Puri: Puri is set for the annual Snana Yatra, or ceremonial bathing festival of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra Monday, marking the beginning of the final phase of rituals leading to the world-famous Rath Yatra.
Thousands of devotees from across the country have arrived in the pilgrim town to witness the festival, during which the sibling deities will be brought out of the sanctum sanctorum in the traditional Pahandi procession to the Snana Mandap, where they will receive a ceremonial bath with 108 pitchers of sanctified water drawn from the temple’s sacred well.
Temple authorities have finalised elaborate arrangements to ensure the timely conduct of rituals and smooth movement of devotees. Security has been tightened across the town, with police deploying additional personnel, surveillance systems and crowd-management measures in anticipation of large gatherings.
Following the ritual bath, Lord Jagannath and Lord Balabhadra will be adorned in the traditional Hati Besha (elephant attire), while Goddess Subhadra will receive a special floral decoration. The unique attire commemorates a centuries-old temple tradition associated with Lord Ganesha.
After the Snana Yatra, the deities will remain out of public view during the 15-day Anasara period, as temple tradition holds that they fall ill after the ceremonial bath. During this time, devotees worship symbolic representations of the deities until they reappear for Netrotsav, or the ceremonial reopening of their eyes, on the eve of the Rath Yatra.
Snana Yatra, observed on the full moon day of the Hindu month of Jyeshtha, is the only occasion each year when the deities are publicly bathed. The festival is regarded as one of the most significant events in Jagannath culture and serves as the spiritual prelude to the annual Rath Yatra, when the deities travel in grand wooden chariots to the Gundicha Temple.
