The Temple
On the eastern shore at Puri stands the temple of Jagannath — 'Lord of the Universe' — a form of Krishna, worshipped with his elder brother Balabhadra and sister Subhadra. One of the four holy Char Dham sites, the present great temple was built in the 12th century by King Anantavarman Chodaganga Deva of the Eastern Ganga dynasty. The deities here are unique in all of India — carved of sacred neem wood, with large round eyes full of love, and ceremonially renewed in a rare ritual held roughly every twelve to nineteen years.
The Rath Yatra
Puri's Rath Yatra (chariot festival) is one of the biggest religious gatherings on earth. Every year, the three deities come out of the temple — a rare thing in itself — and ride three colossal wooden chariots, newly built each year, pulled by lakhs of devotees to the Gundicha temple. The belief is beautiful: the Lord of the Universe leaves his sanctum to meet everyone, with no gates between him and his people. The English word 'juggernaut' — an unstoppable force — was born from these mighty chariots.
Good to Know
The temple kitchen is counted among the largest in the world, cooking the famous Mahaprasad in earthen pots stacked over wood fires — tradition says it has never fallen short, however large the crowd. The flag atop the temple is changed every day by priests who climb the high shikhara by hand — a practice generations old.
