Happy RathaYatra -2005 .Jagannath Puri.........................

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> The Ratha-Yatra Festival at Jagannatha Puri

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> Jagannatha Puri, a town of 1,50,000, is one of the

> most important

> pilgrimage centers and one of the four holiest

> cities in India. These four

> cities are Badrinatha in the north, Dvaraka in the

> west, Ramesvaram in the

> south, and Puri in the east. Badrinarayan in

> Badrinatha was especially

> worshiped in Satya-yuga, Rama in Ramesvaram in

> Treta-yuga, Dvarakanatha in

> Dvaraka was especially worshiped in Dvapara-yuga,

> but Lord Jagannatha in

> Puri can be worshiped by everyone in Kali-yuga. In

> fact, the importance of

> Jagannatha Puri, sometimes called

> Purushottama-Ksetra, is explained in

> chapters 52 through 57 of the Uttarabhaga section of

> the Narada Purana.

> There we find it stated that simply by visiting

> Puri, which is rarely

> achieved except for those who have performed many

> pious acts, and by seeing

> the Deity of Jagannatha (Krishna), one can easily

> attain freedom from

> future births and reach the spiritual abode.

>

> In the middle of this city is the large temple

> dedicated to Lord Krishna as

> Jagannatha, meaning " Lord of the Universe. " From the

> Skanda Purana we get

> information that the original construction of the

> first Jagannatha temple

> was in Satya-yuga, millions of years ago. It is

> related that Lord

> Jagannatha told Maharaja Indradyumna that He first

> appeared in the

> Svayambhuva manvantara of the first part of

> Satya-yuga, on the full moon

> day, after being pleased by devotion. This is about

> 153 million years ago.

> Then Brahma installed the Deities in the temple.

> This appearance is

> celebrated by the Snana Purnima, or Snana-Yatra,

> which is the public

> bathing of Lord Jagannatha, His brother Balarama,

> and His sister Subhadra.

> The celebrated Ratha-Yatra festival is said to have

> started in the time of

> Svarochisha Manu, or the second manvantara period,

> and is predicted to

> continue until the end of the second half of Lord

> Brahma's lifetime. Even

> in the Ramayana by Valmiki Muni (Uttara Khanda

> 108.30) it is related that

> when Lord Rama was getting ready to leave this world

> he told Vibhishan,

> Ravana's younger brother, that in His absence he

> should worship Lord

> Jagannatha, the Lord of the Iksvaku dynasty.

>

> The Skanda Purana also fixes the date of the

> Ratha-Yatra festival, which

> should be celebrated on the second day of the bright

> fortnight if the month

> of Ashadha, a day called Pushyami Nakshatra by

> astrological calculations.

> The Padma Purana describes (as related in Sanatana

> Goswami's Dig Darshini

> Tika to his Brihad-Bhagavatamrita, 2.1.159) that in

> Purushottama-kshetra,

> or Jagannatha Puri, the supremely blissful

> Personality of Godhead pretends

> to be made of wood. In this way, although the Lord

> takes on what appears to

> be a material form, it is completely spiritual by

> the causeless mercy of

> the Lord for the conditioned souls who cannot

> perceive the transcendental

> domain.

>

> The main temple building, called Sri Mandir, was

> built in the 12th century

> by King Chodaganga Deva, though the site goes back

> much farther as

> described above. This is a huge complex where

> buildings house as many as

> 5,000 priests and assistants. The whole compound is

> surrounded by a thick

> stone wall 20 feet tall that encloses an area 665

> feet by 640 feet. The

> wall has four large gates, one on each side. The

> additional smaller

> buildings were added after the 16th century. The

> main temple, which reaches

> 215 feet in height, is where we find the six foot

> tall Deities of

> Jagannatha, Balarama, and the shorter Subhadra. They

> stand on a five foot

> high throne facing the pilgrims as they enter the

> temple room. Outside the

> main temple hall are over 100 smaller shrines

> dedicated to the various

> demigods. There is an arati ceremony six times a day

> from 4 AM to 9 PM when

> devotees come in for darshan of the Deities, in

> which they sing, chant, or

> worship the Deities in ecstasy. As many as 50,000

> people come to the

> Jagannatha temple in a day. Unfortunately,

> foreigners are not allowed into

> the temple grounds, but you can get a look at the

> temple from the roof of

> the Raghunandan Library across the street for a

> donation.

>

> The temple compound also has a huge kitchen,

> employing over 650 cooks and

> helpers who make hundreds of vegetarian preparations

> for the 54 separate

> offerings that are given to the Deities every day.

> After the food is given

> to the Deities it becomes prasada, or the Lord's

> mercy. By taking such

> spiritually powerful food it is said that one

> becomes more and more

> spiritually surcharged and free from past karma.

> Much of the prasada is

> sold or given to people who depend on the temple.

> When I had my ricksha

> driver buy some for me, I got a basket with several

> clay pots filled with a

> variety of rice, vegetable, dahl, and sweet

> preparations. It was absolutely

> delicious and was enough for breakfast, lunch, and

> dinner for two days.

> Taking this prasada at Puri is to partake in a

> tradition that goes back

> thousands of years and is considered especially

> purifying. It is said that

> only by Krishna's grace does one get the opportunity

> to receive the

> remnants of food offered to Him.

>

>

>

> The Appearance of Lord Jagannatha

>

>

> The significance of Jagannatha Puri and the story of

> how the Deities first

> appeared goes back many hundreds of years to the

> time of King Indradyumna,

> who was a great devotee of Lord Vishnu. It is

> related that one time in his

> court the King heard from a devotee about an

> incarnation of Lord Vishnu,

> named Nila-madhava. (Nila-madhava is the Deity form

> of Lord Vishnu.) The

> King very much wanted to see this form of the

> Supreme and sent many

> Brahmanas to search for Nila-madhava. All came back

> unsuccessful except for

> Vidyapati, who did not come back at all. He had

> wandered to a distant town

> which was populated by a tribe of people known as

> Shabaras of non-Aryan

> heritage. He had stayed in the house of Visvasu, and

> later, at Visvasu's

> request, married his daughter, Lalita.

>

> After some time Vidyapati noticed that Visvasu would

> leave the house every

> night and return at noon the next day. Vidyapati

> asked his wife about this.

> Though her father had ordered her not to tell

> anyone, she told Vidyapati

> that Visvasu would go in secret to worship

> Nila-madhava. After repeated

> requests, Vidyapati finally got permission to go see

> Nila-madhava, only if

> he went blindfolded. But Vidyapati's wife had bound

> some mustard seeds in

> his cloth so that a trail could be left to follow

> later. When they reached

> the shrine, Vidyapati saw the Deity Nila-madhava

> after the Shabara took off

> the blindfold, and he felt great ecstasy.

>

> The story continues to relate that while Visvasu was

> out collecting items

> for worship, Vidyapati saw a bird fall into the

> nearby lake and drown. The

> soul of the bird suddenly took a spiritual form and

> ascended back to the

> spiritual world. Vidyapati wanted to do the same and

> climbed the tree to

> jump in the lake. Then a voice from the sky declared

> that before he jumped

> he should tell Indradyumna that he had found

> Nila-madhava.

>

> When Visvasu returned to worship the Deity,

> Nila-madhava spoke and said

> that He had accepted the simple worship from him for

> so many days, but now

> He wanted to accept the opulent worship that would

> be offered by King

> Indradyumna. When Vidyapati went back to tell the

> King, Indradyumna

> immediately went to find Nila-madhava but could not

> locate Him. So the King

> arrested Visvasu, but a voice told him to release

> the Shabara and that he

> should build a temple on top of Nila Hill where the

> King would see the Lord

> as Daru-brahman, the wooden manifestation of the

> Absolute.

>

> After great endeavor, King Indradyumna built the

> temple at Sri Kshetra, now

> known as Jagannatha Puri, and later prayed to Lord

> Brahma to consecrate it.

> However, Lord Brahma said that it was not within his

> power to consecrate

> the temple since Sri Kshetra is manifested by the

> Supreme's own internal

> potency and is where the Lord manifests Himself. So

> Brahma simply put a

> flag on top of the temple and blessed it, saying

> that anyone who from a

> distance saw the flag and offered obeisances would

> easily be liberated from

> the material world. Nonetheless, after much waiting

> the King became anxious

> since Nila-madhava had not manifested Himself.

> Thinking his life was

> useless, the King decided he should end his life by

> fasting. But in a dream

> the Lord said that He would appear floating in from

> the sea in His form as

> Daru-brahman.

>

> The King went to the shore and found a huge piece of

> wood that had the

> markings of a conch, disc, club, and lotus. This was

> Daru-brahman. But try

> as they might, the men could not budge the wood. In

> a dream the Lord spoke

> to the King and instructed him to get Visvasu and

> put a golden chariot in

> front of Daru-brahman. After doing this and forming

> a kirtana party to

> chant the holy names, and praying for Daru-brahman

> to mount the chariot,

> Daru-brahman was easily moved. Lord Brahma performed

> a sacrifice where the

> present temple now stands and installed a Deity of

> Lord Narasimhadeva, the

> Deity that is now on the western side of the temple.

>

> From the wooden Daru-brahman, the King requested

> many expert carvers to

> carve the form of the Deity, but none could do so

> for their chisels

> immediately broke when they touched the wood.

> Finally the architect of the

> demigods, Visvakarma, (some say the Lord Himself)

> arrived as an old artist,

> Ananta Maharana, and promised that he would carve

> the Deity form of the

> Lord inside the temple in three weeks if the King

> would allow him to work

> behind closed doors. But after 14 days the King

> became very anxious because

> he could no longer hear the sounds of the carving.

> Finally he could stand

> it no more. On the advice of the queen he personally

> opened the doors of

> the temple to see what was happening. Then he saw

> the forms of Lord

> Jagannatha, Lord Balarama, and Lady Subhadra. But

> because the King had

> opened the doors sooner than he was supposed to, the

> Deities were not

> completed; Their feet and hands had not yet been

> carved. Thus, the Supreme

> manifested Himself in this form.

>

> The King felt he had committed a great offense for

> having opened the doors

> before the allotted three weeks had passed, so he

> decided to end his life.

> But in a dream Lord Jagannatha told the King that

> though he had broken his

> promise, this was just a part of the Supreme's

> pastimes to display this

> particular form. The King was told that this form,

> even though it appeared

> to be incomplete, was actually the form of the Lord

> that was meant to be

> worshiped in this age of Kali-yuga. Occasionally the

> King could decorate

> the Deity with golden hands and feet. Yet those

> devotees filled with love

> would always see the form of Lord Jagannatha as the

> threefold bending form

> of Syamasundara, Krishna, holding a flute. Thus, the

> Supreme appeared in

> this form so that people could approach and see Him,

> especially as He rides

> through town on the huge carts during the

> Ratha-Yatra festival.

>

>

>

> The Ratha-Yatra Festival

>

>

> During the Ratha-Yatra festival is the most popular

> time to go to

> Jagannatha Puri. This is usually in July when it is

> very hot. But thousands

> upon thousands of pilgrims flock to Puri to take

> part in this auspicious

> event, which is said to have been celebrated for

> thousands of years, making

> it one of the oldest and one of the biggest

> religious festivals in the

> world. This is the time when the Deities come out of

> the temple for all to

> see. It is also the time when as many as a million

> people gather in this

> small city with one purpose: to show their faith and

> devotion to God in the

> form of Lord Jagannatha.

>

>

> As big as this festival is, it can be quite

> expensive. The only festival in

> the world that is bigger than this is the Kumbha

> Mela festival that draws

> many more millions of people. The Ratha-Yatra

> festival is financed

> primarily by the Orissan government with an annual

> budget of $50,000, which

> is a very large sum for India. But with the number

> of pilgrims that come to

> Puri each year, the temple and surrounding

> businesses also are benefitted

> with the extra financial income.

>

> The actual construction of the carts begins two

> months before the festival

> day, on the third day of the bright fortnight of

> Vaisakha (April-May). More

> than 600 trees, or 400 cubic meters of wood, are

> needed for the

> construction, taken from the local forests along the

> banks of the Mahanadi

> River. Using the same simple tools and procedures as

> they have for the past

> hundreds of years, once the basic elements are made,

> such as the wheels,

> then the actual construction begins only a few weeks

> before the festival.

> When I saw the carts a few days prior to the

> festival, I doubted that they

> would be finished in time. However, the construction

> crew works on them

> night and day, and everything was ready the day

> before the festival.

>

> In the main road in front of the temple huge stacks

> of wood are used to

> assemble the three chariots which will reach up to

> three storeys tall and

> will roll on wheels, each eight feet high. The

> chariots are painted with

> bright colors and the tops are covered with red,

> black, yellow, or green

> canopies. The colors signify which chariot is for

> which Deity. Lord

> Jagannatha uses red and yellow, Lord Balarama uses

> red and green, while

> Subhadra uses red and black. The Deities are also

> painted with particular

> colors that mean something. Jagannatha's blackish

> color represents

> faultless qualities; Balarama's white color

> signifies enlightenment; and

> Subhadra's yellow color signifies goodness.

>

> Each cart is different. The cart of Lord Jagannatha

> is called Cakradhvaja

> or Nandigosha, which means tumultuous and blissful

> sound. Using 16 wheels,

> it rises 45 feet tall, and weighs 65 tons. It also

> carries a figure of

> Garuda on its crest, and is drawn by four white

> wooden horses. Balarama's

> cart is called Taladhvaja, meaning the sound of

> significantly powerful

> rhythm. It has 14 wheels, and is drawn by four black

> wooden horses. It

> carries Hanuman on its crest. Subhadra's cart is

> called Padmadhvaja or

> Darpadalan, which means destroyer of pride. It has a

> lotus on its crest,

> uses 12 wheels, and is drawn by four red wooden

> horses. After the

> Ratha-Yatra festival the wood from the carts is used

> as fuel for the big

> kitchen in the temple, which can last up to nine

> months.

>

> About two weeks before the festival, the Deities of

> Jagannatha, Balarama,

> and Subhadra are given a ritual bath, which is

> performed on the front main

> wall of the temple, which allows everyone to observe

> it from the street

> below, or one of the surrounding buildings. This is

> called the Snana-Yatra.

> After this They play the pastime of getting a cold.

> They are then taken to

> a designated area and given special treatments and

> offerings. They may also

> be repainted at this time. About every 12 or 19

> years the bodies of the

> Deities are replaced with new ones carved from a

> ritualistically selected

> Daru-Brahman in the form of a nima tree. This is

> known as the

> Nava-Kalevarna festival. It occurs when there is a

> leap (additional) month

> in the Vedic calendar that appears between

> Snana-Yatra and Ratha-Yatra.

> This was last performed in 1996, 1977, and 1969.

> After such an occurrence,

> the crowd that attends the Ratha-Yatra in Puri

> expands from the usual

> 700,000 or so to as many as two-and-a-half million.

>

> As the Ratha-Yatra festival draws near, thousands of

> pilgrims come to

> Jagannatha Puri, but as many as a million or more

> people may be in town on

> the day of the festival. Some are top officials in

> the Indian government or

> other VIPs. Many people begin arriving in front of

> the temple near the

> carts on the morning of the festival. At first it is

> very interesting to

> wander about looking at the nicely decorated carts

> and all the pilgrims who

> have attended. But then the police begin cordoning

> off the area around the

> carts. Then there are only certain areas where

> people can get between the

> carts and the buildings. This creates bottlenecks

> which can be very

> dangerous when too many people are pushing on each

> other trying to get

> through. I saw people begin to panic at times

> because of the pressure on

> them, and worried mothers had to hold their babies

> above the crowd to make

> sure they did not get crushed.

>

> The Ratha-Yatra festival can be both spiritually

> ecstatic and physically

> exhausting. Though July is in the monsoon season, if

> the rains have not

> arrived yet, it gets very hot. When it is hot, you

> will be soaked with

> sweat a few hours after the sun comes up. In fact,

> from where I was, I saw

> dozens of Indian people who had collapsed from the

> heat and had to be

> carried away from the crowd on stretchers. The heat

> can take a lot out of

> you, especially when in a crowd of many thousands.

> So it is best to have a

> source of water with you, like a canteen.

>

> A good place to be during the festival, if you do

> not want to be on the

> street amongst the people, is on a rooftop. But you

> have to make

> reservations and pay for your seats several days in

> advance. Even then

> there may not be any guarantee that you will get the

> seats you want.

>

> I have been at Jagannatha Puri to attend two

> Ratha-Yatra festivals, once in

> 1991, and another in 2001. At each one things

> happened at different times

> of the day. In 1991 it was around eleven in the

> morning when the temple

> priests came out to sanctify the carts. In 2001,

> everything got started

> much earlier, and the priests came out before 9 AM.

> They walk up the

> gangplanks to the platform on the cart and sprinkle

> holy water around while

> circumambulating it three times and chanting

> specific mantras for

> purification. Later, the priests bring out the small

> Deities that will also

> ride on the cart.

>

> When the big Deities are brought out, first there is

> Lord Balarama, then

> Lady Subhadra, and then Lord Jagannatha. Each time

> excitement suddenly

> fills the air and many men blow conch shells and

> bang on drums and cymbals

> to announce the arrival of the Deities at the main

> gate of the temple

> complex. Then the smiling face of Lord Balarama

> appears through the doorway

> and the crowd shouts and chants, " Jai Balarama.

> Baladeva ki jai! "

> Generally, however, unless you are situated on a

> tall building, you cannot

> see the faces of the Deities because there are so

> many assistants that help

> move Them. But you can easily see the huge headdress

> They wear. Once the

> Deity is on the cart, the headdress is torn off and

> distributed amongst the

> people as prasada.

>

> Daityas, strongly built men who lift the Deity,

> carry Lord Balarama. It is

> described that they move Him from one large cotton

> pillow to another,

> however, I couldn't see any. Lord Balarama is five

> feet and five inches

> tall and has an arm span of 12 feet. When carried,

> there are five men on

> each arm, with up to 50 men pulling in front and 20

> offering support in the

> back. All of these carriers are Daityas, members of

> the Dayitapati family

> who are descendants of Visvavasu. Gradually, taking

> about a half hour or

> so, Lord Balarama moves from the temple gate to the

> chariot and is placed

> on it so everyone in the crowd can see Him. Then

> Subhadra, who is less than

> five feet tall, is also carried from the temple to

> Her chariot. And finally

> Lord Jagannatha is brought out. He is five feet and

> seven inches tall with

> an arm span of 12 feet, and also needs many

> assistants to be moved.

>

> In 1991 it was around two o'clock, when the King of

> Puri arrived in a

> procession, walked up the planks to the platform and

> swept the cart with a

> gold handled broom, and then sprinkles sandalwood

> scented water on them. He

> circumambulates the platform three times and is

> assisted by the priests. He

> does this to each of the carts. In 2001, however,

> this took place around 10

> AM, and everything that year happened in a much more

> timely manner.

>

> It should be pointed out here that the way the King

> sweeps the carts is an

> example of how the festival has changed over the

> years. If you read

> accounts of the Ratha-Yatra festival as described in

> the

> Caitanya-caritamrta, there are some major

> differences in the festival we

> find today compared to 500 years ago. The King used

> to sweep the street in

> front of the carts as they paraded down through the

> town. The reason he no

> longer does this is related in a story I was told.

> It seems that at one

> time years ago a King of Puri, Purusottama Dev, was

> to marry a princess who

> was the daughter of a king, Maharaja Sallwo

> Narasingha, from the district

> of Kanchi. When the Ratha-Yatra festival was to take

> place, the father of

> the princess was invited, but sent his minister

> Chinnubhatta Godaranga

> instead. When he attended, the King of Puri

> performed the devotional

> tradition of sweeping the road in front of the

> carts. The visiting

> minister, however, rather than being impressed with

> the devotion of the

> King for Lord Jagannatha, did not approve of him

> sweeping the road, even if

> it was for the Lord. When he reported this to King

> Sallwo Narasingha, the

> king objected to the idea of his daughter marrying

> the King of Puri since

> he was merely a street sweeper. Purusottama Dev was

> extremely angry that

> he, as the servant of Lord Jagannatha, would be

> insulted for his service

> like that. So he gathered his troupes and went to

> Kanchi to teach King

> Sallwo a lesson. Unfortunately, King Purusottama Dev

> was badly defeated.

>

> On returning to Puri in such a downcast mood, he

> stopped at the simple

> cottage of Saikatacharya, a great ascetic,

> householder devotee of Lord

> Jagannatha. This devotee pointed out that the King

> had forgotten to ask

> permission from Lord Jagannatha before he went to

> attack King Sallwo. With

> this realization, the King returned to Puri and

> visited the temple of the

> Lord, crying over his defeat, asking why the Lord

> had let this happen. He

> spent the night in the temple, and with doors

> closed, before the night came

> to an end, the King heard a voice asking why he was

> so distraught over such

> a simple thing. The voice said to go gather his

> troupes again, and that we

> two brothers, Jagannatha and Balarama, would go

> along to fight on the

> King's behalf. As the news spread, many people, both

> old and young, joined

> the King's forces to fight with Their Lordships.

> However, as they went, the

> King was filled with some doubts whether Their

> Lordships were really going

> with him.

>

> While the King and his army went onward, far ahead

> were two soldiers that

> rode on one black horse and one white horse. They

> stopped to quench Their

> thirst at a small village near Chilika Lake by

> buying some yogurt from a

> devotee named Manika. She offered Them yogurt, but

> when she asked for

> payment, they said They had no money. Instead They

> gave her a jeweled ring

> and told her to give it to King Purusottama Dev, who

> would then give her

> payment.

>

> After some time, the King caught up to the lady, who

> flagged him down to

> give him the ring and asked for payment for the

> soldiers' drink. The king

> was shocked to see the ratnamudrika ring of Lord

> Jagannatha and then

> regained his confidence that, indeed, Their

> Lordships had certainly come

> with him. In payment for the ring, the king gave her

> the whole village,

> which is still named Manikapatna. After this the

> king and his troupes were

> victorious over King Sallwo, and he also took King

> Sallwo's daughter as

> well. However, he did not marry her after the insult

> her father had given

> him. He instructed his minister to see that she get

> married to a qualified

> sweeper. After one year, at the next Ratha-Yatra,

> the King again performed

> his sweeping ceremony. At that time, the king's

> minister announced that the

> king was the most qualified sweeper, since he swept

> for Lord Jagannatha,

> and that the princess, Padmavati, should marry him.

> Then Maharaja

> Purusottama Dev married the princess and she later

> gave birth to a great

> devotee of Lord Caitanya, who became known as King

> Prataparudra. Anyway, at

> some point after this, the King of Puri discontinued

> sweeping the streets

> and now sweeps the carts.

>

> The festival parade also used to start in the

> morning and then stop at noon

> near the Jagannatha Vallabha Gardens where the

> Deities would get offerings

> of food, worship, etc., from the many devotees.

> There would also be many

> groups of people singing devotional songs, and

> though you will still see

> some people in kirtana groups, there were very few

> in 1991, while there

> were several big kirtana parties in 2001, including

> a large one consisting

> of the devotees from the Iskcon temple in Mumbai

> (Bombay).

>

> After the King has swept the carts, they quickly

> begin to disassemble the

> gangplanks that lead up to the cart and begin to

> fasten the wooden horses

> that point the direction. Many thousands of devotees

> surround the carts and

> the people in the front take up the long, thick

> ropes to pull the chariots

> down the main road to the Gundicha temple, where the

> Deities stay for a

> week. Then the leaders on the carts that ride near

> the wooden horses direct

> those who are pulling the ropes to take up the

> slack. When everything is

> ready, a whistle is blown by the chariot driver and

> a hundred people on

> each of four ropes begin to pull. Then the numerous

> priests and assistants

> on the carts that ride along begin to bang on the

> gongs and cymbals, and

> suddenly the cart lurches forward and begins to

> move.

>

> Once the carts get going, you mostly hear the

> spectators simply shout out,

> " Jayo, Jai Jagannatha, " and raise their hands in the

> air and watch the cart

> go by. Many police have to guard the chariot wheels

> to make sure no one

> gets too close and is crushed under them. In 1991 it

> was after five o'clock

> before Lord Balarama's cart got started and loudly

> rumbled down the road

> and soon reached the Gundicha temple. In 2001 it

> started by about 10:30 AM

> or so. Subhadra's cart began to move a while later.

>

> Lord Jagannatha's cart did not get started until

> after six o'clock in 1991,

> which was quite late, but got started by 11 AM in

> 2001. However, both times

> it did not make it to the Gundicha temple until the

> next day. The people

> pulled it about two-thirds of the way before it

> almost ran into some shops

> on the side of the road. So Lord Jagannatha spent

> the night wherever the

> cart had stopped. The following morning the people

> redirect the cart and

> continued with the Ratha-Yatra to finish pulling it

> to the Gundicha temple

> about two miles down the road from the main temple

> where the Deities stay

> for a week before returning to the temple in a

> similar parade.

>

> Sometimes the chariots mysteriously stop, though

> everyone is pulling hard.

> In fact, it is not unusual, as in the case of this

> festival, that a chariot

> may stop completely and stay there overnight and

> then continue the next

> day. Sometimes if there is difficulty, the local

> government minister will

> pray to Lord Jagannatha for forgiveness from

> whatever offenses the

> residents of the town may have committed. Then the

> chariots begin to move

> again as if they move only by the will of

> Jagannatha.

>

> The parade is a fascinating event in which to

> participate and see. But when

> the chariots get rolling, the crowd gets very

> intense. You either have to

> get out of the way to let them by, or struggle, as

> you get pushed this way

> and that, to move with the crowd as it goes with the

> cart. Many people try

> to pull the ropes and it is not easy, and can be

> dangerous, to get a place

> nearby.

>

> The Deities spend the first two nights on the carts

> outside the Gundicha

> temple, or wherever else They may be if They do not

> make it there the first

> night. During this time, pilgrims can climb up on

> the carts and see the

> Deities very closely and even embrace Them. But the

> priests are quick to

> charge everyone a certain number of rupees for this

> opportunity, which

> makes for a very good business for the priests. When

> I climbed a cart and

> was about to give a " donation, " as many as five of

> the attendants grabbed

> the money at once before I let go of it. And when I

> did not let go of it

> right away, they started to get very angry. This was

> after I had been

> assured that I could climb the cart to see the Deity

> of Lady Subhadra and

> there would be no charge, and I would also be

> allowed to take a photograph.

> I indeed was allowed to see Lady Subhadra and even

> embrace Her, which is a

> rare event for any pilgrim, what to speak of a

> Westerner. But after I had

> given my donation, I took out my camera to take a

> photograph and a guard

> immediately came over and objected and ordered me to

> get down off the cart.

> So that brought an abrupt end to the episode.

> Nonetheless, if one can

> overcome this businesslike atmosphere, it can still

> be a very devotional

> and memorable event. And you can also go up on the

> carts of Lord Jagannatha

> and Lord Balarama as well, if you can handle the

> crowds and the many

> priests who ask for donations, or who want to direct

> people, sometimes

> forcefully with the use of sticks. Some people

> simply stay on the ground

> and offer prayers and small ghee lamps from a

> distance. Others climb all

> three carts to get the personal darshan of all three

> Deities.

>

> The Deities are then taken inside the Gundicha

> temple only on the third

> night. After the Deities' stay at the Gundicha

> temple, They return a week

> later to the main temple in a similar parade that is

> attended by fewer

> people. This can be a time when you can get much

> closer to the carts and

> walk more easily with the parade, providing you have

> time to stay in Puri

> for this event. Again, the Deities come out of the

> Gundicha temple as

> before and are placed on the carts with much fanfare

> from the devotees.

> Then again the King of Puri comes to cleanse the

> carts, and shortly

> thereafter the carts are ready to be pulled in a

> most festive parade back

> to the main temple. The return trip usually happens

> all in one day.

> However, again the Deities stay outside on the carts

> for two nights,

> allowing everyone who wants to climb up on the cart

> for a close darshan.

> Then on the third night there is the Suna Vesa

> festival in which the

> Deities are dressed in gold outfits. Again, the city

> becomes extremely

> crowded as people want to see the Deities in the

> golden ornaments. These

> include gold crowns, hands and feet, golden peacock

> feather, gold earrings,

> different golden necklaces, and ornaments such as a

> silver conch and gold

> disk for Lord Jagannatha and golden club and plow

> for Lord Balarama. These

> are all solid gold, and all together weigh up to one

> ton.

>

> No one is allowed on the carts for the gold festival

> except for the

> intimate servants of the Deities. The way the crowd

> works for this festival

> is that they approach the carts from the main road.

> The closer to the carts

> you get, the thicker the crowd becomes. You are then

> directed by numerous

> police to walk with the crowd around the front of

> the carts and then down a

> side street. The police will also not let you stop

> along the lanes, but

> make sure everyone keeps moving. As you walk, you

> can then look toward the

> Deities to see Them in Their unique gold ornaments.

> They look especially

> powerful dressed as They are like this. Your darshan

> is only as long as it

> takes for the crowd to move, and then you must

> continue on, or come back

> around again, all of which can take an hour to make

> it through the crowds.

> Then as you come back around, the street is divided

> into two lanes, one for

> those approaching the carts and the other for those

> leaving. So you have to

> continue a ways away before you can begin to come

> back around. Getting

> directly in front of each of the carts is the only

> way you can have a

> direct line of sight toward the Deity during this

> event.

>

> After this, the Deities stay on the carts one more

> day and are then taken

> into the main temple the following evening, as They

> were when taken into

> the Gundich temple. Then the Ratha-Yatra festival is

> completely finished

> until next year.

>

>

>

>

> The Internal Meaning of the Ratha-Yatra Festival

>

>

> The meaning of the Ratha-Yatra parade is steeped in

> religious sentiment.

> The form that Lord Krishna takes as Jagannatha is

> the manifestation of His

> ecstasy that He feels when He leaves the opulence of

> His palaces in

> Dwaraka, represented by the Puri temple, to return

> to the town of Vrindavan

> and the simple and pure spontaneous love the

> residents there have for Him.

> Thus, there is no difference between Lord Krishna

> and Lord Jagannatha. So

> in the mood of separation from His loving devotees,

> Jagannatha mounts His

> chariot and returns to Vrindavan, which is

> symbolically represented by the

> Gundicha temple. In this way, the esoteric meaning

> of the Ratha-Yatra

> parade is that we pull the Lord back into our hearts

> and rekindle the

> loving relationship we have with Him. Many great

> poems and songs, such as

> Jagannatha-astakam, have been composed describing

> the event and the highly

> ecstatic devotional mood one can enter while

> participating. Many verses are

> also written in the Caitanya-caritamrita that

> describe the pastimes Sri

> Caitanya Mahaprabhu had during these Ratha-Yatra

> festivals 500 years ago.

>

> To explain the internal meaning of Ratha-Yatra

> further, Lord Jagannatha is

> the embodiment of Lord Krishna's love for Srimate

> Radharani. While Lord

> Krishna was living in Dwaraka, he felt great

> separation from Radharani and

> the residents of Vrindavana. On the day of one solar

> eclipse, He traveled

> to Kuruksetra with His brother Balarama and His

> sister Subhadra on His

> chariot. There He met Srimate Radharani and other

> residents of Vrindavana,

> all of which wanted to take the Lord back to

> Vrindavana. While traveling

> and thinking of this meeting, He entered mahabhava,

> the highest sentiments

> of loving exchange. In that state, His eyes dilated

> like fully bloomed

> lotuses, and His hands and legs retreated into His

> body. In this way, the

> form of Lord Jagannatha is called

> radha-viraha-vidhura, the separation from

> Radharani, and also mahabhava-prakasha, the

> manifestation of mahabhava for

> Radharani. Lord Caitanya was the embodiment of

> Srimate Radharani's love for

> Lord Krishna. So Lord Caitanya taking Lord

> Jagannatha from the main temple

> to the Gundicha corresponds to Srimate Radharani's

> wanting to take Lord

> Krishna from Dwaraka back to Vrindavana, the place

> of spontaneous and

> ecstatic love of God.

>

> It is also explained that by participating in this

> festival, chanting and

> dancing, or helping pull the ropes of the chariots,

> one becomes free of

> many lifetimes of karma. One can even become

> liberated due to the spiritual

> potency of Lord Jagannatha's presence. One of the

> ways this happens is

> explained as follows: at the very end of one's life

> when the memories of

> his activities pass through the mind, when he

> remembers the amazing

> Ratha-Yatra festival his mind stops and focuses on

> that event. Thus, he

> dies thinking of Lord Jagannatha and is liberated

> from material existence

> and returns to the spiritual world, just like a yogi

> is transferred to the

> spiritual strata when his mind is fixed on the

> Supersoul at the time of

> death. This is why thousands of pilgrims come to

> Jagannatha Puri every year

> for Ratha-Yatra.

>

>

>

> Other Places of Spiritual Importance in Jagannatha

> Puri

>

>

> While in Jagannatha Puri, there are many other

> places of interest that

> pilgrims come to see, so I will describe a few of

> these. About a quarter

> mile from the Jagannatha temple, walking toward the

> beach, is Siddha

> Bakula. This is where, 500 years ago, the great

> saint Haridas Thakur used

> to live and chant the Hare Krishna mantra 300,000

> times a day and where Sri

> Caitanya would visit him. Since Haridas could not

> enter the Jagannatha

> Temple, being of a Muslim family, Lord Caitanya took

> the stick He had used

> as His toothbrush and stuck it in the ground. It

> immediately grew into a

> beautiful shade tree, under which Haridas Thakur

> lived. Sanatana Gosvami

> had also stayed here for a time as well.

>

> Haridas attained such an elevated position of

> ecstasy from chanting the

> Hare Krishna mantra that even though a beautiful

> prostitute came to tempt

> him with sex, he was not interested. Thus, he is

> called the namacarya: the

> master of chanting the holy names. In 1991, a small

> shrine was found here,

> along with the old and bent tree under which Haridas

> would chant. However,

> since then, as found in 2001, there is a nice temple

> and plenty of walled

> protection for the tree at this place. The tomb of

> Haridas Thakur, where

> you'll also see beautiful Radha Krishna Deities as

> well as an image of

> Haridas, is located next to Purusottama Gaudiya Math

> near the beach. This

> is an important place of pilgrimage.

>

> A 15 minute walk from here is the temple of

> Tota-Gopinatha. The Radha

> Krishna Deities here are especially beautiful, and

> it is accepted that Sri

> Caitanya ended his life by entering into the Deity

> of Tota-Gopinatha. Also

> near this area is the old house of Kashi Mishra. It

> is now used as part of

> a temple and has nice diorama exhibits of Sri

> Caitanya's life. It is here

> we find the Gambhira room, which is where Sri

> Caitanya lived for 12 years.

> Through a small window you can see Sri Caitanya's

> original wooden sandals,

> water pot, and bed.

>

> A short walk to the east of the Jagannatha temple is

> the Gaudiya Math

> temple and the place where Srila Bhaktisiddhanta

> took birth. A little

> farther east is the Jagannatha Vallabha Garden,

> which is almost across from

> the Balagandhi temple which used to be where Lord

> Jagannatha would stop

> during His Ratha-Yatra parade to accept food

> offerings from all the

> devotees. At this garden, Sri Caitanya had many

> pastimes and is where He

> saw Lord Krishna manifest Himself. A little ways

> away from the garden is

> Narendra Sarovara, a small lake where many festivals

> have taken place with

> Sri Caitanya and his associates. Even now many

> pilgrims will visit and take

> a holy bath in this lake. The Govinda Deity from the

> Jagannatha temple is

> brought here for festivals where He is given boat

> rides. There is also a

> little temple with Lord Jagannatha Deities located

> here. So if foreigners

> want to see Lord Jagannatha they can usually come

> here for darshan, unless

> it is during the Ratha-Yatra festival.

>

> Farther down the main road of town near the Gundicha

> Mandir is the very old

> temple dedicated to Lord Narasimha, which we can

> enter to view the Deity.

> This is also where Sri Caitanya engaged in many

> kirtanas with his close

> associates. Not far away is Indradyumna Lake where

> Sri Caitanya once

> manifested His Mahavishnu form showing His

> associates His supernatural

> qualities as an incarnation of God.

>

> About 14 miles from Jagannatha Puri is the Alarnatha

> temple at Brahmagiri.

> Lord Alarnatha is a four-handed form of Lord Vishnu.

> Whenever the

> Jagannatha Deities in Puri would be removed from the

> altar before the

> Ratha-Yatra festival for two weeks, Sri Caitanya

> would stay here. This is a

> temple where, at the end of the kirtana hall in

> front of a Deity of

> Sadbhuja, there is a large stone slab with the

> imprint of Sri Caitanya's

> body. Once when He fell onto the stone in an

> ecstatic trance, the stone

> melted leaving the imprint of Sri Caitanya's body as

> we find it today.

> Across from the Alarnatha temple is another

> Gaudiya-Math temple that was

> established by Srila Bhaktisiddhanta. It is also

> here where we find the

> small Alarnatha Deity that was uncovered during

> excavations around the main

> Alarnatha temple. However, once when Srila

> Bhaktisiddhanta was staying at

> his temple, the priest at the Alarnatha shrine had a

> dream in which the

> Lord came to him and said that He wanted to accept

> the worship of Srila

> Bhaktisiddhanta. Then the priest brought the small

> Alarnatha Deity to Srila

> Bhaktisiddhanta who worshiped Him, and where the

> Deity has remained since

> then. Also in this town of Bentapur we can see the

> birthplace of Ramananda

> Raya, a close associate of Sri Caitanya.

>

> Nineteen miles north of Jagannatha Puri is Konarka,

> a most interesting

> temple to Surya, the sun-god. Although it is very

> old and no longer used

> for worship, many people come here every day. A

> Surya temple was here as

> long ago as the 9th century, but the present temple

> was built in the 13th

> century to resemble a huge chariot and has 24

> gigantic stone wheels all

> around it. There are also carvings of seven strong

> horses who pull the

> chariot, and the temple is covered with many panels

> of stone figures

> depicting many aspects of life, such as scenes with

> hunters, soldiers,

> ascetics, maidens, birds, elephants, etc. There are

> also three green

> chlorite deities of Surya in niches on the outside

> of the temple, reached

> by ascending flights of stairs. The interior has

> been filled in and blocked

> up to help support it. Outside the temple grounds

> are many shops who sell

> food or the usual gamut of nick-nacks.

>

> About six miles from Puri is the Saksi-gopala

> temple, located between the

> Jagannatha Puri and Khurda Road Junction railway

> stations. A new station

> called Saksi-gopala is there where people get off to

> visit the temple. The

> Saksi-gopala Deity is the Gopala Deity who walked

> from Vrindavan to

> Vidyanagara, a town located 20 to 25 miles from

> Rajahmundry on the banks of

> the Godavari River. How this happened was that two

> brahmanas were traveling

> and visiting the holy places. One was poor and young

> and was serving the

> older and richer brahmana. The older one was so

> satisfied with the

> charitable service of the younger brahmana that he

> vowed in front of the

> Gopala Deity that he would give his daughter to the

> younger brahmana to be

> his wife. Later, when they returned home, the older

> brahmana hesitated to

> fulfill his promise due to pressure from his family.

> There was some

> controversy about this between the two brahmanas and

> in a meeting with the

> people of the town it was agreed that if the Deity

> Gopala would come to

> testify as a witness, the older brahmana would give

> his daughter as

> promised.

>

> The younger brahmana went back to Vrindavan and

> related the situation to

> the Gopala Deity who finally agreed to walk. He told

> the brahmana that He

> would follow him and that the sound of His ankle

> bells would indicate He

> was there, but if the brahmana turned around to

> look, He would walk no

> farther. So for 100 days they walked toward

> Vidyanagara, then the sound of

> the Deity's ankle bells ceased to sound. The

> brahmana looked back and the

> Deity was standing there smiling. The brahmana went

> to gather the people of

> the town who were amazed to see the Deity. Then the

> older brahmana agreed

> to give his daughter in marriage as promised and a

> temple was built for the

> Deity. Later the King of Orissa, Purusottama, was

> insulted by the King of

> Kataka (Cuttack). So Purusottama fought and defeated

> the King of Kataka and

> took charge of the city. He then brought the

> Gopalaji Deity from

> Vidyanagara to Kataka and built a temple there. The

> Deity also stayed in

> the Jagannatha Temple for some time, but then was

> moved to a village about

> six miles from Puri, called Satyavadi. Some time

> after that a new temple

> was constructed where we find the Saksi-gopala Deity

> today. Though the

> temple does not allow foreigners inside, many people

> visit this temple with

> the understanding that whether the Supreme is in the

> spiritual realm or

> expands Himself in the material realm in the form of

> a stone Deity, He can

> change what is spiritual into material and vice

> versa whenever He wants.

> This is why a stone Deity can do what is considered

> miraculous things, like

> walk, talk, etc. Thus, it is accepted that the bona

> fide Deity of the

> Supreme is nondifferent from the Supreme Himself.

>

>

> Wish you Happy RathaYatra.

> Shripal

>

>

 

 

Love is the beauty of the soul