Visitors buy mahaprasad (top) and Nagarjun besha of Trinity at Jagannath Mahotsav in Bhubaneswar. Pictures by Ashwinee Pati

Bhubaneswar, Jan. 14: The one-of-a-kind congregation at the Sri Jagannath Mahotsav in Shivananda Centenary Boys’ High School, Khandagiri, drew to an end on Wednesday.

With a unique display of the chhapan bhogas (food items) and the beshas (attires) of the deities, the six-day long festival pulled as many as 20,000 visitors cutting across the barriers of caste, creed and religion.

The religious fervour of the event and the beeline of devotees coming from several parts of the city created an atmosphere akin to the Jagannath temple in Puri. Sri Jagannath Sanskruti Parishad came up with the innovative concept while the state is readying for Nabakalebara.

With great devotion and folded hands, the visitors took a tour of the stalls that showcased different beshas and bhogas of the Trinity. A special photo exhibition and documentary film on the 1996 Nabakalebara was enlightening and drew a lot of attention.

Dishes that are offered during Gopal Ballav, Sakala Dhupa, Madhyanha Dhupa, Sandhya Dhupa and Badasinhar Dhupa were on display. Khechudi, kanika, adaa pachadi, hansakeli, pithapuli, kakeri, pheni, jhadeinada gula, kadamba, sakara, subasha pakhala, sarapuli and amalu were an olfactory delight. “It feels good that without going to Puri, I could get the bhoga’ here,” said Minarani Samanta who bought khajas for her son.

The beshas section was the focal point of the festival and it portrayed the daily as well as the occasional beshas of the Holy Trinty. For Anastasia and Melinda, who have come all the way from Australia, the visit gave them an insight into the inside view of the sanctum sanctorum, where non-Hindus are not allowed.

“Our friend is an Odissi dancer and she told us about the festival. We have heard Lord Jagannath enjoys a grand platter everyday. It is nice to see them all at one place. Till date it was the Internet that was our sole medium to see the different beshas of the Trinity. But, today we watched them live. The 25 types of appearances of the Trinity took us to a transcendent realm. It was nothing but a treat for the senses,” said the two friends.

B. Jagadish, originally from Andhra Pradesh, who has been living here for many years, got his daughter and mother along with him. “We have never seen so many beshas at one given point of time. This is larger than life,” Jagadish said.

There was quiz programmes for school and college students where more than 500 students participated. “To inculcate the essence of Jagannath culture in students, we organised contests ,” said Nirajan Panda, an organising member who co-coordinated the competition.

More than 500 representatives from different Jagannath temples all over the world attended the festival. The servitors of Srimandir also participated in the festival. The entire festival wore a look of a religious microcosm.