Deva Snana Purnima also known as ‘Snana Yatra’ is
an auspicious bathing festival for Lord Jagannath devotees. It is observed on
the ‘Purnima’ (full moon day) of the ‘Jyeshtha’ month in the traditional Hindu
calendar. Deva Snana Purnima is a significant ritual just prior to the world
renowned Rath Yatra of the Jagannath Temple, in Puri. During this ritualistic
bathing ceremony, the deities of the Jagannath Temple, namely, Lord Jagannath,
Devi Subhadra and Lord Balabhadra are worshipped with full devotion and
dedication. The ceremony is observed in a traditional way with full grandeur
and is also one of the most anticipated rituals of the Lord Jagannath Temple.
Some even observe this festival as the birthday of Lord Jagannath. Devotees
from different parts of the country come and witness this unique event.
Significance
of Deva Snana Purnima:
The festival of Deva Snana Purnima
holds immense religious significance for Lord Jagannath devotees. According the
Hindu legends, it is believed that during the ritualistic Snana Yatra, the
deities get fever and take 15 days solitary confinement. The idols appear for
public viewing, only after getting reenergized. As mentioned in the ‘Skanda
Purana’, King Indradyumna arranged this bathing ceremony for the first time,
after the deities were installed in the Jagannath Temple. The devotees of Lord
Jagannath believe that by merely getting the ‘darshan’ of their lord on the day
of Deva Snana Purnima, will free them from all their sins of present and past
lives. Thousands and thousands of devotees, visit the Puri Jagannath Temple for
this occasion, every year.
Rituals during Deva Snana Purnima:
- On the day of Jyeshtha Purnima, the idols
of Lord Jagannath, Devi Subhadra and Lord Balabhadra are taken put from
the ‘Ratnasimhasan’ of the Jagannath Puri Temple, early in the morning.
- The idols are escorted in a procession
that is witnessed by thousands of devotees, and brought to the ‘Snana
Bedi’ or the Bathing altar. This procession is called as ‘Pahandi’
procession that is bought alive with the sounds of chanting mantras and
beat of ghantas, drums, bugles and cymbals.
- The water used for bathing the deities is
taken from the well, present inside the Jagannath Temple. Prior to the
bathing ceremony, few puja and rituals are performed by the priests. A
total of 108 pitchers of herbal and aromatic water are used to bath the
three main deities of the Jagannath Temple.
- After the completion of the bathing
ceremony, the deities are then dressed up in ‘Sada Besha’. Later in the
afternoon, the idols of Lord Jagannath, Devi Subhadra and Lord Balabhadra
are dressed again as ‘Hathi Besha’ (as a form of Lord Ganesha). A special
Bhog is prepared as offering to the Lord on the day of Deva Snana Purnima.
Again in the evening, the deities appear for ‘Sahanamela’, to enable
public viewing.
- Later during the night, the three main
deities retire to the ‘Anasar’ House, located in the temple complex.
During the ‘Anasara’ period, the devotees cannot see their Gods. The idols
of Lord Jagannath, Devi Subhadra and Lord Balabhadra then appear for
public viewing only 15 days after, that is, the day just before the famous
Rath Yatra.
2017 Date : 9th
June.
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