Break journey

Till the 12th century, six chariots were used to carry the idols from the Jagannath temple to the Gundicha temple because in the middle of the 3km stretch lay the now-extinct Malini river (at present, Balagondi Square). The holy trinity, mounted on their respective chariots, used to start their journey from the singha dwara (lion’s gate) and reach the river where three boats used to wait to ferry the idols across the water body.

Royal ‘sweeper’

The king of Puri, who is the first servitor of Lord Jagannath, performs the chhera pahanra rituals by sweeping the chariot platforms on the rath yatra day. However, until 12th century, when the six-chariot tradition was in place, the king used to sweep not only the deck of the chariots, but also the entire yatra route till the deities reached their destination.

Slangs shunned

Until the late 90s, the servitors, while performing the rituals on the chariots, read out songs replete with slangs and double entendres. This was done primarily to ward off the evil eye. But, since the past 15 years or so, the “offensive” lyrics have been refined.

Jumbo role

Elephants had been part of the Jagannath temple rituals since time immemorial. Apart from escorting the chariots, they used to walk in front of Gajapati Maharaja’s cavalcade during his chhera pahanra service. Three elephants of the Puri royal family used to be kept in the hati shaala near Mangalaghat on the outskirts of Puri. But, the ritual was discontinued after 1972. In 2002, elephants last took part in rath yatra.

(Information: Jagannath culture expert Surya Narayan Rath Sharma)