Rath Yatra: 'Pahandi' ritual begins at Puri's Jagannath temple

The 'Pahandi' ritual in which Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra and Lord Jagannath are being carried in a procession from the 12th-century temple to their respective chariots for the Rath Yatra started on Friday.

Though the Pahandi ritual was earlier scheduled to begin at 9.30 am, it started one hour late and the ritual will continue for three hours.

In the Pahandi the trinity - Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra and Lord Jagannath - are being carried in a procession to their respective chariots parked in front of the Lion's Gate for journey to Shree Gundicha Temple, about 2.6 kilometre from the 12th-century shrine here.

With the beating of gongs, and blowing of conches and cymbals, Chakraraj Sudarshan was first to be carried out from the main temple and seated at the 'Darpadalan' chariot of Devi Subhadra. Shree Sudarshan is the wheel weapon of Lord Vishnu, who is worshipped in the form of Lord Jagannath in Puri, said Pandit Suryanaray Rathsharma.

Shree Sudarshan was followed by Lord Balabhadra, the elder brother of Lord Jagannath. Lord Balabhadra is seated on his 'Taladhwaja' chariot. Goddess Subhadra, the sister of Lord Jagannath and Lord Balabhadra, was being brought to her 'Darpadalan' chariot in a special procession called 'Sunya Pahandi' (the Goddess looking at the sky while being carried to the chariot) by servitors.

When finally Lord Jagannath came out of the temple, emotions spilled over the Grand Road as devotees raised their hands shouting 'Jai Jagannath'. Odissi dancers, folk artists, music players and many other groups drawn from different parts of the state compete among themselves to perform before the 'Kalia Thakura' (Black colour Lord Jagannath).

"My life will be fulfilled if the Lord graced to throw a look at me," said Maitree Maheswari, an Odissi dancer. Ratha Yatra, is held on the second day of the Odia month of 'Ashadha Shukla Tithi' (bright fortnight) every year, is the only occasion when the sibling deities come out of the temple after descending from the 'Ratna Sinhasana', the bejewelled throne, through 22 steps known as 'Baisi Pahacha' through the Lion's Gate in an elaborate royal ritual called 'Pahandi'.

Before the Pahandi, a number of customary rituals like 'Mangla Arati' and 'Mailam' were held before the presiding deities came out from the sanctum sanctorum of the temple.

The three majestic chariots now stand tall in front of the Singha Dwar of the temple facing east towards the Gundicha temple.

Following the Pahandi, as per schedule, 'Chherapahanra' (sweeping of chariots) would be performed by Gajapati Dibyasingha Deb at 3.30 pm before pulling of chariots at 4 pm as per the programme.

Meanwhile, lakhs of devotees have already thronged the pilgrim town of Puri to witness the annual Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath and his siblings on Friday.

The festival is being held amid unprecedented security arrangements with deployment of around 10,000 personnel of Odisha police, central armed police force, NSG and others. "We have made all possible arrangements for smooth conduct of Rath Yatra," DGP Y B Khurania told reporters, adding that over 275 AI-enabled CCTV cameras are keeping watch on the crowd.