Treta Ke Thakur Temple

Situated along the Naya Ghat of Ayodhya, the Treta Ke Thakur Temple houses numerous idols including that of Lord Ram, Sita, Lakshman, Hanuman, Bharat and Sugreev. These statues are said to have been sculpted out of a single black sandstone.

Treta Ke Thakur is believed to have been constructed 300 years into the past, by Kullu, the king of the time. It is said that this structure stands on the very same ground of the famous Ashwamedha Yagna performed by Lord Rama. The temple was further revamped in the 1700s by the Maratha queen of the time, Ahilyabai Holkar.

It is open to the public only once a year on a day marked as the Ekadashi. The Treta Ke Thakur Temple is opened for the devotees only once a year on Kartik Shukla Ekadashi which falls in the month of October or November. The gates remain open for 24 hours on this day. This day is observed on the Shukla Paksha's eleventh day during the month of Karthika according to the Hindu calendar. Colorful celebrations alongside preserved traditional customs are carried out on this day. 

Among the popular temples in Ayodhya, the Treta ke Thakur Temple is dedicated to Lord Rama, who is referred to as the Lord of the Treta Yug. The temple was built by the king of Kullu 300 years ago and was renovated in 1784 AD by Maratha queen Ahilyabai Holkar. The temple holds immense religious significance as it was here that Lord Rama had conducted the 'Ashwadmedha Yagya' to celebrate his victory over Ravana.

The Treta Ke Thakur Temple is an excellent piece of north Indian Nagar-style Hindu temple architecture that has conventional 'shikharas'. The temple houses the idols of Lord Ram, Goddess Sita, Lakshaman, Bharat, Shatrughan, Lord Hanuman, and Sage Vashishtha. It is believed that the idols of Shri Ram, his three brothers, and Sita were brought from the original temple that stood on the bank of river Saryu. All the idols are black, made of single black sandstone.