Sonpur: Thousands of devotees braved heavy rain to participate in the annual Shri Gundicha Rath Yatra at the historic Patali Shrikhetra under Ulunda block in Odisha’s Subarnapur district on Thursday.
The deities of Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra, and Lord Jagannath were ceremonially brought out of the shrine atop Trikuta Hill in the traditional Dhadi Pahandi procession before being placed on their respective chariots.
The village’s Gadatya Chamara Amata later arrived in a grand procession and performed the sacred Chera Pahanra ritual on the three chariots. Redam Gauntia Narasingha Pradhan, Mitra Bhanu Mahakur, and Satya Narayan Tripathi assisted in the ritual.
The chariot-pulling ceremony began thereafter, with women devotees pulling the chariot of Devi Subhadra. The chariots were pulled up to the main junction of Patali Shrikhetra shrine. The remaining chariot pulling and the Adapa Pahandi ritual are scheduled to be held on Friday afternoon.
Birmaharajpur Sub-Collector Ajit Kumar Mirdha, SDPO Hemant Rao and IIC Jayanti Keshari Sahu supervised the arrangements. Volunteers of Patali Sena, NCC Sonpur, the Health Department and Fire Services assisted in ensuring the smooth conduct of the festival.
Live commentary on the Rath Yatra was delivered by Rajamani Sahu, Harishchandra Hota and Pareshwar Baghar. An evening Bhajan Sandhya featuring devotional performances by Sudarshan Biswal, Kartik Bhukta, Ratna Tripathi, Mahesh Satapathy and Ipsita Priya Darshini Padhi was also organised. Rajesh Satapathy provided instrumental accompaniment, while Prithwiraj Jagdala played the dhol. Patali Trust member Purnachandra Padhi coordinated the programme.
Patali Shrikhetra, situated at the foothills of Trikuta Hill, is regarded as one of Odisha’s important religious and historical sites with links to Shaktism, Buddhism and Vaishnavism.
According to the Madalapanji, the chronicle of the Jagannath Temple, the idols of Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra were shifted to the Trikuta region during the invasion of Raktavahu and remained concealed there for 144 years. The chronicle states that Somavamsi king Jajati Keshari later recovered the deities, commissioned new idols and established them at the Jagannath Temple in Puri, making Patali Shrikhetra an important landmark in the history of the Jagannath cult.
