PURI: Embracing the winter chill, Lord Jagannath, his elder Balabhadra, and Devi Subhadra at Sri Jagannath Temple were adorned in warm woollen garments as part of the traditional ritual known as ‘Ghodalagi’ or ‘Odhana Sasthi’ on Wednesday.
The temple servitors meticulously dressed the divine Trinity in three sets of warm clothes, including headgear made of wool and cotton, velvet blankets for body coverage, and ear protection against the cold.
According to tradition, the colour of the warm clothing changes each day based on the ruling star of that day. Guided by the temple astrologer, each day of the week corresponds to a planet and is associated with a specific colour.
The prescribed colours for the week are grey on Monday, Barapatia (a blend of five colours on Tuesday, blue on Wednesday, yellow on Thursday, white on Friday, black on Saturday, and red on Sunday. This ritual, known as Ghodalagi, takes place with Patitapaban's image of Lord Jagannath at the Simhadwar of the temple, allowing devotees who cannot go inside the temple to witness the ritual from outside. The ritual continues daily from “Odhana Sasthi to Basanta Panchami” (Saraswati Puja).
Natamandap repair discussed
Puri: The technical core committee, comprising representatives from the ASI, managing committee members, temple chief administrator and amicus curiae, convened a meeting on Wednesday to discuss repair plans of the Natamandap in Srimandir. The committee discussed the designs for the repair plan, prepared by IIT Chennai. Chief of the core committee NC Pal said a stainless steel box beam would be installed to support the roof over the Garuda Stambha, as outlined in the plan.