Lord! Stuck on grand road
PURI: Inexplicable delay marked the Rath Yatra as none of the three chariots could even be pulled half the distance from Shree Jagannath Temple en route to Gundicha Temple and chaos reigned supreme at the annual festival of the holy Trinity on Friday.
Erratic movement of Lord Balabhadra's Taladhwaja and an uncontrollable crowd triggered a chain of events in which Nandighosha, Lord Jagannath's chariot which is the last to be pulled, could barely move a few metres and had to halt for the night along Badadanda (Grand Road) at around 7.45 pm. By the end of the day, which was well into the evening, Taladhwaja was stationed at Balgandi Chhak, while Devi Subhadra's Darpadalana had to be stopped at Marichikot.
Lord Jagannath's chariot was pulled for just about 10 metres in a ritualistic manner and halted close to Singhadwara (Lions' Gate) of Shree Jagannath temple. Temple chief administrator Arabinda Padhee informed that pulling of the three chariots will resume at 9.30 am on Saturday.
Law Minister Prithviraj Harichandan said despite some delay in the beginning, rituals were completed on time. 'Everything happens as per the Lord's wish. It is the Lord's blessing that this year's Rath Yatra was incident-free,' the minister said. As per the schedule, 'pahandi' or ushering in of the deities was to start by 9.30 am and end at 11.30 am.
However, the 'dhadi pahandi' of the Trinity began nearly two hours late and after Shankaracharya Swami Nishchalananda Saraswati offered his prayers to the deities atop their chariots, 'Chhera Pahanra' ritual by Puri King Dibyasingha Deb started at around 2.30 pm.
By 3.30 pm, the 'charamala' of the three chariots were removed one by one and wooden horses were fixed. While temple administration was at loss to clarify on what led to the delay in pulling of Taladhwaja, overcrowding and uncontrolled pulling of the chariot was witnessed right from the beginning.
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