Puri soaks in Snana Yatra bliss

Puri: The annual ceremonial ablution of the presiding deities of Shree Jagannath temple here was conducted Thursday. Thousands of devotees thronged the temple amid tight security arrangements.
As part of the ritual, the Snana Yatra of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra and Lord Sudarshan, held on Deva Snana Purnima, priests poured 108 pitchers of aromatic sacred water on the deities in the specially prepared Snana Mandap. The water is traditionally drawn from a well situated inside the sprawling temple complex.
The bathing ceremony followed a grand procession, Pahandi, in which the deities, including Sudarshan, were taken out from the sanctum sanctorum to the Snana Mandap. The deities were installed at the bathing altar by 9 am.
Servitors began pouring scented water on the deities at 1.20 pm after routine rituals including Mangal Alati, Mailam, Tadaplagi, Adharpochha, Rosahoma and Suryapuja.
While Lord Jagannath was ‘bathed’ with 33 pitchers of water, Lord Balabhadra was given the ritual bath with 30 pitchersful. Twenty-seven pitchers of water were poured on Devi Subhadra and 18 on Lord Sudarshan as part of the ritual.
Soon after the ritual, Gajapati king Dibyasingha Dev performed the Chhera Panhara (sweeping) at the altar and the deities were attired with ‘Gajanana Besha’ (elephant attire). Lord Jagannath adorns the elephant attire to please his Maharashtrian devotees who worship Lord Ganesh.
The Hati Besha ritual of deities was completed by 4.30 pm, at least 40 minutes ahead of schedule.
The Snana Yatra is a significant ritual in the run-up to the annual Rath Yatra festival. It is held on the full moon day of the Hindu month of ‘Jyestha’, considered to be the birthday of Lord Jagannath.
According to the Skanda Purana, King Indradyumna, who had installed the wooden idols of the deities in the 12th century shrine, introduced the bathing ritual.
As per the temple tradition, servitors would carry the deities to Anasara Gruha (asylum for sick) on Srimandir premises late in the night. It is believed that Lord Jagannath and his siblings catch fever after the bathing ritual and spend another 15 days at the Anasara Gruha to recuperate.
The deities will return to the sanctum sanctorum a day before the annual Rath Yatra.