Sea of devotees at Rath Yatra celebrations
Ranchi: The historic Yatra celebrations at the Jagannath Temple in Dhurwa here commenced early on Friday morning with sacred rituals and a sea of devotees thronging the temple premises.
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Chants and sounds of conch shells rent the air as priests perform the "mangal aarti" at 4 am, marking the beginning of the 334th annual
dedicated to Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra.
By 5 am, the idols of the deities were open for darshan. As per schedule, darshan was halted at 2 pm, followed by the ceremonial placement of the deities on their respective chariots. Key rituals included offering prayers to the Sudarshan Chakra and the deities before the chariots were readied for the grand procession.
Several pilgrims, devotees and vendors from Bengal, Odisha and across Jharkhand arrived at the temple, transforming the area and its surroundings into a vibrant fairground. "I've come from Medinipur with wooden toys. This is our busiest time of the year," said Sukumar Das, a vendor.
Rows of stalls offered a typical rural mela charm — toys, bangles, sweet shops stalls, street food vendors selling chana-murhi, jalebi, litti-chokha.
Giant wheels and games for children also dotted the area. The local administration has arranged drinking water points, medical kiosks and temporary rest shelters for pilgrims who will continue to visit the temple till July 7 though Ghurti Rath Yatra is on July 6.
This year, over a thousand makeshift stalls have been set up and managed mostly by visiting traders and artisans. Tribal jewellery, cotton garments, clay idols, spiritual items, herbal remedies and even handmade household goods were being sold in these stalls.
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"We come here every year and stay for 10 days. This mela is our livelihood," said Meena Barla, a handicraft vendor from Simdega.
Nirmala Devi, a devotee from Ranchi said, "I come to the temple every year with my family. The energy here is divine. Watching the Lord being taken on the rath fills me with emotion." Between 2:30 pm and 4:30 pm, the devotees performed 'bhoj' and offered delicacies to Lord Jagannath's chariot, followed by the symbolic act of devotees sweeping the path.
The chariot procession began after 5 pm under the supervision of the Ranchi administration.
As per tradition, women were allowed to offer darshan on the rath between 6:00 pm and 6:45 pm before the chariot moved towards the Masi Badi temple. The evening concluded with the 108-lamp 'mangal aarti' at 8 pm. The procession will continue till July 7, culminating in the return of the deities with the 'Bahuda Yatra'.
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