Hanuman Garhi

Getting there

• By air

  Maharishi Valmiki International Airport is the nearest airport, in Ayodhya itself.

• By train

  Ayodhya Junction is the nearest railway station.

Why devotees come here

Hanuman Garhi is a Hanuman temple on a hilltop in Ayodhya, near Ram Janmabhoomi. It is one of the most important temples in the city. Its shape is that of a four-sided fort.

Hanuman Garhi is one of the most important temples in Ayodhya, along with Ram Mandir and Nageshwar Nath. Legend says Hanuman lived in a cave in Ayodhya to guard Ramkot after Rama returned from defeating Ravana. A small Hanuman idol found in that cave was placed on the hill, and the hill came to be called Hanuman Garhi.

The accounts of the temple's history differ from one source to another. Folklore credits Saint Tulsidas, who was refused entry into Ayodhya, with building it. A Skanda Purana account credits King Vikramaditya. One account says Aurangzeb destroyed the temple and built a mosque on the site, and that the Bairag, a group of ascetics, later removed the mosque and built a new temple. Nawab Wajid Ali Shah is said to have rebuilt the current structure.

The temple is shaped like a four-sided fort with a circular rampart at each corner. Its entrance has a domed roof and two minarets, and the complex also has a mosque from the Mughal era. Inside, the inner deity is a 6-inch image of Hanuman as a child, seated on his mother Anjani's lap. The sanctum is adorned with silver carvings. Verses of the Hanuman Chalisa are inscribed on the walls. The temple also has a Victory Pillar, the Vijay Stambh.

Tips for your visit

• The temple sits on a hilltop and is reached by a series of steep steps.
• There are 76 stairs up to the main temple.

Questions people ask