Chennai, Jan 20 (IANS): The priests of Swami Ranganatha temple in Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu on Saturday presented gifts to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for Pran Prathishta of Ram Mandir.

Earlier, Modi offered prayers at the famous temple and also fed the temple elephant ‘Andal’.

He also listened to the ‘Kamba Ramayanam’ verses rendered by a Tamil scholar. It is believed that the 12th century Tamil poet Kambar -- who wrote the first Tamil Ramayanam -- had recited the verses before Swami Ranganatha in the temple.

There is a platform inside the temple named ‘Kamba Ramayana’.

Inside the temple there is a place called ‘Mantapam’. It is believed to be the place where poet Kambar sat while reciting Ramayana before Swami Ranganathantha.

Modi sat at exactly the same place where Kambar sat while listening to the Kama Ramayana recited by a scholar inside the temple.

Modi will directly reach Ayodhya from Tamil Nadu for the Pran Prathishta of Ram Mandir on January 22.