Puri: Shree Jagannath Temple in Odisha’s Puri town will remain closed for devotees for four hours for Banakalagi ritual of the sibling deities on Wednesday.
According to the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA), darshan inside the temple will be closed from 6 pm to 10 pm for the special ritual, which will be conducted after the end of the second Bhoga Mandap ritual.
On the occasion of the auspicious Sukla Pakshya Dashami in the month of Magha, the sacred ritual will be performed for the holy deities of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, and Devi Subhadra.
To facilitate the uninterrupted conduct of this ceremony, public viewing of the deities will be closed immediately after the second Bhog Mandap offering.
The ritual is traditionally performed by the Dutta Mohapatra servitors and the Khadiprasad Daitapati servitors.
During the secret ritual of Banakalagi Niti or Shrimukha Sringara, fresh colours are applied to the idols of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabahadra and Devi Subhadra inside the sanctum sanctorum.
Banakalagi is performed with natural colours prepared from herbs and other materials including ‘kasturi’, ‘harital’, ‘karpura’, ‘kesar’, ‘kalasankha’ and ‘dhalasankha’.
Devotees can resume darshan after 10 pm once the ritual is complete. The ritual is performed several times in a year.
