India, July 27 -- Thousands of devotees on Sunday witnessed the 'Adhar Pana' ritual of the Rath Yatra, where sweet drink is offered to Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra and Lord Jagannath on the chariots here in front of the 12th-century temple. The sweet drink, after being offered to the deities on chariots in earthen pots, is broken, and it flows on the floor of the chariots for the subsidiary deities and spirits, believed to accompany the trinity - Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra and Lord Jagannath- during the annual Rath Yatra. Gajapati Maharaja Dibyasingha Deb, the titular king of Puri, in a recent interview, said that Lord Jagannath, as the nomenclature signifies, is not the God of human beings alone.
"He is the master of all things like animals, birds, trees, plants, living and disembodied souls. When human beings get his 'mahaprasad' all along the year, it is the only occasion during Rath Yatra when spirits and invisible souls also get their thirst quenched through these sweet drinks called 'adhar pana'," he explained. The ritual is conducted on all three chariots-Nandighosa (Lord Jagannath), Taladhwaja (Lord Balabhadra)and Darpadalana (Devi Subhadra)-after the completion of Suna Besha (golden attire) and on the 12thday of the Asadha Sukla Paksha. It is conducted outside the temple as invisible souls, as per the scriptures, could not enter the temple even though they do not have bodies, said Shree Jagannath culture researcher Bhaskar Mishra.
On Sunday, the 'Adhar Pana' ritual was held, during which pots filled with sweet water were offered to the sibling deities. "It is named as 'Adhar Pana' as the huge earthen pots touch the 'adhar' (lips) of the sibling deities. 'Pana' means sweet drinks," Mishra said, adding that the pots were later broken on the chariot and sweet drinks spills on the floor of the chariots. As per the tradition, water is brought from a well near 'Chhauni Matha'. Then Pana is prepared with milk cream, cheese, sugar, banana, camphor, nutmeg, black pepper and other spices, before being offered to the deities. Nine earthen pots filled with sweet water, three for each deity, are placed touching their lips. After the 'Adhar Pana' ritual, the idols continue to remain seated on their chariots, and they will be carried to the sanctum of the main temple through a special ritual called 'Niladri Bije' on July 27, concluding Lord Jagannath's annual Rath Yatra.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.