Rath Yatra taking place after 12 or 19 years is called Maha Rath Yatra. 2016 is an auspicious year to have been seen as Maha Rath Yatra. The descendants of Lalita, daughter of the original tribal worshipper Biswabasu, chieftain of hunters, and the Brahmin priest Vidyapati, are known as DaitaPatis or Daitas. They have exclusive privilege of serving the Lord during the convalescence and through the entire period of RathaJatra or the Festival of Chariots.
Maha Rath Yatra 2016 is going to start on 6th of July and end on 14th July.
Rath Yatra Festival is celebrated on Dwitiya of ShuklaPaksha of Odiya Calendar. It means it is celebrated on 2nd day of the Waxing Moon phase of July or Ashadh month of Hindu calendar. In Rath Yatra following rituals are followed;
Snana Yatra or Snana Purnima : Snana Yatra translates to bathing festival of deities. Deities are bathed on Full Moon Day of Jyestha Month of Hindu calendar. 108 pitchers water of traditional earthen pitchers is poured on deities.
Anasara : It is believed that after such an elaborate ritualistic bath deities catch fever so they don’t return to temple. Hence, public view of deities is barred. Only 3 Anasara Pattis are tied to a bamboo screen is visible. This Anasar Patti hides the deities from public view. These Anasara Pattis are strong reminder of Traditional Tribal elements in customs. Anasara Pattis are clothes with traditional Oriya paintings and hued in natural colours. During this period, the deities are given roots, leaves, berries and fruits to cure them from their indisposition. Any other offering is prohibited during Anasara.
Nava Yauvana Vesha : After 15 days of Anasara deities make appearance in front of public. On this occasion deities are adorned in new costumes and beautifully decorated.
Rath Yatra : Next ceremony after Nava YauvanaVesha is RathYatra. On rthaYatra devotees pull the Chariot of Lord Jagannath from Grand Avenue or BadaDanda to Gundicha Temple.
Bahuda Yatra : The three deities enter the temple of their aunt on the next day and stay there for seven days. After the week-long stay, the three deities return and the journey is known asBahudaYatra or BahudaJatra in Odiya language.
During the return journey, the chariot of Jagannath stops at the Ardha-sani Temple (Mausi Ma temple). Here, Lord accepts his favorite rice cake known as PodaPitha from his aunt.
The Suna Besha of Deities :
SunaBesha of deities refers to the ornamented form of deities. When deities return from Gundicha temple after spending about a week they are kept outside the temple. On the next day, the deities are attired in new costumes and this new form of the idols is known as ‘SunaVesa’ or ‘SunaBesha.’
It is believed that this event was first started by King Kapilendra Deb in 1460.The King Kapilendra Deb returned victorious from war and donated gold to Lord Jagannath as a reverence. Onwards, the deities were getting decorated with gold on JagannathYatra.
Next Day, Goddess Laxmi comes in search of Lord Jagannath to Gundicha Temple. On finding his empty chariot she damages Jagannath’s Chariot in anger and returns back.
The following day, the deities move into the sanctum sanctorum of the temple and the Rath Yatra festival ends here.