Stage set for Banajag Yatra

Odisha Channel Bureau Puri, Mar 28: The stage is set for Banajag Yatra, a major ritual for the Nabakalebara of the Lord Jagannath and his siblings.According to the Shri Jagannath Temple Administration, a 130 member Banajag team headed by Haladhar Dasmahapatra the senior most Daitapati would proceed to Kakatpur Maa Mangala temple in search of the holy Darus (Neem trees) for carving out Bigrahas of the four deities.The team would begin its journey from the Simhadwar (Lions Gate) of the Jagannath temple after the deities were offered Madhyanha bhog (lunch) in the afternoon on Sunday.The temple priests would hand over Ajnamallyas of all four deities whose bodies would be craved afresh.On the way along the Badadanda they would be handed over holy Gua (betel nut) by Rajguru of the Gajapati King.It is a ritual where Gajapati King, the foremost servitor of the deities, symbolically entrusts Daitapatis the responsibility to conduct the search mission and return with Darus to temple in time.Sunday evening the team would reach Jagannath Ballav mutt and rest for the night and on the Tuesday midnight they would embark on a Padyatra to Kakatpur Maa Mangala temple through Puri-Konark marine drive road.On the way they would take rest at the Ramchandi temple alongside the marine drive road near Konark and at Sankareshwar Dev Shiva temple near Kudhei village.The team would reach Deuli mutt near Kakatpur on April 3.The priest of the Maa Mangala temple in a procession would visit them at the Deuli mutt and conduct them to the Maa Mangala temple.The Banajag team after offering prayers and organising pooja to invoke the blessings of the goddess for the divine vision about the location of all four Neem trees and return to the Deuli mutt and take rest and sleep to have a dream.All through their mission the team would take Prasad once in a day.Binayak Dasmahapatra would act as the Biswabasu, the tribal chieftain and devotee of the deities who was worshipping the Brahma in a cave in a remote forest and Narasingha Pati Mahapatra would act as the Bidyapati, the representative of the then King who was instrumental to bring the Brahmas to Puri after marrying the daughter of Biswabasu.This apart, four sub-committees have been formed in the Banajag team.Durgaprasad Dasmahapatra, Chandrashekhar Dasmahapatra, Ganesh Chandra Dasmahapatra and Ramkrushna Dasmahapatra would head the four sub-committees.The Banajag team comprises of 96 young and senior Daitapatis, 16 Shrotriya Brahmins, 14 Biswakarmas, two Rajgurus, and two temple Purohits besides other support staffs and government officials.Elaborate arrangements have been made at their resting places on the way and at the Deuli mutt where they would stay for more than a week till getting the divine instruction.A big kitchen, conference room, a huge altar and a parking lot has been developed at Deuli mutt while the road to the Deuli mutt has been reconstructed.Eleven platoons of armed police force would be pressed into service to provide the team tight security on their journey to Kakatpur till they return to Puri with the Darus.Three Additional Superintendents of Police have been placed in charge of security.