Ayodhya pronunciation (help·info) (Hindi: अयोध्या, IAST Ayodhyā) is an ancient city of India, the old capital of Awadh, in the Faizabad district of Uttar Pradesh. Ayodhya is described as the birth place of Hindu god Shri Ram, and the capital of Kosala Kingdom. This Hindu holy city is described as early as in the Hindu Epics.

During the time of Gautama Buddha the city was called Ayojjhā (Pali). Under Mughal rule, it was the seat of the governor of Awadh, and later during the British Raj the city was known as Ajodhya or Ajodhia and was part of the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, it was also the seat of a small 'talukdari' state. It is on the right bank of the river Sarayu, 555 km east of New Delhi.

The word ayodhya is Sanskrit for "not to be warred against". Some Puranas like the Brahmanda Purana (4/40/91) consider Ayodhya as one of the six holiest cities in Hinduism. In the first few centuries of the Common Era it was called Saketa.

Śāketa, or (Pinyin: Shāqí) was conquered by the great Kushan / Yuezhi Emperor Kanishka c. 127 CE, who made it the administrative centre of his eastern territories. The name occurs again in Faxian as (Pinyin: Shāzhī) in the early fifth century.

It is not clear when the name changed, but by the time of the visit of the Chinese pilgrim monk, Xuanzang, c. 636 CE, it was known as Ayodhya. Ayodhya is said to be one of the most ancient, magnificent and holy of Hindu cities.

According to the ancient Hindu Scriptures, it is said to have covered an area of 250 km² (96 square miles), and was the capital of the powerful Hindu kingdom of Kosala (Kaushal). It is on the banks of the Gogra (Ghaghara or Saryu) River, bathing in which is supposed to destroy even the deadliest of sins. It stands on the right bank of the river Ghagra (or Saryu, as it is called within sacred precincts).

The illustrious Ikshvaku of the solar clan (suryavansha) was the ruling dynasty of this region. This city was ruled by 'Surya Vanshi' kings and it was the court of the great king Dasaratha, the 63rd monarch of the Solar line. King Dasaratha's son 'Shri Rama' was believed to be the incarnation of Lord Vishnu.

Lord 'Shri Rama' was born and had many of his pastimes here. In the Atharvaveda, this place was described as a city that was made by gods and was as prosperous as heaven itself.

Similar to 0 things you like: