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| Jagannath Temple, Orissa (India) |
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 It
was built in it's present form in 1198 and is protected
by two surrounding walls. The conical tower of the
temple is 58 mt high on which the flag and the wheel
ofLord Vishnu can be seen. The temple is dedicated
to Jagannath, who is identified by his devotees
with Krishna. It is also dedicated to Balabhadra
and Subhadra, the brother and sister, respectively,
of Jagannath. These three together are the principal
deities of the temple, whose images reside in the
temple's sanctuary.Like the Lingaraja temple in
Bhubaneshwar, this temple too is not open for Non-Hindus
who contend themselves by viewing it from outside
it's precincts. In the minds of the millions of
Indians, Orissa is the land of Jagannath. The name
Jagannath literally means “Lord of the Universe.”
It is one of the most sacred pilgrimage spots in
India and it is also one of the four abodes (dhamas)
of the divine that lie on the four directions of
the compass. .The Jagannath temple in Puri was built
approximately 1135-1150 by King Chodaganga of the
Eastern Ganga dynasty and finished by his descendant,
Anangabhima Deva, during the 12th century. This
was during the classical period of temple building
in Orissa (approximately the eighth through thirteenth
centuries). One of the most revered of all temples
of Lord Vishnu is the Lord Jagannath Temple in eastern
India.
Puri is an ancient shrine, enshrining Krishna -
Jagannath in the form of a wooden image.There is
a legend about the construction of the Jagannath
temple and installation of three deities therein.
According to this legend in the Satya Yuga there
was a king Indradyumna, in Malava . He was a great
devotee of Vishnu. Once he had vision of Nilamadhava
Vishnu in his dream. Next day he sent emissaries
in four direction to find out where the image, he
dreamt of, was being worshipped. Brahmin Vidyapati
was sent to the east. He came to Utkala and entered
a Savara village.He took shelter in the house of
the Savara King Visvavasu.His daughter Lalita fell
in love with Vidyapati who had to marry her so that
he might get information about Nilamadhava through
his wife. Savara king Visvavasu used to go to the
forest every morning to worship Nilamadhava installed
in Niakandara (Blue cave). Vidyapati preesed his
wife to request her father to allow him to see Nilamadhava.
Visvavasu agreed on the condition that Vidyapati
will be taken to the shrine and brought back therefrom
with a blindfold.When Vidyapati heard this proposal
he requested his wife to arrange something so that
he may subsequently know the path. Lalitha gave
him some sesame seeds to be scarred on the side
of the road he followed so that he might know the
path when sesame plants grew up during the rains.
Accordingly Vidyapati was taken to Nilakandara where
he had the luck of witnessing Nilamadhava. But when
Vasu Savara offered the food to the deity, he did
not take it as usual. At this Vasu Savara was much
dismayed. At this time he heard someone saying from
the air, “we would no longer continued to
be worshipped by you. Oh! Vasu, we will change the
present Nilamadhava form and assume Daru form. We
shall be worshipped in the temple by Raja Indradyumna.”
Hearing this voice of God, Vasu Savara came back
with Vidyapati with a heavy heart.Then Vidyapati
bade farewell to his wife and father-in-law and
started to convey the news to Raja Indradyumna.
On hearing the news, Raja Indradyumna at once started
with his retinue for Utkal tosee Nilamadhava. On
reaching Nilakandara he found it vacant. But a voice
from the air told him to construct atemple on Nilasaila
(Blue mountain).Accordingly Raja started construction
of a big temple. When it was completed he went to
Brahmaloka to invite Brahma to consecrate the temple.
He had to wait for nine yugas till Brahma finished
his meditation. The temple became buried in sand
in his absence. In the mean time a new dynasty ruled
in Utkala. Galamadhva, a king of that dynasty, detected
the presence of the temple buried under the sand.
When he got the sand removed a beautiful temple
was revealed. He was considering to install images
in the temple when Indradyumna with Lord Brahma
appeared before him. There was a tussle between
Galamadhava and Indradyumna over the ownership of
the temple. However, Lord Brahma decided in favour
of Indradyumna and asked Raja to install deities
in the temple.
The raja was at loss where to find the deities.
At night God told him in dream that He would be
floating in the sea in form of log of wood. Then
he employed thousands carpenters to make deities
but they failed, as their instrument did not work
against the wood. At last an old carpenter came
and said he would make images in 21 days on the
condition that he would remain completely shut up
inside the temple for the period Raja consented,
But on the expiry of two weeks the Queen became
anxious since no sound came out of the temple. She
thought that the carpenter was dead. She pressed
the king to open the door. The king yielded and
opened the door. He found three images in unfinished
state. The Raja was sorry but the God told him that
he wanted to assume that Bauddha form in Kali age.
The King did discover the log of wood. Vishnu and
Vishwakarma appeared in the form of artistes and
prepared images of Krishna, Balarama and Subhadra
from the tree. The wooden images being worshipped
are renewed during special occasions.Interestingly,
the Rig Veda refers to Purushottama in the form
of a wooden image, prepared from a log of wood floating
on the ocean. Puri is also referred to in the Bhrama
purana.
History
The celebrated Temple of Lord Jagannath now existent
at Puri was constructed by Raja Ananta Varman Chodaganga
Dev in 12th century A.D. The wooden images of Jagannath
Balabhadra and Subhadra were installed in that temple.
The management of the temple continued under the
Hindu rulers till 1558, when the State of Orissa
was conquered by the Afghan Nawab of Bengal and
the temple was attacked by the Afgan General ‘Kalapahad’.
Then, an independent Khurda kingdom was established
by Ramachandra Deb, who assumed the management of
the temple. He consecrated the temple and reinstalled
the deities. Raja Mansingh, a General of the Mughal
King Akbar, defeated the Afghans and annexed Orissa
in to the Mughal dominion. It remained under the
Mughals till 1751 A.D. Till 1760, the temple continued
under the Khurda Raja, who was paying tribute to
Mughals and Marhattas. Marhattas took up direct
management of the temple till 1803. The Britishers
annexed Orissa into British empire in 1803 and allowed
Puri Raja to manage the temple. The position continued
till 1947.
Architecture
This temple is said to have the largest kitchen
in the world, and feeds thousands of devotees daily.
The kitchen can prepare food for 100,000 people
on a festival day and 25,000 is not unusual on a
normal day. There are thirty-six traditional communities
(Chatisha Niyaga) who render a specific hereditary
service to the deities. The temple has as many as
6,000 priests. There is a wheel on top of the Jagannath
Temple made of an alloy of eight metals (asta-dhatu).
It is called the Nila Chakra (Blue Wheel), and is
3.5m (11 ft 8 in) high with a circumference of about
11m (36 ft). Every day, a different flag is tied
to a mast attached to the Nila Chakra. Every Ekadasi,
a lamp is lit on top of the temple near the wheel.There
are four gates: the eastern Singhadwara (Lion Gate),
the southern Ashwadwara (Horse Gate), the western
Vyaghradwara (Tiger Gate), and the northern Hastidwara
(Elephant Gate). There is a carving of each form
by the entrance of each gate. The Lion Gate, which
is the main gate, is located on Grand Road. Thirty
different smaller temples surround the main temple.
The Narasimha Temple, adjacent to the western side
of the Mukti-mandapa, is said to have been constructed
before the present temple.
The architecture of the temple follows the pattern
of many Orissan temples of the classical period.
The main shikhara, or tower, rises above the inner
sanctum where the deities reside. Subsidiary shikharas
rise above ante-halls. The temple complex is surrounded
by a wall, on each side of which (that is, east,
south, west, north) is a gopura or gate, over which
rises a pyramid-shaped roof. The Jagannath temple
is one of the largest in Orissa. The temple complex
covers several square blocks and contains dozens
of structures, including a mammoth kitchen. Truly,
the Jagannath temple at Puri is an architectural
and cultural wonder. The main temple structure is
65m (214 feet) high and is built on elevated ground,
making it look more imposing. The temple complex
comprises an area of 10.7 acres and is enclosed
by two rectangular walls. The outer enclosure is
called Meghanada Prachira, 200m (665 ft) by 192m
(640 ft). The walls are 6m (20 feet) high. The inner
wall is called Kurmabedha, 126m (420 ft) by 95m
(315 ft). The walls were built during the 15th or
16th century.
Main Attraction
A famous festival related to the Jagannath temple
is the ratha yatra, or chariot festival, which occurs
yearly in June or July. During the Rath Yatra Festival,
the images of Jagannatha, Balabhadra and Subhadra
are placed in mammoth chariots or 'raths', the largest
of which is 14 meters (46 feet) high and has 16
wheels, each more than two meters (seven feet) in
diameter, which are then drawn along Grand Road
to the Gundecha temple, a few kilometers away. After
they have stayed in that temple for seven days,
the deities again ride the chariots back to their
home temple.. This journey commemorates that of
Lord Krishna from Gokul to Mathura.
Maha Prasada
Maha-prasada is pure vegetarian spiritual food offered
to Lord Jagannath. Just by eating this maha-prasada
one makes great spiritual advancement. Everyday,
fifty-six varieties of prasada are offered to Lord
Jagannath. The preparations are made traditionally
and no onion, garlic, chillies or many varieties
of vegetables (considered alien) are not used. These
Offerings after being made to Lord Jagannath are
in turn again offered to Goddess Bimala Devi in
the temple precincts and then becomes Mahaprasadam.
This Mahaprasadam is considered very efficacious
for spiritual liberation. One should respectfully
honor the Mahaprasadam sitting on the floor. This
Mahaprasadam is available daily after 3 -5 pm. This
is sold outside the sanctorum area but within the
temple premises. TheMahaprasadam remains hot for
a long time as it is kept in the same earthen pots
which are used to cook it. Most probabaly it may
be rice, make it clear how much you want while ordering.
Even if you say it ten times, you will probably
be brought way too much the first time. Normally,
maha-prasada means a few small pots of sabji (vegetables),
dhal, and a pot of rice ten times the size of the
small sabji pots. |
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