Kathmandu, April 10: Devotees are thronging the temples and shrines dedicated to the Hindu god Ram throughout the country since the morning today on the occasion of the Ramnawami festival.     

Ramnawami festival is celebrated on Chaitra Shukla Navami (the ninth day of the bright half in the month of Chaitra as per the lunar calendar).    

A large number of devotees have thronged since early morning at the Shree Ramchandra Temple at Battisputali, the Ram temple on the other side of the Pashupatinath, the Ram temple at Arubari in Gokarneshwor Municipality, among other Ram temples in the capital as well as across the nation.    

Minister for Law, justice and Parliamentary Affairs Govinda Prasad Sharma Koirala visited the Shree Ramchandra Temple at local Battisputali to pay homage, said Dr Govinda Tandan, member-secretary of the temple management committee.    

Ramnawami festival is celebrated to commemorate the victory of truth over evil and to the memory of god Ram. The festival celebrates the descent of Vishnu as the Ram avatar, through his birth to King Dasharatha and Queen Kausalya in Ayodhya during the Treta Yuga.    

The day is marked by Ram Katha recitals or reading of Ram stories, including the epic Ramayana which narrates the tale of Rama. Hindus visit a temple while others pray within their homes, paying homage to Ram.    

Ram's reign in Ayodhya is remembered even today as exemplary statecraft. Ram is worshipped as an ideal man devoted to his father and mother, respecting elders and loving the younger. It is said that Lord Vishnu took birth in the form of Ram in the world to protect the righteous by ending the evil in the universe.    

Former Associate Professor of Valmeeki Vidhyapeeth Shri Ram Sapkota said that the festival of Ram Navami was celebrated with the hope that we too would have the same qualities as Ram.    

It is mentioned in the scriptures including Ramayana that fasting, worshipping and paying homage to Shri Ram on the day of Ramnawami will bring happiness, peace and prosperity to this world.