Ayodhya

It is a very holy city and is an important pilgrimage site. Lord Rama was born and had many of His pastimes here. It is said to have once had a perimeter of 96 miles and was the capital of Koshala. It is on the banks of the Saryu River. Ayodhya is 6 km from the town of Faizabad. Rama Janma Bhoomi, where Lord Rama was said to have taken birth, is here. There is small Lord Rama temple here. There are over 100 temples in Ayodhya. Also called OUDH, or AWADH city. It lies on the Ghaghara (Gogra) River near Faizabad. Ayodhya is regarded as one of the seven sacred cities of the Hindus; it is revered because of its association, with the great Indian epic Ramayana, with the birth of Lord Rama and with the rule of his father, Dasharatha. According to Ramayana, the city was prosperous and well fortified and had a large population. In traditional history, Ayodhya was the early capital of the kingdom of Kosala, while, in Buddhist times (6th-5th century BC), Sravasti became the kingdom's chief city. Scholars generally agree that Ayodhya is identical with the city of Saketa, where the Buddha is said to have resided for a time. Its later importance as a Buddhist centre can be gauged from the statement of the Chinese Buddhist monk Fa-hsien in the 5th century AD that there were 100 monasteries there. There were also a number of other monuments, including a stupa (shrine) reputed to have been founded by Asoka (3rd century BC).The Kanauj kingdom arose in Ayodhya, then called Oudh, during the 11th and 12th centuries. The region was later included in the Delhi sultanate, the Jaunpur kingdom, and, in the 16th century, the Mughal Empire. Oudh gained a measure of independence early in the 18th century but became subordinate to the British East India Company in 1764. In 1856 it was annexed by the British; the annexation and subsequent loss of rights by the hereditary land revenue receivers provided one of the causes of the Indian Mutiny in 1857. Oudh was joined with the Agra Presidency in 1877 to form the North-Western Provinces and later the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, now Uttar Pradesh state.

Janma-sthana is where Lord Rama was said to have been brought up. There is a popular temple dedicated to Hanuman called Hanuman-gadhi. Kanak Bhavan and Kala Rama temple, both have Dieties of Sita-Rama. There is a nice area by the river surrounding Laksman Ghat. Vashishtha Kund is a temple with a small round kund, like a well. Lord Rama is said to have performed yajna at Treth ka Mandir. Other temples are Kshireswara Nath temple and Bharata Kund.