Jagannath Rath Yatra Festivities Begin in Puri, Odisha

June 27th marks the celebration of this year’s Jagannath Rath Yatra, one of the largest and most ancient Hindu festivals that is observed in Puri, Odisha. The festivities are marked by an annual procession of Lord Jagannath and his siblings, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra from the holy Shri Jagannath Temple up to the Gudicha Temple.

Every year, the festival takes place on the second day of Shukla Paksha in the month of Ashada, according to the Hindu Lunar calendar. The festival attracts thousands of devotees, not only for

its beautiful temples and pompous processions, but also for the Mahaprasad or the holy offering, a tradition with centuries of ancient mythology attached to it.

As the legend goes, Lord Jagannath is an embodiment of Lord Krishna, who had lifted the Govardhan mountain on his pinky finger for seven days and nights to protect the villagers and their cattle from the heavy rains sent by Lord Indra. While Krishna is typically believed to eat eight meals a day, each consisting of multiple new dishes prepared by Yashoda, he consumed nothing during the course of the seven days as he completely devoted himself to the protection of his village. In order to quench the Lord’s hunger, devotees offer Lord Jagannath with 56 dishes or bhog, eight dishes for each of the seven days. This is also referred to as the Chappan Bhog.

The food is first offered within the temple premises to Lord Jagannath and then to the temple Goddess Bimala, following which it becomes the Mahaprasad. The main dishes usually include Makhaan, Misri, and Kheer, with Rasgulla, Rabri, Jeera laddu, Jalebi, Matheri, and Malpua, among others also making an appearance.

This article is authored by Rishima Mosali from Symbiosis School for Liberal Arts, Pune, Interning in at Deccan Chronicle