Niladri Bije: Home coming of trinity but no smooth passage for Lord Jagannath

The famous ‘Niladri Bije’ ritual of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra in Puri will be held today. The ritual is the last ritual of the world-famous Rath Yatra. Twelve days after Lord Jagannath and his siblings embarked on their annual sojourn, they will return to the sanctum sanctorum of Jagannath Temple with the Niladri Bije rituals.

Puri: The famous ‘Niladri Bije’ ritual of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra in Puri was held with lot of fanfare today. The ritual is the last ritual of the world-famous Rath Yatra. Twelve days after Lord Jagannath and his siblings embarked on their annual sojourn, they will return to the sanctum sanctorum of Jagannath Temple with the Niladri Bije rituals.

In the Goti Pahandi procession, the Deities move one after the other, which means the next Deity only moves in the chariot only after the former Deity reached the Ratna Singhasana (sanctum sanctorum). Before entering the main temple, a traditional ritual between the servitors of Lord Jagannath and Mahalaxmi was held at the main gate also known as 'Jaya Vijaya Dwar' of the temple. Mahalaxmi, the consort of Lord Jagannath, was angry as she was left in the main temple and was not a part of the trip to the Gundicha temple.

She closes the temple gate on the face of Lord Jagannath and only allows Lord Balabhadra, Goddess Subhadra, and Lord Sudarshana into the temple. To cajole Mahalaxmi and to gain access to the temple, Lord Jagannath offers new clothes and Rasagolla (sweet) and requests her to forgive him. After a long conversation, Mahalakshmi finally gets convinced and opens the temple gate and allows Lord Jagannath inside. The reconciliation of the Divine couple happens on a sweet note. After that, Jagannath is made to sit beside Mahalakshmi where a ritual of reunion is rehearsed and finally Lord Jagannath ascends the Ratna Singhasana and re-joins his brother Balabhadra and sister Subhadra.

Niladri Bije is also the concluding ritual that marks the closure of the annual Rath Yatra festival. Rath Yatra this year too was performed by a limited number of servitors in the absence of any congregation in view of the pandemic. The servitors also underwent the COVID-19 test and only those who tested negative for coronavirus participated in chariot pulling and other activities during the festival held amid tight security.

Denied an opportunity to visit Puri to witness the mega event for a consecutive second year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, crores of devotees across the world watched the proceedings on television by staying at home.