Ayodhya Ram Mandir: Why 2.5 billion-year-old black granite was used in making Ram Lalla idol
sculptor Arun Yogiraj, who was born in Bujjegoudanapura hamlet in HD Kote taluk, Karnataka, was instrumental in making the statue of Ram Lalla for the Ayodhya Ram Temple consecration event. The 200-kg idol depicts Lord Ram as a five-year-old youngster standing and grinning gently. This awe-inspiring work of art was created using Krishna Shila stone, which has some significant qualities.
«The stone is 2.5 billion years old,» NDTV reported, citing HS Venkatesh, Director of the National Institute of Rock Mechanics (NIRM), Bengaluru, as saying. The NIRM facility was used to test the stone with physico-mechanical analysis.
«The rock is highly durable and resistant to climatic variation and will sustain thousands of years in this subtropical zone with minimum maintenance,» added Venkatesh.
Meanwhile, the general secretary of the trust for the Ram Temple, Champat Rai, stated that the idol of Ram Lalla was picked carefully from three contenders.
Arun Yogiraj was given the task of using his sculpture skills to represent Lord Ram's boyhood alongside other talented craftspeople.
The specialties of Krishna Shila Stone
The 51-inch idol was sculpted using Krishna Shila stone, which is common in the districts of HD Kote and Mysore. This stone, which has a black look and is named «krishnashila» because it is the same colour as that of Lord Krishna. Since calcite makes up the majority of the stone, sculptors can easily sculpt complicated patterns with it.
