Odisha: Rath Yatra concludes as deities return to Srimandir in Niladri Bije

With the completion of the Niladri Bije ritual the twelvedaylong annual sojourn of Lord Jagannath Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra came to an end on Saturday This worldfamous Rathyatra was started on 20th June and the return car festival was held on 28th JuneThe main aspect of the Niladri Bije ritual is the heavenly love and affection between Lord Jagannath and His wife Goddess LaxmiThe Niladri Bije was not a smooth affair for Lord Jagannath Goddess Laxmi was annoyed as she was not allowed in Gundicha temple So she allowed Lord Balabhadra Goddess Subhadra and Lord Sudarshana to enter the temple but when Lord Jagannath tried to enter the temple she gave orders to her servitors to close the Jaya Vijaya gate of the SinghadwarGoddess Lakshmi was furious over Lord Jagannath not taking her along during the annual sojourn An exchange of words breaks out between the Devadasi women servitors representing Lakshmi and Badagrahi Daitas and other Daitapatis representing Lord JagannathLater Lord Jagannath assures Goddess Lakshmi that He will not repeat it again Thereafter Goddess Laxmi directs the opening of the JayaBijay doors for Him At last Goddess Lakshmi looks to the south and both exchange looks The Bhittarchha servitors untie the nuptial knot and offer Bandapana In order to pacify His better half Lord Jagannath offers Rasagolas to Goddess LaxmiOn 29th June Suna Bhesha or Rajrajeswari Bhesh was performed Niladri Bije follows the Adhara Pana ritual in which the deities were offered a special pana on their respective chariots On Friday the temple servitors offered the drink in long earthen pitchers to the Trinity after performing Sodosha Upachar PoojaThe pots were kept in such a way that they did not touch the lips of the deities Soon after the offering late in the evening the earthen pots were broken on the chariots spilling the entire drink on the platform These pots were broken to liberate the evil souls spirits and other invisible beings residing in the chariotsSaturday was the last day and Lord Jagannath offered Rasagulla to Goddess and she allowed him to enter the temple like a common manThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever