Bhubaneswar: Undeterred by rain, thousands of devotees gathered outside temples across Odisha, including Bhubaneswar, to celebrate Rath Yatra with devotion, religious fervour and enthusiasm.
Braving intermittent rain, people of all hues burst into ecstasy as they participated in the annual festival and pulled the chariots or Lord Jagannath and siblings in a spirit of camaraderie in the state capital and elsewhere on Sunday.
In the seaside pilgrim town Puri, chariot pulling continued on Monday also. This year’s Rath Yatra was special as Netra Utsav, Nabajaubana Darshan and chariot pulling were held on a single day.
The colourful chariots, decorated with flowers, lights, and traditional motifs, were pulled by ropes, with devotees vying for the chance to participate in this sacred act.
In Bhubaneswar, Rath Yatra was organised in around 50 small and big temples. Every temple in the city celebrated the festival in own style as the devotees immersed themselves in devotion.
The air was filled with the sound of conch shells and the rhythmic beating of drums as the deities were brought out of the temple in a grand procession, amidst the chanting of hymns and slogans in praise of Lord Jagannath. Devotees danced and sang with joy, their faces reflecting a deep sense of spirituality and happiness.
ISKCON Temple
A spokesperson of ISKCON temple in Bhubaneswar said that despite rain, volunteers die a commendable job managing the crowd and ensuring smooth conduct of the event. The devotion of the people ensured smooth journey of the Lords during their annual sojourn.
Though Rath Yatra was affected due to severe waterlogging in front of the temple, prompt action by BMC officials to drain out the water helped in timely pulling of the chariots to Mausi Maa temple at Unit-8.
Shrivani Kshetra
Like every year, Yatra was celebrated at Shrivani Kshetra of KISS amidst much religious fervour and gaiety.
In the forenoon religious ceremonies like “Mangala Arati, Mailama, Tadapalagi, Rosha Homa, Abakasha, Surya Puja’’ and establishment of Chariots were held according to the prescribed time and the ceremonial “Chhera Pahanra’’ was conducted by Achyuta Samanta at 4: 00pm.
At around 4.30 pm thousands of devotees participated in pulling the three decorated chariots of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, and Devi Subhadra up to the newly-built Gundicha Temple near the KIIT-Sikharchandi Road.
The exclusivity of the Ratha Yatra at Shrivani Kshetra is that the chariot of Devi Subhadra is tugged by women devotees only. More than 50,000 devotees joined the festival as the weather conditions were good, said an organiser.
During this nine-day festival, there will be “Bhajan Samaroh’’ every evening near Gundicha Temple. Devotees from nearby localities throng the Gundicha temple and have a ‘darshan’ of the Trinity.
Devboomi, Jindal Nagar
The Rath Yatra festival at Devboomi, Jindal Nagar in Angul was celebrated with deep devotion minutely adhering to rituals. The occasion attracted thousands of devotees from far and wide. The grand chariots, Taladhwaja, Darpadalan, and Nandighosh of Mahaprabhu Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra, and Mahaprabhu Jagannath, embarked on their annual sojourn journey from the Temple in Devboomi to the Gundicha Temple in the township.
Lok Sabha MP and Chairman of Jindal Steel & Power (JSP) Naveen Jindal with wife Shallu Jindal the Chairperson of JSP Foundation and his mother Savitri Jindal, the Chairperson Emeritus of O.P. Jindal Group, and other family members served in the Rath Yatra festival as the prime servitors.
As part of the ceremonial proceedings, Naveen Jindal participated in the ‘Pahandi Vidhi’ and performed Chherapanhara, the ritualistic cleansing of Mahaprabhu’s Path of annual journey in their majestic chariots.
Thousands of community members also enthusiastically attended the Rath Yatra. They actively participated in the procession, joining other devotees in pulling the majestic chariots.
To reach the maximum number of devotees, the Rath Yatra was live-streamed on YouTube, providing thousands with the opportunity to witness the festival.
Rath Yatra festival will continue to be celebrated inside the Angul Jindal Nagar till July 19, the Niladri Bije when the Chaturdhamurti Mahaprabhu will be returning to Ratna Singhashan in the Jagannath Temple in DevBhoomi.
Sabar Srikhetra Koraput
The age-old tribal traditions were revived in the Sabar Srikhetra of Koraput as the descendants of tribal chieftain and the first devotee of Lord Jagannath Biswabasu Sabar performed the worship of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, and Devi Subhadra on Rath Yatra.
The sevayats performed the Mangal Arati early in the morning and later received the Angyamala from the principal goddess Bimala, situated in the Sabar Shrikhetra, to commence the nine-day sojourn of the Trinity. Following the Dhadi Pahandi, the Trinity was taken to their chariots, where special rituals were performed.
In keeping with ancient practices, the sevayats prepared the first prasad offered by the Sabar community of Kandapali village under Nandapur block, who are said to be descendants of Biswabasu Sabar, the first servitor of Lord Jagannath.
Tribal communities from Siribeda of Boipariguda block and Kakrigumma under Laxmipur block also offered their bhog to Lord Jagannath. Dasi Nayak of Rangabali Kumbha, Sadhu Saunta of Kakrigumma, and Danu Tadingi of Kotia, three tribal heads, performed the auspicious ‘Chhera Pahanra’ on the chariots of Jagannath, Balabhadra, and Subhadra, respectively, before the chariots proceeded towards Gundicha temple.
The chariots were then drawn to Gundicha temple amid a large presence of tribal communities and locals for the nine-day rituals.
Jajpur
People in Jajpur also celebrated Rath Yatra in their own way. The car festival is unique in Dharmasala and Gadamadhupur due to the ceremonial sweeping, known as ‘Chhera Pahanra,’ performed by local dignitaries.
In Dharmasala, the Chhera Pahanra is conducted by the IIC of Dharmasala police station since 2016. This year, IIC Tapan Kumar Nayak performed the ceremonial sweeping on the chariot. “It is a great privilege for me to be a servant of the Lord,” said Nayak.
Similarly, the Rath Yatra in Gadamadhupur was a major attraction with Aparna Dhir Singh Bharadwaj, a member of the royal family, performing the Chhera Pahanra. The pulling of the chariot began at 5 pm, with thousands of devotees participating.
The annual sojourn at Chhatia was another highlight, featuring the longest chariot pulling in the state. The three chariots for the Trinity were pulled from Chhatia to Badaghumuri, covering about 12 km, including 8 km along National Highway 16.
A large number of people, including police personnel, participated in pulling the chariots to their destination at the Mausima temple.
Rath Yatra was also celebrated in various other locations in the district, including Sukinda, Jajpur town, Ichhapur, Naguan, Bahadalapur, Bari, Haripur and Kuakhia.
Baripada
Devotees thronged Haribaldev Jew temple at Baripada in Mayurbhanj district to witness the Nabajaubana Besha of the Trinity. The Netra Utsav, a religious ritual, was performed by the servitors on Saturday. The Trinity was adorned with gold ornaments in the Suna Besha, and traditional rituals began at around 10 am.
As per tradition, Maharaja Praveen Chandra Bhanjdeo performed the ceremonial sweeping of the three chariots before the pahandi procession at 4.30 pm. The deities were then placed on their respective chariots amid the vibrant sounds of devotional songs, gongs, conches, and mrudangs.
According to tradition, the deities spent the night on their chariots on Sunday, with all daily rituals performed there. The chariots are also being pulled on Monday.
