Bhubaneswar: The Jagannath Temple in Puri is gearing up for the Chaka Bije Niti ritual which marks the complete recovery of Lord Jagannath and His siblings from their illness and they are fit to go to their Ratna Bedi.
This ritual is performed on the Dasami Tithi, after the deities have undergone 10 days of treatment in the Anasara Ghar, a special asylum for the sick deities within the temple premises. This takes place after the Madhyana Dhupa and Bhoga Mandapa rituals, followed by the closure of the Jaya Vijaya Dwar and the opening of the Beharan Dwar, sources said.
Talking about the significance of the ritual, a temple servitor said, “The Chaka Bije Niti is an important ritual as it symbolises the deities’ complete recovery from their illness. As part of the ritual, Daitapati servitors of the temple will shift the deities from their Anasara Pindi to a special asana called ‘Chaka’, a rock made of black granite. The deities will be made to sit upright. This ritual will help the deities restore their balance and well-being and make them ready to return to the Ratna Bedi.
The ritual will be followed by the offering of Chakata and Pana Bhoga to the deities.
It is pertinent to mention that the Holy Trinity was taken to Anasara Gruha on the Jagannath temple premises as they fell ill after having a grand bath with 108 pitchers of herbal and aromatic water on the day of Snana Purnima. The Gupta Niti (secret ritual) has been continuing in the Anasara Ghar since then.
