This page is dedicate to Late SH. NAJAR RAM SAHOTA OF WOLVERHAMPTON, England, U.K. who spent all his life to the uplift of our community

A Valmiki temple is called an Ashram, which means a hermitage or monastery. It is the communal house for Valmikis. The function of the Ashram is to serve as a center for building up the commitment of devotee’s and for transmitting the Ramayana's message, and the focal point for the whole community to preserve their culture and traditions.

The Ashram is open to all who wish to enter, anyone who goes to the Ashram is welcome to stay as long as they wish and are welcome regardless of race, gender, caste or creed.

All Valmiki Ashram's have a special flag, called a Nishan Sahib outside to show that it is a place of worship. The bow and arrows represent Valmiki’s disciples Lav and Kush.

For Valmikis communal prayer is not restricted to the confines of the Ashram, but can in fact take place anywhere as long as The Ramayana is present. However, when an Ashram is not within traveling distance many Valmiki families will have a copy of the Ramayana in a special room at their house which can be used for worship.

When an Ashram is not available Valmikis will hire a public building or use an individual’s house as an Ashram.


All Valmiki Ashram's have common features. For instance, the place of worship is always in a special room and there are a number of other rooms set-aside for special purposes. There is a Langar hall where all the devotees congregate for a meal, the community kitchen where devotees help to prepare food for the Langer. A classroom and library where the Ramayana is stocked for study and is used for teaching young children.

A music room where musical instruments such as the Tabla are taught and hymns are practiced for worship. Finally, there is a special area for shoes and washing. All Valmikis follow certain rules of conduct and before entering the worship room everyone is expected to remove their shoes as a sign of respect but also for general cleanliness.

Furthermore, devotees may not enter the Ashram if they are carrying alcohol, drugs, or meat. As devotee enter the worship room they approach the Ramayana which is covered with an embroidered cloth and is kept on a platform covered with a special canopy.

Each devotee kneels before the Ramayana and makes their offering of prayer and money. It is not essential that devotees offer money and some may wish to donate food towards the Langar. The devotees then retreat to find a place to sit down. Usually a picture of Valmik is placed in front of the Ramayana to help focus concentration and incense sticks are lit to purify the air.

Everyone sits on the floor to show that everyone is equal in the eyes of God, regardless of whether they come from a rich or poor background. However, it is usually found that men and women sit separately. The women tend to sit on the left side of the room whilst the men sit on the right. There is no Valmiki religious significance for this except for Sikh traditional influence on the community.

There is no special day for worship during the week, but since work restricts one’s availability for worship, most Valmiki’s attend the Ashram on Sundays. Devotees are at liberty to come and go at any time during the Pooja service, which usually lasts about three hours.

The Pooja begins by everyone standing up to say a prayer which is called the Ardas (Valmiki), then the Poojari' (Priest) begins to read sections of the Ramayana.

At short intervals reading from the Ramayana will stop and devotees will be called to the platform to preach and sing hymns. At the end of the Pooja the whole congregation will stand and say a prayer called the Arthi.

The Arthi is followed by the distribution of Karah Prashad, which is made from flour, sugar, butter and water. Karah Parshad is given to each devotee who has come to hear the Ramayana. The food is taken from one bowl only and is a symbol of unity.

Eventually, all the devotees will congregate in the Langar hall, for a meal, for which no one has to pay. All are welcome to share the Langar, which is always vegetarian. Sharing of food together is designed to unite people from all sections of the society and to promote equality between all human beings.

In some Ashrams, a Guru Granth Sahib is kept alongside the Ramayana and Mazhabi Sikhs worship together with Valmikis.

Valmiki Ashram is on the banks of river Hindan, situated on the main Baghpat – Meerut Highway around 25 KM from Baghpat and 29 KM from  Meerut. The place is famous for Panchmukhi Shivling (Shivling with five faces). People from far places visits the ashram and the Ashram within it to have a glimpse of shivling. According to legends this was the ashram of Rishi Valmiki and Sita had stayed here during Vanvaas. It was this place where she gave birth to Luv and Kush, the two sons of Lord Rama. Several bricks bearing religious imprints have been found around the ashram. According to local myth, this place was protected by five Devas (Gods), One of the deva is at the centre of the ashram while the remaining four protected the other four corner.

Every year a festival is organised on the banks of the river, within the compound of the ashram. The fair marks the birth of Luv & Kush and is also a means of facilitating and honouring Rishi Valmiki. Another long week festival is organised during the month of falgun which starts on the Mahashivratri of the month.

Valmiki Ashram, Chitvan

Valmiki ASHRAM, Chitwan - This UNESCO World Heritage property, situated in the south-western end of Royal Chitwan National Park, is famous for its Ramayana-time remains such as the Ashram of sage Valmiki where Rama’s wife Sita together with her sons, Lava and Kusha, spent her life in exile.

A national park territory that too in the middle of dense jungle where Royal Bengal tigers, bears and boars roam freely, one does not expect to see human beings or a human settlement with children and adult alike moving hither and thither.

But hold on, several million years after Hindu goddess Sita ended her life in exile and left for Pataal from the very place (as the legend has it) some 50 people belonging to Magar community are still spending their life here.

This Ashram was a retreat for the great Hindu sage, Valmiki. This is also the place where Sita came to live with her two sons, Luv and Kush after being separated from Ram.

Highlights : Various statues were unearthed in an excavation in the late 60s.

Location : Situated in a forest on the bank of the Triveni river at the southwest corner of the Royal Chitwan Park. Accessible by boat
 

 
Valmiki Tiger Reserve

Valmiki Tiger Reserve is located in the northernmost part of the West Champaran district of the Indian state of Bihar. The tract is broken and undulating, often showing highly fragile geological formations. As a result, there are steep ravines, knife-edge ridges and precipitous walls formed by landslips and soil erosion.

The great Gandak and the Masan rivers collect all the water from the numerous, tortuous tributaries. These rivers and streams keep changing course from side to side, facilitated by the erosion-prone sandy and immature soil of the banks. Seasonal rivers like Panchanad, Manor, Bhapsa and Kapan display the peculiar behaviour of erosion at one place and deposition of transported soil at another place.

The hill system is a continuation of the Shiwalik Range, largely made of imperfectly compacted and ill-formed sandstone dotted with pebbles and boulders. Owing to the fragile nature of the parent rock material, the soil produced at the foothill is immature, loose sand and display sheet. The menace is further aggravated by maltreatment of the forests by people in general, frequent fires and heavy grazing.

MAHARSHI Valmiki NATIONAL UNIVERSITY

Maharshi Valmiki National University was established in 1997, Corporated Under Government Gazette of Parliament and Article-30 of Constitution of India. Indian Management Training & Research Institute has been authorised by MVNU to conduct its External Programs in India and Abroad Vide Letter No. MVNU/A/IMTRI-495-99 Dated 28th April, 1999.

MAHARISHI Valmiki HOSPITAL

Maharishi Valmiki College of Education

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