Puri’s Famous Ratha Yatra: Down Memory Lane to the 10th Century

The famous Ratha Yatra in Puri, Odisha, can be traced back over 800 years ago, although there are differing views about the time of its origin.

“Some records suggest that it started in the 12th century while according to the ancient document of the Puri temple ‘Madala Panji’, the tradition of Ratha Yatra dates back to the 10th century”, Dr Bhashkar Sharma, a scholar on Jagannath Sanskruti, told this writer. 

It seems that both the chronicles may have had some logic since there was no evidence to prove which is correct. A lot of inferences have been taken from legends and folklores.

“The Rath Yatra has ancient origins, which can be traced back to the times of the Puranas (Epics). The festival features three massive chariots, meticulously crafted over months, which carry Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, and Devi Subhadra from the Jagannath Temple to the Gundicha Temple”, said Sharma.

Be it the legends that still exist or mythical tales on the origins of the grand festival, some experts say that the festival reflects socio-religious thinking and the faith of people.

The Various Legends

It is believed that with a hidden design to finish both Lord Krishna and Lord Balaram, their maternal uncle invited them to Mathura, accompanied by Akrur. Some people or devotees made this an occasion to celebrate it as the Ratha Yatra, which finds mention in the Vishnu Purana.  

Euphoric devotees celebrated the day when Lord Krishna, after defeating the evil Kansa, gave them darshan in Mathura in a chariot with his brother, Balaram.

 On finding the siblings standing together motionless, ‘Narada’ prayed, "May the three of you grant darshan in this manner forever." The boon was granted. And the three forever reside in the Puri Temple of the Lord Jagannath” according to Skanda Purana (Epic).

“That was a leaf from the epics, which cannot be claimed or denied without any empirical study to support or contradict it”, said Dr Harichandan of Puri, an expert on the Jagannath cult.

‘Bamadeba Sahinta’, a story which has been passed on orally, describes what happened after the cremation of Lord Krishna's mortal body”, recalls Harichandan, adding, “When Shri Krishna was being cremated in Dwarka, Balaram, much saddened with the development, rushed out to drown himself into the ocean with Krishna's partially cremated body”.

“He was followed by Goddess Subhadra. At the same time, on the eastern shore of India, King Indradyumna of Jagannath Puri dreamt that the Lord's body would float up to the Puri's shores. He should build a massive statue in the city and sanctify the wooden statues of Krishna, Balaram and Subhadra '' said Pandit Suryanarayan Rath Sharma, another noted scholar on the Jagannath cult.

“The bones (asthi) of Lord Krishna's body should be put in the hollow in the statue's back. The dream came true,” Sharma added, saying, “The king found the splinters of bones (asthi) and took them.”

But the question was, who would carve the statues? It is believed that the Gods' architect, Vishwakarma, arrived as an old carpenter. He made it clear that while carving the statues nobody should disturb him, and in case anybody did, he would vanish leaving the work unfinished”, said Sharma.

“Some months passed. The impatient Indradyumna opened the door of Vishwakarma's room. Vishwakarma disappeared immediately, as he had warned before. Despite the unfinished statues, the king sanctified them; placing Lord Krishna's holy cinders in the hollow of the statue and installing them in the temple, this was found mentioned in the temple record,” said Sharma.

Every year, a majestic procession is carried out with the statues of Lord Krishna, Balaram and Subhadra, in three gigantic chariots.

“It may be recalled that in earlier times, there used to be only one huge chariot in which the deities travelled.  Subsequently, there were three chariots which are still seen,” said Harichandan.

The huge chariots are pulled by a motley crowd of devotees from Janakpur (location in-between the temple and Gindicha to the temple in Jagannath Puri).

The statues are changed every 12 years--the new ones being incomplete also. Which is known as ‘Naba Kalebara’, which means a kind of re-incarnation of the Lord and the other two deities.

It was a different situation then, when between the Jagannath temple and Sri Gundicha, where the deities go for the nine-day sojourn, known as the Ratha Yatra period, the main road (Badadanda) was just a sandy track, and in its middle was a very small rivulet, called Malini”, as mentioned in Skanda Purana, recalled Pundit Ratha Sharma

This is where the chariot used to halt and the deities were ferried on boats to the other bank, where  a new chariot would be ready to take the deities toward Sri Gundicha temple, known as the birthplace of the deities” noted Harichandan.

That is because that was the place where King Indradyumna had invited the divine architect, Viswakarma, to give shape to the three wooden pieces, believed to be the remnants of the three deities found floating offshore, and as per the divine command which the King dreamt of, the latter initiated the process of giving them shape in the hands of Viswakarma. But,  all of it remained half constructed, as described earlier.

The Puri Temple in present times.

The Jagannath Puri Temple is one of the four most sacred temples in the four directions of India--the other three being: Rameshwar in South, Dwarka in West and Badrinath in the Himalayas. Maybe, the temple in Jagannath Puri is the world's only temple with the statues of three deities who are siblings -- Lord Krishna, Balaram and Subhadra.

The temple of Puri, it is believed, as per temple records, suffered massive damage when a Muslim invader known as ‘Kala Pahada’ attacked religious places in Puri. The same invader is believed to have later surrendered before the Lord and became a devotee.

 A small tale also narrates the love and intimacy between the Lord and his devotees. That is the episode of Bhakta Salabega who, despite being a Muslim, became an ardent devotee of the Lord. Salabega was the son of a Mughal commander, Lal Beg, who is said to have kidnapped a Brahmin woman from a bathing ‘ghat’ near Puri on his horse, fell in love and married her.

It is said that Lal Beg treated her with great respect and allowed her to pursue her faith and live like a Hindu. The couple gave birth to a son known as Salabega, who later went down as one of the most revered devotees of the Lord.

Salabega’s ‘bhajans’ devoted to Lord Jagannath are still recited in worship.

As on date, the chariot of Lord Jagannath ‘Nandighosh’ halts in front of the memorial of Salabega as a mark of reverence to him.

The memorial of Bhakta Salabega still exists intact, regardless of the beautification of the main road between the temple and Gundicha Temple.

The writer is a freelance journalist based in Odisha.