Latest Updates from Rath Yatra

The main aspect of this ritual is the heavenly love and affection between Lord Jagannath and His wife Goddess Laxmi.

'Adhara Pana' is observed on Asadha Shukla Pakhya Dwadashi tithi, before the 'Niladree Bije' and after the 'Suna Besha'. 

With the conclusion of the Bahuda Yatra on Wednesday, the Holy Trinity Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra, and Lord Jagannath on their ‘chariots on Puri

Lord Jagannath and his divine siblings will make their homeward journey to the Srimandir after their nine-day sojourn at the Gundicha Temple in Puri on June 28 this year.

After a nine-day long annual sojourn in Gundicha Temple, the Holy Trinity- Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra and Lord Jagannath will return to their abode

Puri Maharaj Gajapati Diabyasingha Deb and his family offered prayers to the Chaturdhamurati on the Adapa Mandap in Gundicha Temple on Tuesday. The King, Queen Maharani Lilavati Pattamahadei and their daughters and grandchildren visited the Gundicha temple to offer their service before the Mahaprabhu.

For the return journey, the chariots are turned south toward the Jagannath Temple. So the ritual gets its name ‘Dakshina Moda or southward turn. 

Hera Panchami ritual, a tradition followed during Rath Yatra in Puri, is one of the beautiful episodes in which Goddess Laxmi gets angry with Lord Jagannath and vents her anger by causing damage to Nandighosha, the chariot of Lord Jagannath. The ritual is observed on the fifth day of the car festival.

During the Nabami Sandhya Darshan, devotees will have the last chance of offering prayers to the deities on the Adapa Mandap as the sibling deities will return to their abode the next day. 

After savouring communion with beloved devotees from top of their luxurious chariots for two days, the deities of Puri Srimandir were ushered to Gundicha temple on Thursday. The Holy Trinity was escorted to their birthplace called ‘Adapa Mandapa’ in the grand procession called ‘Goti Pahandi’.

As Lord Jagannath and His siblings are away in the Gundicha temple for their annual nine-day long sojourn and will stay there for a week, the silver cladding work of the Singha Dwara has begun.

In 'Adapa Mandap Bije' ritual, which is observed a day after Rath Yatra, the deities are taken into the ‘Adapa Mandap’ inside the Gundicha temple. In fact, ‘Adapa Mandap’ is considered the birthplace of Lord Jagannath and His siblings. 

The importance of 'Chhera Panhara' lies in the fact that Puri Gajapati Maharaja, who is considered as the first servitor of Lord Jagannath, sweeps the chariots of the three deities parked on the Grand Road near Srimandir with a golden broom. 

On the Grand Road, some devotees in the get-up of Hindu Gods like Lord Hanuman and Lord Shiva and some Odissi dancers performing in front of chariots are adding colours to the festival. 

Pahandi is of two types-Dhadi Pahandi and Goti Pahandi. 

For the uninitiated, a total of 148 festivals are celebrated in the temple annually. Of them, 12 are yatras, 28 are upa yatras and 108 are festivals. 

Rath Yatra, the annual sojourn of Lord Jagannath and His siblings Goddess Shubhadra and Lord Balabhadra from Srimandir to Gundicha Temple (their aunt's

Though the district administration has made elaborate traffic management and parking plans for the grand event, some people also have expressed their apprehensions about its efficacy.

After completion of anabasara rituals of Lord Balabhadra, Lord Jagannath and Devi Subhadra at Srimandir, devotees throng shrine in large to witness Nabajaubana besha of the Holy Trinity.

Chariots of Lord Balabhadra, Lord Jagannath, and Devi Subhadra taking shape at the Bada Danda in Puri.