This note invites attention to some lesser-known rituals and practices in the Temple of Lord Jagannath in Puri. The Temple is popularly known as Badadeula (Big Temple). It is also called Srimandira, and some say that “Sri” here refers to goddess Lakshmi. The note is about the significance of these rituals and practices.
Goddess Lakshmi’s
Jealousy (about a certain ritual in the Jagannath Temple)
There are many Lakshmi-centred texts in Odia:
“Sudasa Brata katha”, “Manabasa Katha”, “Dhana Manikia Katha”,
“Shyamadei Bratakatha”, Lakshmi Purana, “Nityani Gurubara Katha”, “Laksmi
Narayana Kali”, and perhaps more. In the last three, Sri Jagannath figures. Lakshmi
Purana and “Laksmi Narayana Kali” are narratives of conflict. Lakshmi
Purana is about space. The goddess demands her space within her family and
successfully fights for it. “Laksmi Narayana Kali” is the wife’s protest
against the indifference and neglect of her spouse, Mahaprabhu Jagannath. “Nityani
Gurubara Katha” is about her caring nature. She is the caring goddess in the
story of her elder sister, Alakshmi, in Kartika
Purana. In Sarala Mahabharata, goddess Parvati and goddess Lakshmi
quarrel about whose spouse is greater. But in none of the texts mentioned is Lakshmi
jealous, not even in Srimad
Bhagavata.
In this context, the
following practice in the Temple is interesting. It is about Lakshmi’s jealousy:
Every morning, Lord Jagannath’s adhara mala of the bada sinhara besha
(“besha”, i.e., dress) of the previous night is sent to goddess Lakshmi (in the
Lakshmi temple in the Jagannath Temple compound). But before it is given to
her, every tulasi (tulasi leaf) is taken out of it. Lakshmi is jealous
of Tulasi. The relationship between Lord Vishnu and Tulasi is part of the
episode of Jalandhara's killing. Lord Vishnu violated the virtuous Vrinda,
Jalandhara's wife and his ardent devotee, who self-immolated, knowing that she
had lost her chastity. Lord Vishnu showered favours on his devotee. She was
reborn as the plant “Tulasi”. The Supreme god would wear the leaf on his head, and
the tulasi leaf would be indispensable for his worship. In popular
belief, Tulasi is his spouse.
Every night in the last besha (badasinghara besha),
in which the Deities have shayana (sleep), Lord Jagannath wears “nakha
(nail) tulasi”. On each leaf, a bit of Jayadev’s Gita Govinda is
written in sandalwood paste. Incidentally, for many months, in the same besha,
the Deities wear clothes on which slokas from Gita Govinda are stitched.
In Lakshmi’s eyes, Tulasi is her spouse’s other woman. This is the reason behind
the ritual of removing tulsi leaves when Lord Jagannath’s garland is offered to
goddess Lakshmi.
Lord Jagannath wears tulsi garlands in every besha
during the day, the exception being the Abakasa besha (Snana besha),
and sometimes they are purely of tulsi leaves with no flowers and are long, so they
touch the “Ratnasimhasana”, the mandapa on which he sits. On one side of
him is the goddess Shridevi, a form of the goddess Lakshmi( Bhudevi on the
other). The tulsi leaves touch her, but that is acceptable. Now, it conflicts
with the removal of tulasi leaves from Lord Jaganath’s garland before it
is offered to goddess Lakshmi. But the ritual system in the Temple does not
view it as a contradiction. After all, Shridevi doesn’t wear tulasi. The
“no-tulasi restriction” applies to the goddess, worshipped as goddess
Lakshmi, in her temple.
Interestingly, it applies to Lord Jagannath himself during a
certain period. He (and Lord Balabhadra, Goddess Subhadra, and Lord Sudarshana)
does not wear tulasi during the first ten days of the fifteen-day Anasara
period. Neither is Tulasithere on the Ratnasimhasana used in any ritual,
including the food offering to him, during this period. Now, this is very atypical
of the worship of Lord Vishnu. Incidentally, during the Anasara period,
goddess Sridevi (Bhudevi, too) is not with Jagannath. The tulasi-restriction,
even when Sridevi is not on the Ratnasimhasana, raises questions about conceptualizing
Lord Jagannath as a form of Lord Vishnu.
Rukmini’s (treated as a form of Lakshmi for at least one
ritual in the Temple) uneasiness with the gopis of Srimad Bhagavata has
no impact on the ritual system. This may be surprising because Krishna is
identified with Jagannath by all sects of Vaishnavas. Many Krishna-based rituals are
part of the rituals in the Jagannath Temple. This fact could lead to meaningful
explorations in the cultural history of Odisha with respect to the
Radha-centric Vaishnavism. Incidentally, the observance of “Radhastami” in the
Temple involves goddess Lakshmi, not Radha. Lord Madanamohana, the
representative deity for Lord Jagannath, is not involved in this observance.
Lakshmi in the Rai Damodara
Besha and Puja (the local tradition resisting the “great” tradition)
In a local tale, goddess Lakshmi shares her spouse, Lord Jagannath,
with his newly married wife, Rai. Some consider Rai a colloquial term for “Radha”.
They call the besha, “Radha Damodara besha”. This shows the power of the great tradition.
The great tradition assimilates the small tradition. In the local story, Rai is
a servitor’s daughter whom Lord Jagannath marries as a favour to his devotee. He
then advises her to please his spouse, Lakshmi, and he tells her that when pleased
with her, she would offer her a boon; she must ask her to give him to her.
Things happened precisely that way, and the shocked but promise-bound Lakshmi
tells her that for a month, including the first 25 days in the holy month of
Kartika, she would receive worship with Lord Jagannath, but should then leave him
for her. In the holy month of Kartika, Jagannath specially dresses for Rai –
this is called the “Rai-Damodara besha” by those who respect the local
tradition - during the days she receives worship with Him.
Like the story of Dasia Bauri Lord (Jagannath receiving his
offerings directly, without the involvement of a priest), of Salabega (Lord Jagannath
waiting for him in his ratha), of Balarama Dasa (rathas would not move until
Das returns to the Ratha yatra), then Manika Gauduni, who fed him and his elder
brother with curd, and the girl who sang songs from Gita Govinda in the
brinjal field at night, and many others of this kind, Rai Damodara is a local
story. Such stories, we might suggest, “de-classicalize” the Jagannatha myths
and throw light on the de-classicalization process of Jagannath worship. (The
most recent example of this process involves the non-touching of the Deities.)
Jagannath’s origins are unknown. He, the relevant narratives say,
was worshipped by the tribals. We consider it the most persuasive account, but
it requires details. For instance, in which tribal language is there the word
“Jagannath”? He must have been “Brahminized” or “Hinduized”, and surely only
then did he come to be known as “Jagannath”. Many religions and sects have tried
to appropriate Him. Details are out of place here. He was identified as Lord Vishnu.
Thus, the stories of Lord Vishnu and his Avataras (such as Vamana,
Krishna, and Rama) became His stories. He had none of His own, until these
local stories, mentioned above, came up: thus, Lord Jagannath (as Jagannath)
married Rai, not (as) Krishna or Vishnu. This is important because it sheds
light on the process of “classicalization” (the Sanatana dharma – centric great
tradition assimilating him) and “de-classicalization” (through local tales
forming part of the repertoire of his stories) of Lord Jagannath. The story of
Rai can also be viewed as the local tradition resisting the great
tradition.
The Driving Out and the
Invoking of a Spirit
During the Ratha Yatra, when the Deities return to Sri
Mandira after a week’s stay in a small temple called “Gundicha Ghara”, the
temple is guarded by a spirit, popularly known as “Babana Bhuta (ghost named
Babana)”. The day before Ratha Yatra, the followers of the greatly revered Sri
Chaitanya voluntarily clean the Gundicha Ghara premises, a seva
(devotional service) initiated by Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu about five hundred
years ago. Knowing that the Deities are
coming, so goes the legend, the Bhuta leaves the Gundicha Ghara. And as soon as
the Deities leave, the Bhuta returns to keep watch over the temple. This
reflects the popular understanding of the ritual of invoking Lord Bhairabha (Bhairava)
by a mantra, after the Deities leave. He is the caretaker, as Lord Lokanath is
the caretaker of the treasury in the Bada Deula. Unlike the Babana Bhuta of Sarala Mahabharata, this bhuta has not
figured in Odia literature, written or oral. Unlike Sarala’s bhuta, which is a
malignant spirit, this is not a bhuta; despite being called as such, he is
really Lord Bhairava. If this is correct, then the caretaker of both temples of
Jagannath (Gundicha Ghara and the Great Temple) is the same, and for either,
there is no story. Ordinary ghosts have stories associated with them (of
revenge, protection, terror, etc.) in popular imagination; on the other hand, Lord
Shiva’s ghosts have no stories of either revenge or attachment that connect
them with the world or the mortals.
Agyanmala
Agyanmala (a flower garland that symbolizes Mahaprabhu Jagannath’s permission) is associated
with every ritual in which a deity, who represents him, is involved. For
instance, after receiving the agyanmala from Lord Jagannath, the
representative deities go for the Chandan yatra. After receiving agyanmala
from Lord Jagannath, goddess Lakshmi breaks a part of his ratha. When the
Nabakalebara of the Deities is to take place, the process starts with agyanmala
from the Deities. The agyanmala ritual suggests a concept of Lord Jagannath:
everything happens as per his wish, including his own renewal (Nabakalebara).
Sridevi (a form of goddess Lakshmi) receives agyanmala from Lord Jagannath's
left arm and Madana Mohana (Krishna) from the right arm for the “Rukmini harana
(kidnapping of Rukmini)” ritual. This might be an expression of the concept
that Lord Jagannath is both male and female. Some other rituals express it more
explicitly. The day before Krishna’s birth, Lord Jagannath is the pregnant
mother. He is offered a special bhoga, containing a sour preparation, as the
pregnant mother, and the following day, he is the newborn Krishna. The same
ritual takes place for the birth of Lord Vamana and Lord Ram also. Thus, he is
the one who gives birth and also the one who takes birth. This, one might
suggest, is implemented in the form of the ritual, Sri Krishna’s declaration in
Srimad Bhagavad Gita that he, the Lord, is the father and the mother and the
grandfather of the universe (Chapter 9, slokas 16 -17).
The Anasara Rituals
(the non-Brahminical features in Jagannath worship)
The Daita servitors, the non-bramins, participate in the Anasara
rituals. During the fifteen-day-long Anasara period, the Deities stay in
an enclosed area in the Temple, and apart from Daita sevakas and Patimohapatra
sevaka, no one can enter that enclosed space. The Deities are supposed to be
suffering from fever, such is the leela (divine play), and only these
servitors perform service to the Deities. In addition to Anasara and Ratha
Yatra, the Daita servitors perform seva in some other rituals in Sri Mandira. When
the Daita servitors serve the Deities, Sridevi and Bhudevi are not there with
the Deities. Now, the rituals stop when Lord Sudarshana leaves the Ratnasinhasana
(the mandapa on which the Deities are seated in the garva griha or
sanctum sanctorum) for a short period, but this does not happen when Sridevi
and Bhudevi are not there on the Ratnasinhasana. This shows how (loosely) the
goddesses connect to the Deities. Unlike Sudarshana, they are not integral to
the concept of Jagannath. In contrast, goddess Sridevi (or Lakshmi) is
integrally connected to Lord Vishnu. The question that arises here, as in the
case of the tulasi-restriction, mentioned above, is the nature of the relation
between Jagannath and Vishnu. There is another question: Is it possible that Sridevi
is a later incorporation into the conceptual and ritual systems in the worship
of Lord Jagannath?
There is an important ritual that reflects how rituals of different
sects co-exist harmoniously. Goddess Bimala is associated with both the tantric
and the Vaishnavite sects. Prsasad offered to Jagannath becomes “Mahaprasad (literally,
“great food”)” only after it is offered to the goddess. This might be taken to
mean that, despite being a form of Shakti (Parvati), she is a Vaishnavi. This
note says nothing about how this happened. Now, on three nights (Mahasaptami to
Mahanavami), she is offered non-vegetarian food (fish). That’s a tantric ritual.
It conflicts with Vaishnavite belief (Vaishnavites here refer to devotees of
Lord Vishnu). This conflict is resolved in the following ritual.
On those days, Jagannath’s pahuda (sleeping) rituals take
place much earlier than usual. Around midnight, the non-veg food is offered to
the goddess. It is brought into the Temple surreptitiously. We skip the details
of how it is done when the Temple is closed, once the Pahuda rituals are over.
There are other things as well, which we skip. The following morning, before
the Temple opens, the entire floor area of the Temple compound is sprinkled
with limestone water, which, in ritual terms, is purifying. Then, Mahaprabhu Jagannath’s
wake-up rituals take place, and mangala arati is offered. That is,
whatever unacceptable happened, happened when he was asleep. This accommodation
of the conflicting rituals is non-Vedic, non-Brahminical, non-Vaishnavite, and
non-tantric. It then has to be a local innovation of accommodating rituals of conflicting
sects, each of which tried to appropriate Jagannath. Thus, for instance,
Jagannath is Lord Vishnu for the Vaishnavites and Maha Bhirava for the Shaktas.
This innovation embodies the concept of Jagannath as all-embracing. As such, he
is the container of contradictions, and as such, he transcends the
contradictions.
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