Bhubaneswar: Rath Yatra was celebrated with great enthusiasm not just in Odisha, but across the country. From New Delhi in the north to Visakhapatnam in south and Gujarat in the west, there was no dearth of excitement as thousands of people sought blessings from the Lord Of Universe.
Raipur
More than 1 lakh people took part in the annual Car Festival at the largest Jagannath Temple of Chhattisgarh in Gayatri Nagar at Raipur. Odia and non-Odia devotees of Chhattisgarh attended the mega celebration hosted by Shree Jagannath Temple Seva Samiti to mark the union of Lord Jagannath with his devotees.
The temple management committee, under the stewardship of its founder President and local MLA Purandar Mishra, made massive arrangements to control the crowd, maintain law and order, and distribute Mahaprasad to thousands of devotees.
Governor of Chhattisgarh Biswabhushan Harichandan was the chief guest and chief minister Vishnu Deo Sai was the guest of honour. Among others present were former CM Bhupesh Baghel, MP Brij Mohan Agrawal, MLA Motilal Sahu and Mayor Aijaz Dhebar.
The festive air reverberated in the sound of hymns, Haribol, Jai Jagannath, Huluhuli, conch and musical instruments like Ghanta, Kartala, Mardala, Jhanja and Mrudanga by the devotees.
The sea of humanity witnessed the royal procession as the chariots were pulled for a distance of 1 km to BTI ground and then taken back to the temple premises via Shankar Nagar. In the evening, the Gods and Goddess were taken to Aunt’s House situated at the Basement of the Temple.
Gujarat Adalaj Jagannath Temple
The two-day festival was celebrated at Jagannath Temple, at Adalaj in Gujarat’s Gandhinagar district, with tremendous fanfare and spiritual fervour.
Around 20,000 devotees from Odia and other communities from Adalaj and nearby areas gathered to witness the religious event, informed Member Secretary of Jagannath Cultural Academy and Research Centre (JCARC) Dr Badri Mahapatra.
Gujarat chief minister Bhupendrabhai Patel, the chief guest of the ceremony, was presented the royal cap and golden broom by JCARC chairman Dr Sudip Kumar Nanda. The CM performed the traditional sweeping ritual in front of the chariot ‘Chherapahanra’ in the presence of other distinguished guests like state minister Raghavjibhai Hansrajbhai Patel and Rajya Sabha MP Narahari Amin.
The royal chariot with the deities was pulled by devotees for 3 km to Maa Annapurna Temple and taken back to the temple premises around noon.
A special attraction was the Bhajan recital by a group of 100 noted female vocalists, accompanying the moving chariot, riding on six tractors. A Sudarshan Chakra rotated above in the sky, guided by drone during the Yatra.
Noida
Around 5,000 devotees assembled at Jagannath Temple at Garhi Choukhandi, in sector 121 of Noida, to celebrate the grand annual religious ceremony.
The traditional service of sweeping in front of the chariot was done by noted entrepreneur and philanthropist Dipak Singhal. Guests present during the pulling of chariot included national president of Hindu Mahasabha Swami Chakrapani Maharaj, Prabhari of UP Kumar Brijesh, Police Commissioner Laxmi Singh, District Magistrate Manish Kumar Verma, MLA Tej Pal Nagar, Rajya Sabha MP Surender Nagar, Chairman of UP Council of Agricultural Research Capt. Vikash Gupta and former minister Nabab Singh Nagar.
The royal chariot was pulled for 3 km to the aunt’s house at Baba Balaknath Temple in Sector 71 of Noida. The deities were offered 56 types of specially prepared bhog, and Mahaprasad was distributed among the visitors.
All arrangements were made by the temple management committee under stewardship of general secretary Dr Manoranjan Mohanty.
Visakhapatnam
The festival was celebrated in grand style at the Jagannath Temple situated in the scenic hills of Dasapalla in Visakhapatnam. Around 5,000 people assembled to witness all the religious rituals wjich were performed with solemnity and devotion.
President of the managing committee Jitendra Kumar Nayak conducted the sweeping ritual. The Pahandi Bije of the Gods and Goddess — Lord Sudarshan, elder brother Lord Balabhadra, followed by Devi Subhadra and Lord Jagannath — started from the sanctum sanctorum around 3.30 pm. The air was filled with recitals of hymns, shouting of slogans like Haribol, Jai Jagannath and playing of musical instruments such as ghanta, kartala, mardala, jhanja and mrudanga.
The chariot was pulled from Dasapalla hills till aunt’s house at Lawson’s Bay Colony, covering a distance of nearly 5 km.
Special attractions were recitals of popular folk music and presentation of dance performances by cultural troupes from Odisha. Utkal Sanskrutika Samaj, managing body of the temple, ensured smooth conduct of the festival.
Hauz Khas, New Delhi
The 46th Rath Yatra festival was celebrated at the main Jagannath Temple of the National capital region at Hauz Khas Village in New Delhi with tremendous enthusiasm and spiritual fervour.
A 50,000-strong crowd, comprising of Odias and non-Odias, gathered from Delhi and nearby areas to take part in the grand ceremony in a pious and solemn atmosphere.
The four deities were taken in Dhadi Pahandi procession to the colourfully decorated chariot stationed at Grand Road in front of the temple. All rituals were performed amid recital of hymns, chanting of slogans Haribol and Jai Jagannath, sounding of Huluhuli, blowing of conch and playing of musical instruments by the devotees.
Union Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, the chief guest, did the traditional service of sweeping in front of the chariot.
The colourful chariot carrying the deities was pulled from Hauz Khas Village Road for about 2.5 km till Ansari Nagar, via Shri Aurobindo Marg, and then brought back to the temple premises in the evening.
There were hundreds and thousands of devotees lined up on both sides of the Yatra route to catch a glimpse of the Lord of the Universe. They threw flowers and broke coconuts on the sidewall of the chariot to seek the Lord’s blessing.
