PuriOne hour ago
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On the day of Rath Yatra, an average crowd of 10 lakh devotees reach here. In 2015, this number had reached 15 lakh. Now this journey will be for the first time after the Corona period.
Today the Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath will be taken out in Puri. Lord Jagannath along with elder brother Balabhadra and sister Subhadra will go on a city tour to give darshan to the devotees. After two years due to the corona epidemic, common devotees have also been allowed to participate in the Rath Yatra.
Madhav Chandra Poojapanda, a member of the Shree Jagannath Temple Management Committee in Puri, Odisha, told that in the morning a garland each from the idols of Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra was picked up from the temple and placed on their chariots. After this the chariot was pulled towards the south and brought near the temple. About one lakh devotees took part in this tradition.
Lord Jagannath came out of the temple with elder brother and sister at 7 am on Friday. The chariot will start running at 1:30 pm. PM Modi has congratulated the Rath Yatra. He said- We pray to Lord Jagannath for his continued blessings. May we all be blessed with good health and happiness.
Rath Yatra is such a community religious festival, in which there is no worship in homes, no fasting is observed. While many people keep fast on this day.
God sets out on a 10-day journey
This journey starts from the second day of Shukla Paksha of Ashadh month. Starting from Puri temple, the chariots of Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra ji and Subhadra ji reach Gundicha temple. Here Lord Jagannath ji, Balabhadra ji and Subhadra ji stay till Ashadh Shukla Dashami. After this they return to their main temple.
Every year three chariots are made before the start of the yatra. Wood is used in its construction. A total of 865 wooden balls are used for the construction of the three chariots.
Artwork of a record 125 sand chariots made on sand
Renowned sand artist Sudarshan Patnaik drew the shape of a temple on sand in Puri on the eve of Jagannath Rath Yatra. Sudarshan made 125 sand chariots and a sand idol of Lord Jagannath. He said that this will be our new world record. During this, slogans were also written on the sand to stop the use of single-use plastic.
Sand artist Sudarshan Patnaik made people aware about the use of single use plastic before Jagannath Rath Yatra in Puri, Odisha.
Sudarshan Patnaik built 125 sand chariots and sand idol of Lord Jagannath at Puri beach.