A devotee offers tulsi to the deities on Friday in Puri. Picture by Pradip Sanyal

Puri, July 12: The daily rituals of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra were performed on the chariots today following which the deities were carried inside Gundicha temple to the adapa mandapa in the evening.

The most important daily rituals of the temple such as offering of dhoopa, alatis and the bhoga were performed on the chariots.

It started in the morning with mangala alati, then Gopal ballabha bhoga was offered and abakasa neeti and other rites were carried out till afternoon.

After the evening ritual of sandhya dhoopa, the deities were carried one after another to the Gundicha temple.

File pictures of Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra being ferried to the Gundicha temple from the chariots during the pahandi bije ritual.

Lord Balbhadra went first, followed by Goddess Subhadra and Lord Jagannath. The deities were offered dry food such as the kora khai, fruits, grated coconut and other items.

Rice and any other cooked meal are not allowed on the chariots.

“The daily rituals of the deities were carried out smoothly according to the schedule.

“Food items were also offered on the chariots. As the anna prasad is not offered on the chariots, they were given special dry food items,” said Laxmidhar Pujapanda, the temple public relations officer.

Devotees got a chance to view the deities up close on the chariots amid tight security arrangements with separate queues for men and women.

“It is the Lord’s kindness that on the third day since rath yatra began, we were able to see Him atop the chariot, which is considered more special than when He is inside the temple. The distance between the Lord and the devotee is very little on the chariot and I am glad that I could take my mother close to Him,” said Ankita Naik, a devotee from Bhubaneswar.

While the sandhya dhoopa concluded at around 6.30pm, the pahandi during which the deities were carried inside Gundicha temple concluded at about 8pm.

The last meal of the deities, the bada singhara bhoga, will be offered on the adapa mandap till July 18 when the deities will return to the Jagannath temple during the bahuda yatra.

The adapa mandap, according to legends, is believed to be the altar where the idols of the deities were constructed.

“Getting a darshan of the deities during their stay at the Gundicha temple is very auspicious.

“All the rituals of the deities hosted at the Jagannath temple will be carried out there during their stay for six days this year,” said a servitor.