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Page 1 of 3 More than six lakh devotees gathered in Puri to watch the giant rath of Lord Jagannath roll. The procession captured people’s faith and fervour.
As the wooden idol of Lord Jagannath slides down the sloping platform, the attendants rain blows on it, beat it with sticks and shower it with profanity. Their efforts to seat it on the chariot have come to naught and they are angry. Normally such a scenario would have been unthinkable. But then the day is special both for the Lord and the pilgrims. Today and for the next eight days, Lord Jagannath will descend from his pedestal and mingle with his devotees. There will be no barrier between him and his worshippers. The blows and the abuse are proof that the people are more than willing to accept him as one of their own. The eight days constitute the annual Rathyatra of Puri in Orissa, a centuries-old phenomenon that is the quintessential reiteration of faith and fantasy.
The pushing and shoving to seat Lord Jagannath on his chariot continues for hours. The god it seems is testing the perseverance of his devotees. The devotees in turn are not the ones to give up easily. They coax, cajole, they promise sweetmeats and other delicacies, when all this fails they call the Lord names, all the while the surging crowd chants, sings and dances.
Jagannath’s tantrums are holding up the procession, his brother Lord Balabhadra and sister Goddess Subhadra are already safely ensconced in their chariots. A sharp shower does little to dampen the enthusiasm of the faithful. Then just as everybody is beginning to despair, the Lord quietly goes up the platform and is settled in his chariot amidst loud cheers. The annual rath yatra begins on Asad shukla dwitiya or the second day of the bright fortnight in the month of Asad, which usually falls in June-July.
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