The day has arrived when Mahaprabhu Jagannath along with his brother Lord Balabhadra and sister Devi Subhadra will leave their sanctum sanctorum to embark on a nine-day sojourn to Gundicha Temple on ‘Dwitiya’ tithi of Ashadha Shukla Paksha. A one of its kind yatra, where the Lord of the Lords-Mahaprabhu Jagannath along with his sibling deities leave their Ratnasinghasan and come out of the temple to meet his devotees, only to convey a message to humankind that everyone is one in his eyes.
To witness their Mahaprabhu, devotees gather from far and wide with a silent prayer and a hope of being able to hold the reign of the chariots.
Besides other rituals, one important ritual is performed by ‘Gajapati Maharaja’, also known as the first sevaka of the Lord. The ritual is known as ‘Chera Pahanra’ where the Maharaja himself sweeps the floor around the chariot with a goldhandled broom and then sprinkles water mixed with sandalwood for the yatra to begin. The three deities are taken to the chariot in a royal procession called ‘ Pahandi Bije’, in which Sudarshan chakra followed by Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra and then Mahaprabhu Jagannath are taken out one after the other in rhythmic swaying by a special group of servitors.
Gotipua artists’ performance marks the journey of the deities to their respective chariots. Taladhwaja which is Lord Balabhadra’s chariot leads the procession followed by Devi Subhadra’s chariot -Darpadalana and then Mahaprabhu follows them in his 16-wheel chariot by the name Nandighosha.
Amidst the chant of ‘Jai Jagannath’ reverberating in the air, the three deities start their journey to Gundicha temple, which is almost 3 kilometers away from the main temple. A few meters down the road, the chariot of Lord Jagannath comes to a screeching halt before Salabeg’s tomb, who was a poet and an ardent devotee of Lord Jagannath. This is the Lord’s way of paying respect to his devotee.
The deities stay at the Gundicha temple for seven days. And on the ninth day, they return to their abode. This journey is known as ‘Bahuda Yatra’. During the return journey, they halt at the Ardhasani Temple (Mausi Ma temple).
