Puri: Jagannath Temple in Puri will remain out of bounds for devotees for five hours hours today for the elopement ritual of Lord Krishna with Devi Rukmini, popularly known as ‘Rukmini Haran’ ritual.
The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration has announced a temporary suspension of public darshan on for the sacred Rukmini Harana and Bibaha Utsav ritual.
Taking to its X handle, the temple administration has stated: “On Thursday, the 25th June 2026, Jyestha Shukla Ekadashi Tithi, the Rukmini Harana & Bibaha Utsav Niti will be performed.
Therefore, after the completion of the First Bhog Mandap offering, public darshan will remain temporarily suspended from 1:00 PM to 06:00 PM.”
According to the official notification, the special rituals will be observed on Jyestha Shukla Ekadashi Tithi. As a result, after the completion of the first Bhog Mandap offering, devotees will not be allowed to have darshan of the sibling deities Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra from 1:00 pm to 6pm.
As per tradition, the sacred elopement ritual is enacted on the shrine premises during the auspicious Rukmini Haran Ekadashi. This festival is observed on the eleventh day of the waxing moon in the month of Jyestha, four days before Debasnana Purnima.
Legend has it that Princess Rukmini was deeply in love with Lord Krishna, but her brother Rukmi wished to marry her to Shishupala. She secretly sent a message to Krishna, requesting him to abduct her and marry her.
On this occasion, Lord Jagannath is adorned with the Baula Pata and deputes his representative, Madanmohan, to carry out the symbolic abduction of Rukmini, the princess of Vidarbha, while she is offering prayers at the Maa Bimala temple. Shishupala pursues the couple, leading to a fierce battle in which the Lord emerges victorious. Following the victory, the temple servitors begin preparations for the divine wedding of Lord Jagannath and Goddess Rukmini on the Vivaha Mandap inside the temple.
