Puri's Rath Yatra has a surprising connection to English word 'juggernaut', the unstoppable force. Check its origin

Time of India

4 hours ago

As fans around the world debate the might of political juggernauts or cheer on sports juggernauts, few stop to wonder where this powerful term actually comes from. Its roots, surprisingly, lie in the spiritual soil of India — specifically, in the grand
Rath Yatra
of Puri, Odisha. A term now synonymous with overwhelming force and unstoppable momentum once simply described a wooden chariot bearing a god across a festive avenue.
From Sacred Wheels to Linguistic Force
The word 'juggernaut,' as explained by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, traces back to early 14th-century accounts from a Franciscan missionary named Friar Odoric. Upon witnessing the majestic Rath Yatra — the annual procession of
Lord Jagannath
(a form of Vishnu), along with his siblings Balabhadra and Subhadra — Odoric described an awe-inspiring scene of massive wooden chariots thundering through the streets, pulled by thousands of devoted worshippers.
What caught European imagination, however, was a dramatic and likely exaggerated detail: that some devotees threw themselves under the chariot wheels as acts of religious sacrifice. Whether truth or myth, this tale travelled far and wide, embedding itself in colonial lore. To British ears, these divine vehicles seemed so massive and indomitable that they gave birth to a new English word — juggernaut, from 'Jagannath,' the deity whose name literally means 'Lord of the Universe.'
The Festival That Moves the World
The
Jagannath Rath Yatra
isn't just a visual spectacle — it's a spiritual and cultural epic, celebrated annually in Puri during the bright half of the lunar month of Ashadh (June–July). Three ornately carved wooden chariots, resembling temples on wheels, carry the divine siblings from the Jagannath Temple to the Gundicha Temple. Devotees from all over the world flood the city to pull the ropes of these gigantic structures — a gesture of devotion said to grant spiritual merit.
After a week-long stay, the deities return to their home temple in a mirrored procession called the Bahuda Yatra, stopping at their Aunt's house on the way for offerings of poda pitha — a sweet pancake known to be Lord Jagannath's favourite.
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It was this very momentum — chariots that could not be stopped and devotees who refused to let go — that left such a deep impression on colonial observers. Over time, 'juggernaut' entered English to describe not just literal mass but metaphorical power — movements, machines, or ideologies that crush anything in their path.
From Colonial Misreading to Cultural Legacy
British colonialists, perhaps lacking full understanding of the festival's nuance and spiritual depth, may have mistaken unrelenting devotion for chaos. But their linguistic legacy lives on. What they saw as a 'relentless force' has today become a word found in business headlines, movie scripts, and political analyses alike.
Yet for millions of Indians, the original juggernaut remains a symbol not of destruction, but of unity, faith, and celebration — a divine journey that brings people together across castes, communities, and continents.
Rath Yatra 2025: The Sacred Wheels Roll Again
Today, the ancient streets of Puri once again echo with chants, drumbeats, and the rumble of divine chariots as the world's oldest chariot festival—Jagannath Rath Yatra—unfolds in all its spiritual grandeur. Celebrated annually on the second day of the waxing moon (Dwitiya Tithi) in the lunar month of Ashadha, this auspicious event marks the ceremonial journey of Lord Jagannath, his brother Balabhadra, and sister Subhadra from their 12th-century shrine to the Gundicha Temple.
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Devotees, believed to number in the millions this year, have gathered from across the country to pull the three towering chariots—Nandighosh, Taladhwaja, and Darpadalan—along a 3-kilometre stretch. According to local legends, this journey commemorates the visit to the deities' maternal home, believed by many to be the birthplace of the sacred quartet known as Chaturddha Murti.
— JagannathaDhaam (@JagannathaDhaam)
The Real Juggernaut Rolls On
While the term has travelled far from its sacred roots, the annual Rath Yatra reminds us that words, like wheels, have a life of their own. What once described a deity on a chariot now powers modern metaphors across the globe — proof that language, like faith, often finds meaning in motion.
So the next time you hear of a 'tech juggernaut' or a 'sports juggernaut,' remember: it all began with a rath, three siblings, and a tide of unwavering devotion rolling through the streets of Odisha.