Jagannath Temple (Orissa)

Lord Jagannath, the symbol of universal love
and brotherhood is worshipped in the Temple
along with Balabhadra, Subhadra, Sudarshan,
Madhaba, Sridevi and Bhudevi.

Jagannath Temple (Orissa) Hindu Temples

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.

Legendary account as found in the Skanda-Purana, Brahma Purana and other Puranas state that Lord Jagannath was originally worshipped as Neela madhab by a saver king (tribal chief) named Viswavasu. Having heard about the Deity, King Indradyumna sent a brahmin priest, Vidyapati to locate the Deity, who was worshipped secretely in a dense forest by Viswavasu. Vidyapati tried his best but could not locate the place. But at last he managed to marry Viswavasu's daughter Lalita. At repeated request of Vidyapati, Viswavasu took his son-in-law blindfolded to a cave where Neelamadhab was worshipped. Vidyapati was very intelligent. He dropped mustard seeds on the way. The seeds germinated after a few days, which enabled him to find out the cave later on. On hearing from him, King Indradyumna proceeded immediately to Odra desha (Orissa) on a pilrgimage to see and worship the Deity. The king was disappointed at the sudden disappearance of the Deity. The Deity was hidden in sand. The king was determined not to return without having darshan of the Deity and observed fast unto death at Mount Neela, when a celestial voice cried 'thou shalt see him'. Afterwards the king performed a horse sacrifice and built a magnificent temple for Vishnu. Narasinmha Murti brought by Narada was installed in the temple. During sleep, the king had a vision of Lord Jagannath. Also anastral voice directed him to receive the fragrant tree on the seashore and make idols out of it. Accordingly the king got Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra, Subhadra and Chakra Sudarshan made and installed them in the temple.

The Deities
Lord Jagannath, the symbol of universal love and brotherhood is worshipped in the Temple along with Balabhadra, Subhadra, Sudarshan, Madhaba, Sridevi and Bhudevi on the Ratnabedi or the bejewelled platform. The Deities, Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra, Subhadra and Chakra Sudarshan are made of margosa wood. When one lunar month of Ashadha is followed by another lunar month of Aashadha, the deities change their bodies during such a leap month. This is known as Navakalebar or New Body Ceremony. Last four new body ceremonies of the Lords were celebrated in the year 1950, 1969, 1977 and 1996. On such occasions, Puri witnesses the largest crowd in her fold.

Location
The town of Puri is situated along the seashore(i.e. the Bay of Bengal) in the State of Orissa.

Air
State Capital Bhubaneswar is the nearest Airport otherwise known as " Biju Pattnaik Airport". The distance is 65 Kms. from Puri and can be covered in an hour by car. Indian Airlines operates flights from Delhi, Calcutta, Visakhapatna, Hyderabad, Raipur, Mumbai and Chennai.

Rail
Being a terminus on the SouthEastern Railway, Puri is directly linked with Delhi, Calcutta, Ahmadabad, Patna, Baidyanath Dham and Tirupati by train. Besides one can go to Khurda Road junction to the state capital Bhubaneswar to rail his way to Hyderabad, Chennai and Mumbai.

Road
Only 60 Kms. away from Bhubaneswar by State Highway No-8, Puri has got a 35 Kms. Marine drive road way to Konark. The State capital is situated on both sides of Calcutta - Chennai National Highway No-5.

<< List Of Hindu Temples

Other links

temples