All set for deities’ Suna Besha ritual

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Puri: The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) has made all arrangements for the Suna Besha (golden attire) ritual of Srimandir deities on their respective chariots Monday.
As per Srimandir tradition, Lord Jagannath and his siblings Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra are adorned with gold ornaments on their respective chariots near the Lions’ Gate, a day after the Bahuda Yatra or return car festival.
According to researchers, the tradition of Suna Besha or Badatadhau Besha of the deities dates back to the reign of Gajapati king Kapilendra Dev. Servitors usually adorn the deities with at least 138 varieties of ornaments including golden legs, hands, headgears and earrings. Apart from that, Lord Jagannath and Lord Balabhadra will be decorated with their respective weapons—Chakra (wheel) and Hala Musala (plough), said a researcher.
Customarily, the Suna Besha ritual of the Srimandir Trinity is performed five times in a year. The deities are adorned with gold ornaments four times at the sanctum sanctorum while the ritual is performed once on their respective chariots.
Sources in the SJTA claimed that servitors would collect the required ornaments for Suna Besha from Ratna Bhandar, the temple treasury, in the morning. A few goldsmiths would wash the ornaments amid tight security.
“The deities would be decorated with the ornaments between 5 pm and 6.30 pm after the completion of all routine rituals on their respective chariots. Devotees can witness the golden attire till 10 pm,” said an official of SJTA.
Elaborating on the security preparation for Suna Besha, Inspector General of Police (central) Soumendra Priyadarshi said they would erect barricades from the Lions’ Gate to Market Square on the Grand Road to facilitate a smooth darshan for the devotees. “We will install additional lights and CCTVs on the Grand Road to ensure security for the devotees,” said the IGP.
Meanwhile, the SJTA held discussions with the servitors and sought their cooperation for the golden attire ritual. According to sources, the district administration would deploy adequate number of police personnel in plain clothes to prevent snatching cases on the Grand Road.
“One platoon of armed police personnel will be deployed for the safe transportation of ornaments to chariots from Srimandir. Moreover, armed security personnel will be placed around each chariot to prevent any untoward incident. We will take all possible steps to manage traffic in the city,” said a senior police officer.