Yatra to behold!
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Thousands of people cutting across religious barriers participate in the Puri festival, which takes place during June-July.
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RELIGIOUSLY (Y)OURS The Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath at Puri is a spectacular visual wonder.
Located on the golden shores of the Bay of Bengal, Puri is one of the four main Hindu pilgrim centres of India. Being the abode of Lord Jagannath, the city is a place for colourful fairs and festivals round the year, the grandest of which is the Ratha yatra , the annual journey of the Lord along with His siblings in gigantic chariots.
The yatra is held every year in June-July. Although the span of the main festival is nine days, the festival is spread over the entire summer and monsoon months. The car festival is the grand culmination of a series of celebrations beginning in April.
On the third day of the bright fortnight of Baisakh (April) begins the famous Chandan yatra (Sandalwood paste festival) in which the replicas of the main deities of the temple go for an evening boat ride in the Narendra tank for a ritual bath in fragrant sandalwood water. This ceremony lasts for 21 days.
This is followed by Snana yatra , the festival of bath on the full moon day of Jyestha (May-June). On this day the three deities -Jagannath, elder brother Balabhadra and sister Subhadra - are taken in a colourful procession to a bathing platform and 108 pitchers of perfumed water are poured on the deities. After this ceremonial bath, the deities do not return to their pedestal. Supposedly suffering from fever they stay confined to the sanctum sanctorum closed to the public view. This lasts for a fortnight and is called Anasara. During this period the deities are kept on a diet of fruits. A cloth painting of the images of the Lord is displayed for the devotees to worship. After the 15 days ritual the deities "emerge" rejuvenated for the splendid Ratha yatra .The yatra beginning in the month of Asadha (June-July), marks the culmination of this series of celebrations. The holy triad adorned with floral crowns come out .in a spectacular procession called pahandi, literally pulled, pushed and dragged in rhythmic movement by the sevakas (servitors) to the beats of cymbals and drums and the frenzied chanting of the devotees.
After the deities are seated on the chariots it is time for the ritual sweeping chhera pahanra undertaken by the king of Puri. Then comes the most exciting part of the festival as the three chariots are pulled forward by thousands of devotees by means of sturdy ropes over a three kilometre distance to the Gundicha temple. The deities have a seven days' sojourn there. On the eighth day they embark on the return journey known as the Bahuda yatra . This is almost a repeat of the Ratha yatra. The same evening the chariots reach the simhadwara in front of the main temple. But the deities are not taken into the temple. The next day attired in gold costume, known as suna vesha, the deities give darshan to the devotees. After the suna vesha marks the deities go back to their sanctum sanctorum. Today, Puri has evolved from a small holy town, into a bustling city. But all through the ages Lord Jagannath remains the prime attraction of Puri for thousands of pilgrims and tourists.
No religious barrier
Lord Jagannath's very name transports millions into a trance. Not just Hindus alone; people from all religions have found solace in him over the ages. Literally "the Lord of the Universe" He is a strange deity, perhaps the strangest in the Hindu pantheon. He is a god, yet is treated like a human. He has a wonderful temple as his abode but he comes out of it once a year to mingle with his devotees. He is a Hindu God but his most ardent devotee has been Salabegaa Muslim poet! His staff strength runs into several thousands.
Looking at the deities one would wonder how such strange--looking Gods could inspire such fervent devotion of millions of worshippers. Physically Lord Jaganath does not have the charm of a Rama or a Krishna. His face is ebony black, His eyes disproportionately large and round, the nose is a pointed snout, there is no chin and the mouth is only a large streak of red spread from corner to corner in the lower part of His broad face. His hands are nothing but stumps. Yet He is the darling of the millions. .
Strange rituals
All important spiritual leaders from Guru Nanak to Sri Chaitanya were drawn to him.
Lord Jagannath temple runs like a huge palace of a king. His daily chores are patterned closely on that of a temporal being. He is awakened by hymns sung to at dawn. Then like an ordinary man he brushes his teeth, takes bath, puts on fresh clothes and after taking breakfast gives darshan to the devotees on the lines of a king listening to people's grievances in a durbar!
Then he retires for his mid-day meal followed by a siesta.On getting up in the afternoon he takes some snacks tiffin and is ready for yet another darshan. Then after taking supper in the night he listens to the songs of the devadasis and is lulled to sleep. Though the trappings of royalty are visible in his rituals he takes all kinds of food and on special festive occasions takes cakes, kheer and pulao are prepared. His birthday is also celebrated on the full moon day of the month of Jyestha.
The change of seasons has also its impact on his habits and dresses. During winter he gets covered with a cloth. Then comes the spring and as a preventive against smallpox the lord gets smeared with a medicinal powder called phagu. During summer the lord gets a luxurious bath in sandalwood paste water and comes out with his siblings for evening cruise in a big tank. This festival is called Chandan yatra and goes on for 21 days.
Biggest kitchen
The kitchen of the Lord Jagannath lays claim to being the biggest hotel in the world feeding thousands of devotees everyday. Interestingly the holy food known as mahaprasad can be partaken by all irrespective of religion, caste and creed. The kitchen engages more than 500 cooks. .There are 200 hearths in the kitchen which dates from the 17th Century.
Everyday, 56 varieties of dishes are prepared and offered to the Lord. Mahaprasad and other offerings are sold to the public in a sprawling place called 'Ananda Bazaar.' It is the biggest open-air hotel where devotees buy and eat various types of food round the clock.
BIBHUTI MISHRA
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