya.
The earth is said to have derived its name 'Prithvi'
from Prithu, the 6th king of the line. A few generations
later came Masndhatri, in whose line the 31st king was
Harishchandra, known idely for him live for truith.
Raja Sagar of the same clan performed the ashvamedha
yajna and his great grandson bhagirath is reputed to
have brought ganga on earth by virtue of his penances.
later in the time came the great raghu after whome the
family came to be called as raghu vansh . His grandson
was Raja Dasharatha the illustrious father of lord rama
with whome the glory of the dynasty reached its zenith.
According to pauranic belief in the 93rd generation
from Ikshvaku the 30th from lord rama was vrihadbala
the last famous king of the ikshvaku dynasty of ayodhya
who was killed during the Mahabharata war. The kingdom
of kosala again rose to prominence in the time of the
Buddha, i.e. 6th century B.C.
Ayodhya is pri-eminently a city of temples. At Ayodhya
several religions have grown and prospered simultaneously
and also at different periods of time in the past. Remnants
of Hinduism, Budhism , Jainism, Sikhism can still be
found in Ayodhya.
According to Jain tradition, Ayodhya was the seat of
five Tirthankaras, including the first Tirthankar Adinath
(Rishabhadeva). |
