Bhubaneswar: Humans donning the attire of Gods and strutting the Grand Raod in Puri on the occasion of Rath Yatra is commonplace. The sight was no different on the occasion of the world famous car festival this year when saints from different parts of the country thronged the Bada Danda to catch a glimpse of the Lord of the Universe – Lord Jagannath.
For Sri Sri Balmukunda Das aka Litu Baba of Sambalpur, it was the seventh year of his coming to Puri on the occasion of Rath Yatra. “From the last Nabakalebara onwards, my presence in Shreekhetra is a must on the occasion of Rath Yatra. The Lord attracts me and I am drawn towards his abode,” said Litu Baba, who will be in Puri till Niladri Bije.
Sudipta Kumar Pradhan from Banki in Cuttack district is an ardent devotee of Lord Jagannath and Lord Hanuman. He is a regular at ‘Bada Danda’ on Rath Yatra, when he portrays himself as Hanuman and dances to the tunes of devotional songs.
“I have been acting as Hanuman in our village shows and skits. It is all the Leela of Lord Jagannath for which I was drawn towards Lord Hanuman and devote myself to the service of the Lord of the Universe. I feel the energy within me as the Lord comes out of Srimandir and His chariot rolls down the Bada Danda,” Pradhan added.
There were many more such people, saints, children and women dressed as Gods and Godesses, immersing themselves in the devotion of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhdara and Devi Subhadra as the Trinity accompanied by the divine weapon, Lord Sudarshan, proceed to their birthplace – the Gundicha temple, as a part of their annual sojourn.
