Jagannath Rath Yatra

The Jagannath Temple celebrates many festivals throughout the year. Arguably the grandest celebrations take place for the Nobo Koliboro. The Nobo Koliboro celebrates the rebirth of the Lord Jagannath, His transmigration from one body to another. This ritual takes place every 15-19 years. The Jyaistha (June-July) month with two full moons in the adhimasa year marks the auspicious time for the ritual.

The Bana Yaga yatra is the first festival of the year. Participants of the yatra re-enact Lord Jagannath’s arrival at Puri. The Gajapati ruler of Puri allocates roles to various actors. The roles of Vishwavasu (the tribal devotee of Nilamadhava), Bidyapati, the first Brahmin to lay eyes upon Lord Jagannath, the Lenka Sevak, the temple functionary in charge of writing and Vishwakarma, the architect and divine engineer of the universe are assumed by the men.

The main actors tie a special Khandua (a silk fabric woven using dyed threads) on their foreheads. This Khandua has verses from the Gita-Govinda hand woven on the cloth. They embark on a trek to Dasaphalla to seek out a tree from which the deity can be carved and which is deemed suitable to host the Bramha (soul) of the Lord.

En route, they stop at the Mangala Devi temple in Kakatpur and offer her gifts on behalf of the Lord. In return, they seek her blessings to find the tree. During their rest at the Devi Matha, it is said that the Vishwakarma Servitors dream about the location of the tree. Next morning, they seek out the Daru (tree). Upon finding the tree, the Lenka garlands it and installs the Sudarshana (the weapon of lord Vishnu) beneath it.