Ram Mandir in the context of Ram Mandir Prana Pratishtha

A temple (from the Latin templum) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship for some religions are commonly called "temples" in English, while those of other religions are not, even though they fulfill very similar functions.

The religions for which the terms are used include the great majority of ancient religions that are now extinct, such as the Ancient Egyptian religion and the Ancient Greek religion. Among religions still active: Hinduism (whose temples are called mandir or kovil), Buddhism (whose temples are called vihara), Sikhism (whose temples are called gurudwara), Jainism (whose temples are sometimes called derasar), Zoroastrianism (whose temples are sometimes called agiary), the Baháʼí Faith (which are often simply referred to as Baháʼí House of Worship), Taoism (which are sometimes called daoguan), Shinto (which are often called jinja), Confucianism (which are sometimes called the Temple of Confucius).

Dharma Dhwaj (lit. flag of dharma) is the saffron (bhagwa) religious flag installed atop the Ram Mandir at Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, India. The flag-hoisting marked the ritual completion of the temple’s construction during the formal Dhwajarohan ceremony held on 25 November 2025. The Dharma Dhwaj bears sacred symbols — the radiant Sun, the sacred syllable “Om”, and the Kovidara tree — signifying spiritual heritage, Lord Rama’s lineage, and traditional Hindu symbolism. The saffron flag — measuring 22 feet × 11 feet — was hoisted on a 42-foot flagpole rising from the temple spire, as part of the renovation and finalization process of the temple complex.

Hanuman Garhi Temple is a Hindu temple of Hanuman in Uttar Pradesh, India. Located in Ayodhya, it is one of the most important temples in the city along with other temples such as Ram Mandir and Nageshwar Nath. This shrine is under the charge of Bairagi Mahants of Ramanandi Sampradaya and Nirvani Akhara.

The Ram Rath Yatra (lit. 'Ram chariot journey') was a political and religious rally that lasted from September to October 1990. It was organised by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its Hindu nationalist affiliates, and led by the then-president of the BJP, L. K. Advani. The purpose of the yatra was to support the agitation, led by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and its affiliates in the Sangh Parivar, to erect a temple to the Hindu deity Rama on the site of the Babri Masjid.

The masjid, or mosque, had been built in the city of Ayodhya following the Mughal conquest of the region in 1528. According to hearsay, it was built over a temple dedicated to Rama, and stood on the site of his birth. In the 1980s, the VHP and other Sangh Parivar affiliates began an agitation to build a temple to Rama at the site, with the BJP lending political support to the movement. In 1990, the government of India led by V. P. Singh decided to implement some of the recommendations of the Mandal commission, and announced that twenty-seven percent of government jobs would be reserved for people from Other Backward Class. This announcement threatened the electoral constituency of the BJP, which decided to use the Ayodhya dispute to unite the Hindu vote by mobilising anti-Muslim sentiment.