Puri: Preparations for the Padma Besha of Lord Jagannath and his siblings on Wednesday on the temple premises here are in the final stage. At the same time, pilgrim city Puri is prepared to welcome lakhs of devotees who will visit Srimmandir to witness the Trinity in the Padma Besha tomorrow morning.
Padma Besha, an iconic attire of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra, is held every year either on a Saturday or Wednesday between the New Moon day in the month of Magha and the Basant Panchami.
According to tradition, the deities spend their bedtime (pahuda) every day in Bada Singhar outfit and the Padma Besha ritual is an exception. On this day, the deities go to sleep in Padma Besha – attire that has a resemblance to the lotus in bloom. Hence, the ritual is known as the Padma Besha.
On the following day (Thursday), devotees can see Lord Jagannath in Padma Besha after the Mangala Alati rituals.
Every year, the Bada Chhata Mutt provides all materials for the preparation of the Padma Besha, which is mainly made of thermocol. The Singari servitors decorate the Trinity with lotus flowers and ornaments.
For several years, Bhubaneswar-based Chintamani Das has been providing lotus flowers for the decoration of Lord Jagannath and his siblings on the occasion.
