Thousands of lamps turned Ayodhya Dham into a river of light on Saturday, 7 November 2026, as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath performed the sacred tilak ceremony at the symbolic Ram Darbar — the divine court of Lord Rama — marking the centrepiece of Deepotsav 2026.

A tilak for the Ram Darbar, a gathering of dignitaries

CM Yogi was joined by Vice President C.P. Radhakrishnan and Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel for the veneration. The Chief Minister applied the tilak to the pratik swaroop — the symbolic representation — of the Ram Darbar, offering what he described as the fortune of paying homage ('vandan-abhinandan') at Lord Rama's sacred court. The opening Sanskrit shloka in his post — invoking Lakshmana to Rama's right, Sita to his left, and Hanuman before him — set the devotional register of the evening.

In his post, Yogi wrote that this blessed land, sanctified by the 'pavan charan raj' (holy foot-dust) of Lord Rama and Mother Janaki, is today radiating the eternal luminance of truth, righteousness, and Sanatan Dharma across the entire world. He closed with a prayer: 'Ramrajya ki sankalpana sakar ho' — 'May the vision of Ram Rajya be realised.'

Deepotsav: from a 2017 state initiative to a national spectacle

Deepotsav was launched by the Uttar Pradesh government in 2017, coinciding with Diwali, to celebrate the legendary return of Lord Rama to Ayodhya after fourteen years of exile. What began as a state cultural initiative has grown into one of India's most watched annual religious-tourism events, drawing pilgrims, dignitaries, and global attention to the banks of the Saryu river.

The scale of the festival has expanded each year. The Ram Janmabhoomi Temple, consecrated in January 2024 after decades of legal proceedings, has given Deepotsav an added layer of historic resonance — the celebrations now unfold in the shadow of a fully consecrated temple complex that itself was the subject of one of independent India's longest-running political and judicial sagas.

Ram Rajya as a governing ideal

The Chief Minister's invocation of Ram Rajya — the classical ideal of a just, prosperous, and dharmic rule — is not incidental. The concept has been a recurring touchstone in Yogi Adityanath's public articulation of Uttar Pradesh's development vision, linking ancient ideals of governance to contemporary state-building in Ayodhya and beyond. The presence of the Vice President and Governor at the ceremony underlines how Deepotsav has evolved from a state festival into a constitutionally significant state occasion.

As the ghats of Ayodhya glowed and the Sanskrit invocation echoed across the dham, the message from Lucknow was clear: the city of Rama is being repositioned — lamp by lamp, ceremony by ceremony — as the spiritual capital of a resurgent cultural India.