.BY ONE matter there are nearly 700,000 Hindu temples in India. Yet for numerous supporters it was the one that did not exist– a monument to mark the plausible birth place of Ram, a Hindu god– that mattered the best. On January 22nd their yearning will certainly concern an end when Narendra Modi, the prime minister, venerates the Ram mandir, a splendid temple in the north area of Ayodhya.
Some 8,000 people are going to join the service, including scores of authorities from Mr Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Celebration (BJP) and also dignitaries from 55 nations. Why is actually the temple thus essential?