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| Cleanliness drive, heritage walk organized at Raghunath Temple | | |  Early Times Report
JAMMU, Nov 23: NSS GGM Science College Jammu under the patronage of worthy Principal Dr. Rajesh Gupta and guidance of NSS PO Dr. Deepali Mahajan organized heritage walk and Cleanliness drive at Raghunath Temple in collaboration with INTACH Jammu Chapter. The temple consists of a complex of seven Hindu shrines. Raghunath Temple was constructed by the first Dogra ruler Maharaja Gulab Singh in the year 1835.
All the spiral-shaped towers have gold plated spires. The niches in the walls of the shrines are decorated with 300 well-crafted icons of gods and goddesses including those of Surya and Shiva, but most are particularly related to the life stories of Rama and Krishna. The paintings in the 15 panels of the main shrine are based on themes from Ramayana, Mahabharata, and Bhagavad Gita.
The temple premises include a school and a library that preserves over 6,000 manuscripts in many Indian languages, with a notable collection of Sharada script Sanskrit manuscripts. The temple complex is dedicated to Raghunath, another name for Rama. The entrance has a Surya icon, another manifestation of Vishnu. The main shrine which is 20 feet (6.1 m) x 20 feet (6.1 m) in size, is surrounded by a circumambulatory passage (pradakshina path) of 10 feet (3.0 m) width. The entrance door, set on one side of this octagonal chamber of the shrine, faces east. The interior of the inner chamber is gold plated. The interior panels have a surfeit of paintings of the Jammu School of painting consisting of images from the Hindu epics Ramayana, Mahabharata, and Bhagavad Gita, represented by gods such as Ganesha, Krishna, Sheshashayi Vishnu and also a large painting depicting the Sita Swayamvara scene. In the main shrine, the idol of Lord Rama is placed. The temple is also enshrined with a very large number of Saligramas.
A distinct feature noted in the entire temple complex is the stucco style embellishments built with brick masonry and finished with plaster. The motifs crafted are of floral (lotuses) and geometric designs, on the walls, in the niches and on arches. Apart from paintings on the walls, the niches in the interior parts of the shrines have 300 well crafted images of deities. The profusion of paintings and images on the internal and external faces of the temple was considered an auspicious feature, instead of leaving the wall surfaces blank. The NSS volunteers also carried out Cleanliness drive in the temple area. |
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