Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra reappeared before devotees on Tuesday after a 14-day seclusion during the traditional \u2018Anasara\u2019 period, with thousands gathering at the Puri temple for the auspicious \u2018Nabajaubana Besha darshan\u2019.<\/p>\n
Thousands of devotees thronged the pilgrim town for a glimpse of the sibling deities, but only a limited number could offer prayers as the temple administration restricted the duration of darshan due to ritual commitments, an official said.<\/p>\n
According to the centuries-old tradition of the 12th-century Jagannath Temple, the deities remain in seclusion for a fortnight after the \u2018Snana Yatra\u2019, during which they are believed to fall ill following the ceremonial bathing ritual.<\/p>\n
Their return in a youthful appearance is celebrated as \u2018Nabajaubana Besha\u2019.<\/p>\n
Unlike previous years when devotees were allowed unrestricted darshan, this year\u2019s viewing was kept brief to facilitate temple rituals.<\/p>\n
The temple administration allowed \u2018Paramanik Darshan\u2019 (paid darshan) from 5 pm to 5.30 pm, followed by \u2018Sahana Mela\u2019 (public darshan) from 5.30 pm to 7.15 pm.<\/p>\n
It was also announced that public darshan would remain completely suspended on Wednesday on account of \u2018Ubha Amavasya\u2019, in keeping with the temple\u2019s traditional ritual calendar.<\/p>\n
Elaborate security and crowd-management arrangements were put in place as large numbers of devotees gathered at the shrine.<\/p>\n
General devotees were allowed entry through the \u2018Singhadwar\u2019, while \u2018Paramanik\u2019 devotees entered through the temple\u2019s southern gate.<\/p>\n
ADG Soumendra Priyadarshi said extensive security arrangements, including CCTV surveillance, have been made for real-time crowd and traffic management.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra reappeared before devotees on Tuesday after a 14-day seclusion during the traditional \u2018Anasara\u2019 period, with thousands gathering at the Puri temple for the auspicious \u2018Nabajaubana Besha darshan\u2019. Thousands of devotees thronged the pilgrim town for a glimpse of the sibling deities, but only a limited number could offer […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6062,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-6063","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-national"},"yoast_head":"\n