Rath Yatra: Chaka Bije ritual of deities today

Puri: As the annual Rath Yatra inches closer, servitors of Puri Srimandir are doing everything to help the Holy Trinity recuperate from the fever they are suffering from in their secret Anasara chamber. A special ritual to mark recovery of the deities called ’Chaka Bije’ was held today at the 12^th century shrine.

According to sources, after ten days of complete bed rest due to fever following a luxurious bath on Deba Snana Purnima, Daitapati servitors of the temple will shift the deities from their Anasara Pindi (bed) to a special ‘Asana’ called ‘chaka’ made of Black Granite rock (Muguni Pathara) near the Anasara chamber where they will completely recover from the fever before being finally moved to the ‘Ratna Singhasan’ of the temple for ‘Nabajouban Darshan’.

Chaka Bije ritual is held 10 days after the Lords enter the Anasara chamber where they stay for a period of 15 days. During the first four days of the Anasara period, Lords were provided ‘Garam Chikitsa’ followed by ‘Phuluri Tela Seva’ on the fifth day. Thereafter from the sixth to ninth day, ‘Osa Lagi’ ritual is conducted by Pati Mohapatra servitors and on the tenth day, the ‘Chaka Bije’ is held.

As per the directive of Gajapati, the Raja Vaida prepares ‘Dasamula Modak’- an exquisite sweet made by grinding together  ‘Salapurni’, ‘Gambhari’, ‘Phanaphana’, ‘Gokhara’ and ingredients like ‘Khua’, Ghee and Honey- which will be served to the deities tomorrow, i.e. on 11th day of the Anasara period for their complete recovery.

Also Read: Railway Announces 184 Special Trains To Puri For Rath Yatra

Meanwhile, the last phase of chariot construction works are in full swing ahead of the annual sojourn of the Holy Trinity scheduled to begin from July 14, with chariot designers (Maharana, Bhoi, Rupakar) sevaks and painters (chitrakars)  giving their last minute touches to accessorise the parts.