Rath Yatra: Lord Jagannath and Devi Subhadra reach Gundicha

Chief administrator of Srimandir Ranjan Kumar Das said the deities will be taken to ‘adapa mandap’ in ‘Goti Pahandi’ on Friday between 3 pm and 4 pm.

The three chariots parked in front of Gundicha temple on Wednesday | Express 

BHUBANESWAR: The chariots of Devi Subhadra and Lord Jagannath reached Gundicha temple on Wednesday morning, a day after Rath Yatra started. Despite heat and humidity, thousands of devotees congregated on Grand Road again to pull ‘Darpadalana’ (chariot of Devi Subhadra) and ‘Nandighosa’ (chariot of Lord Jagannath) to their destination. Pulling of the chariots began at 8.30 am and was completed within two hours.

On Tuesday, while Lord Balabhadra’s chariot ‘Taladhwaja’ reached Gundicha temple, ‘Darpadalana’ was stopped at Bada Sankha and ‘Nandighosa’ could be pulled only till Mausi Maa temple by 8 pm. The delay, though, augured well for devotees as they got more time to see the Trinity seated on their majestic chariots from close proximity.

Prior to pulling the chariots, devotees witnessed the morning rituals of the deities like ‘mangala alati’, ‘mailam’, ‘abakasha’ that are normally conducted inside Srimandir. However, after the chariots reached Gundicha temple following ‘abakasha’ niti at 8.30 am, the Trinity had a late breakfast (Gopal Ballav bhoga). The Gopal Ballav bhoga was served to the deities only around late afternoon.

Shree Jagannath temple administration did not clarify the reason behind the delay but sources said there were coordination issues between servitors and police over allowing the latter to Gundicha temple. Senior Daitapati sevayat Binayak Dasmohapatra said as per norms, the Gopal Ballav bhoga is served to the deities by Palia Mahasuara sevayats.

“However, when the Palia Mahasuara sevayats were approaching Gundicha temple, they were not allowed into the cordon by police deployed at the spot,” he said.  When the matter came to fore, the temple administration held a meeting with the sevayats and the ritual was conducted at around 2.30 pm.  

Chief administrator of Srimandir Ranjan Kumar Das said the deities will be taken to ‘adapa mandap’ in ‘Goti Pahandi’ on Friday between 3 pm and 4 pm. ‘Adapa Mahaprasad’ will be available for the devotees from 12 pm on Friday.