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PURI: Devasnanapurnima (the royal bath of deities) is considered the earliest ritual of Srimandir, according to scriptures. The texts mention that bathing was the first ritual that was performed by King Indradyumna after the wooden idols were carved out. The ritual was undertaken at the earliest auspicious moment for which the royal bath is called Adya Leela.
Several texts mention the ritual as ‘Manchasnana’ (bath on wooden pendal) as there was no concrete pendal for the ritual unlike now. Wooden frames were used for construction of the pendal.
According to scriptures, 108 golden pitchers of sanctified water were used during the first bath of the deities and the practices being followed since then.
The texts mention that it was the full moon day of Jyestha month, as per Oriya almanac, when Lord Jagannath’s idol was installed at Srimandir for which the occasion is celebrated as Devasnanapurnima even today.
The ritual is also called ‘Patitapabana Leela’ as the deities appear in Snana Mandap for darshan of devotees, irrespective of their caste, creed and colour. The message the ritual sends to the human race is to elevate the self from a state of oppression and enjoy the bliss of divine consciousness. The idols appear in Gajanana Besha (elephant attire) after the bath.
Research officer of Sri Jagannath Sanskrit University Surendra Mishra said, “The ritual of royal bath of the deities is an enrichment of five traditions – Vedic, Tantric, mythological, historic and belief system.”
According to Vedic tradition, hymns are chanted while sanctifying the water while 13 elements are put in the water in Tantric traditions.
It is learnt that 108 pitchers of water were collected from the well at Debajana Marga of the Srimandir a day before the Snanapurnima. The well known as ‘Suna Kua’ otherwise remains unused for the entire year and has a cover on its opening.
The elements that are mixed with the water are: Astabandha, Krushna-Aguru, Ushira, Gorachana, Debadaru, Mutha, Haritala, Bahada, Aamalaki, Sanchistha, Tamraparni, Semaparni and Lodhi. The water is sanctified with the chanting of hymns before it is poured on the idols.
Gajanana Besha ritual takes place once the bathing ritual is completed. It is believed that having a darshan of Lord Jagannath in Gajanana Besha helps one get rid of all kinds of obstacles.
One version of history says Lord Ganesha was worshipped when King Cholagangadev faced many hindrances while building the temple in 1128. The idol of Lord Ganesha that was worshipped by Cholagangadev is now being worshipped as Chara Ganesha at the temple.
According to another version which has mention about the Kanchi Abhiyan of Gajapati Purushottam Dev in which he was defeated by Shallwa Narasingha. On the king’s return to Srikhetra, a passerby, Saikatachari, who is a Vaishnab, attributed the defeat to Lord Ganapati’s support to Shallwa Narasingha in the battle. He also advised Purushottam Dev to include Lord Jagannath in his troop to emerge victorious. This happened when the Gajapati followed the advice of Saikatachari and brought the idol of Ganapati from Kanchi and installed it at the western gate of the temple.
According to a third version, Sriganapati Bhatt, a worshipper of Lord Ganesha from Bhattipuram, had visited Srikhetra long ago. But he was unhappy when he did not find Ganapati at the pendal during Snanapurnima and returned without having darshan. However, he was asked by the Lord in a dream to visit the pendal again following which he visited the spot to see the Lord’s Haridraganapati Besha.