Elderly devotee in Odisha donates home to Lord Jagannath 

It was the deep love and devotion for Lord Jagannath that inspired an elderly woman in Mayurbhanj district to donate her only property - a homestead land- to a Sankirtan Mandali of the locality. 

For 65-year-old Banabasini Behera, mundane assets were nothing against her profound devotion to the Lord. 
“If I love anyone in this world the most, it is none other than Lord Jagannath. He is everything to me,” she said.       

Banabasini is a resident of Sripadganj Sahi in Baripada. All she owns is a house. In fact, she had earlier wished to have a darshan of Lord Jagannath in Puri. But unfortunately, she was affected by paralysis at that time. She recovered after treatment and wanted to visit Puri.

Her daughters fulfilled her wish by taking her to the holy town and after having the darshan of the deities, she claimed to have seen Lord Jagannath in her dreams. 

“After coming from Puri, I had Lord Kalia Thakura in my dreams. I felt He woke me up. Since then I thought about why He woke me up from sleep. I remembered that I have nothing to donate to the Lord. The only thing I have is the homestead land, which should be donated,” Banabasini said.

ALSO READ: Once An European Citizen, Now An Ardent Jagannath Devotee, Know How Lilabati Learnt The Art Of Simple Living

Daughter Mitarani Behera said, “My mother was always dreaming about the Lord and wanted to donate something to Him. We told her to donate her homestead land, her only asset. She was happy to donate it to a Sankirtan Mandali that performs Kirtan in the praise of the Lord. The Sankirtan Mandali used to face difficulties without a proper place. We all are happy now.” 

Gaurahari Nayak, a member of the Sankirtan Mandali, said: She has nothing except her dwelling residence. She is staying with her younger daughter. She donated the house to Sankirtan. We are happy for her deep devotion to the Lord. Even people having a lot of wealth do not think of the Lord. She gave a good message to people.”