Jagannath snana yatra at barasat

A special bath of Jagannath takes place on the Purnima of Jyestha month (Devasnan Purnima), to commemorate the appearance day of Lord Jagannath.

According to Skanda Purana when Raja Indradyumna installed the wooden deities he arranged this bathing ceremony. This day considered to be the birth-day of Lord jagannath. Held in the full-moon day of the month of Jyestha this festival is also simultaneously held in all other important Puri, it attracts thousands of visitors and pilgrims from all over the country.

This year it will be celebrated on 22 June 2024. On this day, all the devotees have many wishes to bath Jagannath, Baladeva and Subhadra Maharani. The celebrations will take place at Barasat(Miloni playground).

The program started with the lighting of the lamp by the guests.

Then Brajaraj Prabhu started the snanyatra festival with aarti of Lord Jagannath. All Mataji invite Jagannath through ulu dhwani and All the prabhu ji invited Jagannath through Haribal.

 

   Sripad Bhadra Charu Prabhu Sri Dham Mayapur told about Jagannath Leela after praying to Jagannath. All the devotees were listening to that Jagannath Leela with great enthusiasm. Giriraj Prabhu gave opportunity to devotees who could not bathe in Jagannath before the class.

         

sthävara-jaìgama dekhe, nä dekhe tära mürti

sarvatra haya nija iñöa-deva-sphürti

“A Vaiñëava never sees the material form of anything, moving or nonmoving. Rather, everywhere he looks he sees the energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and immediately he remembers the transcendental form of the Lord.”

This wonderfully merciful and enlivening story of the Lord knowing the heart of His devotee, and personally bestowing His mercy upon him has nothing what so ever with that deviant philosophy.

The story goes that this 'brahmin' was a devotee of Lord Jagannath, but for some reason expected to see the elephant-headed deva, Ganesh, in the temple. The 'brahmin' was somewhat disappointed seeing the deva / demigod not there, and that Lord Jagannath had been bathed already and that They were looking a bit 'off colour' with Their mineral paint colours running. In many ways the hearts’ desire of that devotee were unfulfilled. Then that night, knowing his heart, the Lord appeared to the devotee in a dream and told him to go back to the temple and he would not be disappointed. Rather all his desires would be fulfilled by worshipping Lord Jagannath and not by separatedly worshipping any deva (Bhagavad Gita 9:23.).

The all merciful Lord then appeared to his devotee; Lord Jagannath and Lord Balaram assumed the appearance of beautifully decorated elephants, while Lady Subhadra decorated Herself as a Lotus flower. From that time on they began the Hati Vesha (Elephant Mask) festival. Consequently some call it the Hati-vesh festival, some the Ganesh-vesh festival. Both are correct – the Lord assumed a special form to satisfy His devotee, just as in other cultures we hear stories of the Lord appearing to Moses in the form of a Burning Bush, or to Mohammed in the form of sound, or as with Jagannath in the form of the Dharu-brahman logs that washed up upon the ocean shore to be carried by the sabara Virabhadra, and fashioned by the architect of the devas Vishvakarma into the wonderful forms of Sriyuts Jagannath, Baladeva and Subhadra maharani we see before us.

At the end of the day all devotees were happy with the kirtan and prasad.