Puri, July 21: After bahuda yatra, it’s time for suna vesha (the golden attire) – a ritual in which Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra will be adorned with gold ornaments tomorrow. It is one of the rare annual veshas of the idols.

During suna vesha devotees can have a rare darshan of the idols’ arms, palms and feet. According to mythology, one who gets a darshan of the lord in suna vesha on the chariot will definitely attain salvation. The ornaments for the idols are kiriti, sribhuja, sripahara, kundala, and four types of garlands namely baghamali, ghagera, mali and odiani.

“It’s my long-cherished dream to visit the lord in suna vesha,” said Bisweshwar Panda of Rourkela.

The temple administration expects more than six lakh visitors on suna vesha day. “Dressing up of the idols will start from 5pm and darshan will be allowed till 11.30pm.

“Arrangements are all in place for conducting a peaceful darshan,” said Laxmidhar Pujapanda, public relation officer of Jagannath temple administration. Multi-layer security arrangements are made to ensure there is no untoward incident.

“Barricading will start from Marichkot Square. Devotees will be made to proceed in a queue on a one-way traffic. Apart from regular security arrangements, Rapid Action Force will be deployed. Closed-circuit TVs have also been installed,” said Puri SP Sanjay Kumar.

Going back to history, suna vesha started in 1460 AD when Gajapati Sri Kapilendradev of Surya dynasty was the king of Great Kalinga, now Orissa. He took over Andhra Pradesh, major parts of Tamil Nadu, some parts of Karnataka to expand his kingdom.

After winning over the entire Dakshinatya (southern kingdoms) he brought huge quantities of ornaments piled up in 16 chariots to offer Lord Jagannath. “The king arrived in Kalinga the day after the bahuda yatra and ordered his priest to carry out suna vesha of the lord,” said Rabindra Narayan Mishra, a researcher on Jagannath cult.