Devotees witness rath dakshina moda ceremony in Puri on Monday.

The three chariots parked outside the Gundicha temple after rath yatra took a southward turn to face the Jagannath temple on the sixth day of the festival.

Devotees pulled the chariots as servitors in the presence of the temple administration performed the rituals. The first chariot to be turned was the Debdalana of Goddess Subhadra, followed by Balabhadra's Taladhwaj and Jagannath's Nandighosh.

The wheels of the chariots are oiled and checked before changing their directions as a part of the ceremony considered auspicious. "According to legends, Goddess Lakshmi, during her visit to the Lord, broke a part of Jagannath's chariot during Hera Panchami. According to festival rituals, servitors of the Trinity on noticing the damage works to ensure that the raths' return or bahuda journey is safe," said Jagannath culture expert Chittaranjan Mishra.

"There is also a belief that people, who get a darshan of dakshina moda, are sure to attain salvation," he said. The ceremony marks the beginning of preparation for the upcoming bahuda yatra (return car festival) that falls on July 14.

"The deities will give devotees their last darshan from their present abode on July 13 before returning to the temple. Prior to their final journey into the Puri temple a series of ceremonies such as the bahuda yatra, suna besha and the niladri bije will be hosted," said Laxmidhar Pujapanda, temple's public relations officer.

Along with the dakshina moda ceremony, the three-day rasa lila of Lord Jagannath also began on Monday.

It is a three-day ceremony to felicitate Madan Mohan, the representative deity of Jagannath. Madan Mohan, was escorted to rasa mandap in the Gundicha temple, where hymns from Gita Govinda and ancient couplets were sung in praise of the Lord. Earlier, devdasis used to sing these songs, but now servitors have taken over.

Text by Anwesha Ambaly Picture by Sarat Patra