With the completion of two-day-long Bahuda Yatra (Return journey of the lords), the famous ten-day-long Baripada Rath Yatra came to a close here on Tuesday.
While lord Jagannath began and completed his return journey on Monday itself, Devi Subhadra, who had covered just half the distance on Monday, completed the other half and came back to the temple on Tuesday only. lord Balabhadra, the last to come back to their permanent abode, on the other hand, began and completed his return journey by Tuesday evening.
While, on both the days, pulling of the chariots began at about 2.30 pm in the afternoon, these activities were brought to an end well before the sunset. While Subhadra’s Darpadalan was pulled by women devotees only, lord Jagannath’s Nandighosh and lord Balabhadra’s Taladhwaj were pulled by both men and women belonging to all sections of the people.
On Tuesday, Subhadra reached the Bada Deula at about 3 pm, commencing her half-done journey from near the Town Police Station and Balabhadra began his return journey from Mausi Badi at about 3.57 pm and arrived at his destination at about 5.16 pm. Afterwards, at about 5.20 pm, the ritual of lavish distribution of “Shraddha laddus” among devotees began which continued for almost half an hour.
The weather was fine and favourable on both the days and people in large numbers gathered here at the Bada Danda on this occasion.
Even devotees from the neighbouring districts of Keonjhar and Baleswar and the neighbouring States of Jharkhand and Bengal gathered to participate in the annual mass festival. Prominent among those who took part in the pulling of chariots include Assembly Deputy Speaker Sananda Marandi, Mayurbhanj Collector Vineet Bharadwaj, SP Avinash Kumar, Tourism Assistant Director Manoranjan Mohapatra, ADM Gangadhar Nayak and Baripada Sub-collector Mohammed Abdul Akhtar.
Barring a half an hour delay in pulling of Nandighosh on Monday due to breaking of a wheel of the chariot, the event passed off almost smoothly.
The threes deities of Banthia Jagannath Mandir, another famous Jagannath temple of Baripada and Mayurbhanj, also had their Bahuda Yatra here on Tuesday. The pulling of the chariot was done in the heart of the town in the forenoon itself. What was remarkable, the chariot, as usual, was pulled along by children (below 14) only, while the adults present there only kept encouraging them on the occasion.