Surya Tilak: How Sunlight Will Grace Ramlalla's Forehead At The Same Time Every Ram Navmi

'Raghukul tilak sujan sukh daata,

Aayau kusal dev muni traata'

'The glorious tilak of the House of Raghu, the one who brings joy to the pious, the protector of the Gods and sages, is returning well and sound'.

That is how Hanuman announces the arrival of Shri Ram to Bharat in Tulsidas' Ramcharitmanas.

Now, a team of experts is working to ensure that every Ram Navmi, there is a 'Surya Tilak', of the 'Raghukul Tilak'.

The garbhagriha of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir, that stands unique in its octagonal shape, is designed to allow sunlight to illuminate the face of Ramlalla.

On every auspicious ceremony of Ram Navmi, the sanctum will be aglow as the sun's rays will precisely fall on his forehead, symbolising a Surya tilak of the Suryavanshi.

Crafted from the Krishna Shila from Karnataka, the 51-inches tall idol will represent the five-year-old form of Shri Ram. It has been sculpted by Arun Yogiraj from Mysuru.

The design that will allow the sun rays to fall on Ramlalla's forehead has taken inspiration from the thirteenth century Sun temple at Konark in Odisha.

The studies and calculations done to ensure that the rays of the Sun grace the Ramlalla idol at the same time each Ram Navmi, were carried out by a team of experts from the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Central Building Research Institute (CBRI), Roorkee, and Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), Bengaluru.

This team of scientists, astronomers and technologists that crafted the unique system also studied the Surya and Chandra calendars to calculate the position of the Sun on Ram Navmis, and tailored the design changes in the temple structure to harmonise with these calculations.

At noon, when the sun reaches its zenith above the temple, its rays will penetrate the garbhagriha and will be redirected through high quality lenses within the sanctum, ultimately resting upon the forehead of Ramlalla.

According to the experts involved in the design of the temple, this celestial alignment is expected to persist for the next 19 years.

S K Panigrahi, the project's chief scientist at CBRI Roorkee, told Swarajya, "the tilt mechanism will redirect sunlight through the apparatus to adorn Lord Rama's forehead with a circular 'tilak' measuring 75mm, lasting for three to four minutes on Ram Navmi during the Chaitra month's noon.”

“Only brass was employed in crafting our system of pipes and the rays will be diverted through an arrangement of four lenses, starting from the third floor of the temple, to reach the garbhagriha,” he added.

However, ensuring precise sunlight access to this specific location and defining it for the 19-year cycle posed a challenge.

So how will the Surya tilak team deal with fluctuating sun positions each year, with the shifting dates for Ram Navmi? Panigrahi says, "the concept yet has been designed incorporating these changes for the next 19 yearly cycles, and the same positions will recur every 19 years."

The architects behind the temple design asserted that this concept seamlessly merges astronomy, science, design, and construction technology.  

Architect Ashish Sompura, stated, “the significance lies in Surya Dev performing the Surya Abhishek of Ramlalla at his birth, highlighting the divine connection with the sun.”

Without divulging specifics, he shared, "let this phenomenon remain a magical experience for all pilgrims and visitors".

The team began working on the unique project in April 2023. They have currently set up the mechanism inside the garbhagriha, and are waiting for the third floor completion to install the remaining apparatus.