Puri, July 22: Lord Jagannath's wife Goddess Lakshmi today paid Him a visit at Gundicha Temple to ask Him to return to His abode. The occasion, known as Hera Panchami, was observed amid much fanfare at the temple.

Goddess Lakshmi's representative idol, Subarna Mahalakshmi, was carried to the Gundicha temple from the Jagannath temple on a palanquin in a grand procession by sevayats. Here, the priests welcomed her after which she was escorted to the Adapa Mandap, where Lord Jagannath is seated along with his sibling deities Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra.

Hosted on the fifth day of rath yatra, a number of interesting rituals mark Hera Panchami. Pati Mohapatra servitors performed their duties and the idol of Subarna Mahalakshmi was seated in front of Lord Jagannath.

The servitors then delivered her message to the Lord where she urged Him to return to the Jagannath temple. Following this, as consent, a garland or agyaan maala was sent to the Goddess.

The brief meeting of Lord Jagannath and Mahalakshmi is a much-awaited moment for devotees.

"It was a wonderful moment to witness the deities behave like humans," said Purnima Bohidar, a devotee.

Now that Lord Jagannath has agreed to return, the chariots will be turned southwards on Thursday. The ritual known as d akshina moda is part of the preparations for the return car festival or Bahuda Yatra.

Apart from these rituals, another interesting event of the day is when, following the Goddess' wish, one of her sevayats breaks a portion of the Lord's chariot.

She does this to vent her anger against her husband as He had left her all alone in the temple.

This ritual was performed in the evening and then the Goddess was taken back to her temple through a small lane known as Hera Gohri to hide her from the servitors of Lord Jagannath who, by then, had started inspecting how the chariot was broken.

"The word hera means to see. Since Goddess Mahalakshmi and Lord Jagannath see each other on this day after rath yatra, it is a special occasion for devotees," said S.N. Rathasharma, an expert in Jagannath culture.