Stone Floats In UP River, People Falsely Claim It Is From 'Ram Setu'

A video of a stone floating in the Isan river in Uttar Pradesh's Mainpuri district has gone viral.

The stone, which reportedly weighs 5.7 kg and has the name of Lord Ram inscribed on it, was seen floating in the river without sinking.

'Ram' stone floats in Isan river in Mainpuri

The viral video is from Ahimalpur in Thana Bewar area of Mainpuri district.

IANS

According to reports, some children had gone fishing in the river on July 30. While fishing, the children saw the stone floating in the river.

The children brought the stone to the village elders. Some of the locals claim that the stone is associated with 'Ram Setu' - the bridge that was built when Lord Rama was heading for war with Ravana in the epic Ramayana.

"Yes, a stone has been found floating in the river, on which the name of Ram is written. We have kept it in the house. Some people say that this is the stone of Rameshwar, from which the bridge was built. Everyone has their own opinion but things have to be verified," village head Nitin Pandey was quoted as saying by IANS.

Meanwhile, the locals want this stone to be installed near a temple for worship.

No evidence to suggest the stone is associated with 'Ram Setu'

This isn't the first time when a stone with the name of Lord Ram inscribed on it has been seen floating in the river.

In 2019, a similar stone was seen floating in the river Ganga in Bulandshahr. At that time too, people had claimed the stone to be associated with 'Ram Setu'. But the truth is far from it.

There has been no evidence to suggest that these stones are in any way connected to Ram Setu. While people believe these stones float because Rama was inscribed on them, experts have a completely different view.

According to scientists, there could be two reasons for the stones floating in the river:

1. Pumice rock

Actually, pumice rock is a stone made from hot flowing lava from volcanoes. There is very high temperature in volcanoes of about (1600 degrees Celcius). When the hot lava comes out of the volcano and meets cool air and cool water, the air and water get into the pores of rocks and later got freeze in the pores of the rock which makes the rocks light weighted, so it floats.

2. Stone having different densities

This theory rests on the fact that different stones have different densities. The less dense part of the rock apparently will touch the water surface and float on it easily because the density of the rock is smaller as compared to the water.

What is Ram Setu?

There¡¯s hardly a soul in India who hasn¡¯t heard of the legendary Ram Setu, which forms a part of the epic tale of Ramayana.

The Ram Setu - also known as the Adam¡¯s Bridge - is a chain of natural mineral shoals between Pamban Island or Rameswaram Island in Tamil Nadu, India, and Mannar Island in Sri Lanka. The bridge has a great significance as per Hindu mythology and is mentioned in the Ramayana.

The Hindu religious theories believe that it is the bridge constructed by Lord Rama and his Vanara (monkey) army to rescue goddess Sita from her kidnapper, demon king Ravan, the evil ruler of Lanka (Sri Lanka).

TOI

In their quest, they reached the shores of the sea that would have to be crossed in order to get to Lanka and rescue Sita. It was decided that a stone bridge must be laid across the sea so that the entire army can cross over to the other side.

The monkey soldiers set to work briskly. They ran here and there to gather all the rocks, stones and slabs they could find. All the stones were brought to the great servitor and devotee of Shri Ram, Deity Hanuman, who instructed his companions to inscribe the name of Shri Ram on each stone and throw the stone into the water.

Science or miracle? Natural or manmade? Stones or coral? The debate over Ram Setu has continued to rage on.

In the coming years, with scientific developments, there might be more concrete evidence to validate whether the bridge is a myth or reality.

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