Patna: A 33ft Shivalinga weighing 210 tonnes has set off on a 20–25 day journey from Mahabalipuram in Tamil Nadu to East Champaran in Bihar, where it will be installed at the Virat Ramayana Temple, a sprawling new religious complex under construction near Chakia.
Carved from a single block of black granite in Pattikadu village, the Sahasralingam—so named because it contains 1,000 smaller Shivalingas—has taken a decade to complete. The sculpture, created under the direction of chief sculptor Loknath, was transported onto a 96-wheel Volvo hydraulic puller vehicle earlier this week following a prayer ceremony attended by Mahavir Temple officials.
Vinayak Venkataraman, founder of the company that produced the Shivalinga, said the work had cost about Rs. 3 crore and that installation was planned for February next year. “It has been a long and meticulous process,” he said.
The convoy will move at about 5km/h and follow a route passing through several cities, including Hosur, Bengaluru’s outskirts, Kurnool, Hyderabad, Nagpur, Jabalpur, Rewa, Mirzapur, and Chhapra, before arriving in Chakia. The Mahavir Mandir Sthan Trust Committee, which is overseeing the project, said special engineering work was underway on a 12km stretch of road and bridges to prevent subsidence under the vehicle’s weight.
According to Sayan Kunal, secretary of the trust committee, the Virat Ramayana Temple aims to become “the world’s largest temple,” with construction being accelerated to meet deadlines. The Shivalinga will be placed on a 15ft silver Argha already being prepared at the site.
The temple complex, designed by Acharya Kishore Kunal, is planned to span 1,080ft in length and 540ft in width. It will include 18 spires and 22 subsidiary temples, with the tallest spire reaching 270ft. The foundation stone was laid on 20 June 2023, and piling works have been completed. Located in Janakinagar between Kesaria and Chakia, the site lies about 120km from Patna and will also house four ashrams.
