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A key meeting of the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) was held to prepare the almanac for the coming Odia year.
Pandits of Mukti Mandap, astrologers, senior servitors, Tadhaukaran, and members of the Srimandir Management Committee (SMC) were present at the meeting presided over by the Niti (ritual) administrator.
The deliberations in the meeting centered on preparing an error-free calendar for the coming Odia year with accurate astrological calculations to determine the days and timings of the upcoming festivals and rituals.
Pana Sankranti Confusion
As the current year is a leap year (February will be of 29 days), the day for Pana Sankranti will be decided at another meeting.
Confusion cropped over the Pana Sankranti date. Various calendars(Panjikas) have differed on the date of Pana Sankranti. Radharaman and Kohinoor calendars estimated the auspicious day to fall on April 14 while Samant Chandrasekhar and Biraja calendars have agreed on April 13.
Krushnaprasad Mohapatra of Kohinoor Panjika said that Radharaman, DN Tripathy, and Kohinoor Panjikas have estimated that the auspicious day will fall on April 14.
The temple astrologers will decide if it will fall on April 13 or 14. Hence, the temple administration has called another meeting on February 12 to remove the confusion on the date of Pana Sankranti. Madhab Chandra Panda, a member of the SMC, said that the meeting will be held at 11.30 am on February 12 to decide the date.
As per new calculations, the Ansara niti will be of 13 days while the Panchuka will be of four days instead of 5. As a result, Laxmi Nrusingha Besa of Lord Jagannath won't be organised this year, said a senior Daitapati servitor.
Emerging after the meeting, Sanjay Satpathy of Radharaman Panjika said, “The days for festivals of Lord Jagannath were determined. One or two festivals will be determined on February 12. However, the date for Pana Sankranti has not been finalized. We have calculated that the Pana Sankranti falls on April 14.”
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He added that only leap year is not a deciding factor for Pana Sankranti, but astrologers have to calculate the days of ‘Eka Rasi Bhoga Kala' of Rabi in the month of Mina. In most almanacs, the Bhoga Kala of Rabi is 31 days. As Bhoga kala is extended by one day, the calculation of the day for Pana Sankranti will be decided accordingly, he observed.
- Reported by:
- MADHUSUDAN MISHRA
