The Holy City Puri
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Orissa Review July - 2008 The Holy City Puri Lalmohan Patnaik The holy city of Lord Jagannath is situated on the the Puranas, Sanskrit scriptures and ancient Oriya sea shore of the Bay of Bengal in Orissa, India. literature. In these ancient texts Puri is described Puri is the modern name of this holy city. The as Srikshetra, Nilachal, Nilagiri, Purushottam, geographical location of Puri is Lat 19°47'55"N Purushottam Kshetra, Purushottam Puri, Sankha Long. 85°49'5". Puri is situated at a distance of Kshetra, Jagannath Dham, Jagannath Kshetra and 63 km. by road (NH Jagannath Puri. Adi 203 stretching from Shankaracharya NH 5) and 59km. by (788-820) visited railway (East-Coast Puri and founded Railway) from Gobardhan or Bhubaneshwar, the Bhogabardhan Matha capital city of Orissa. here. This proves the The nearest airport is importance of the holy Bhubaneshwar. city of Puri as a centre Puri owes its of Hindu pilgrimage existence to the great before the 9th century. temple of Jagannath. Large number of The sanctity of Puri as pilgrims coming to Puri an important centre of from all parts of India pilgrimage is of remote even today calls Puri antiquity. In 'Orissa as Jagannath Puri. and Her Remains' Mano Mohan Ganguly In Ain-i-Akbari and other Muslim observes: "Puri is the seat of Jagannath, the Lord chronicles till the eighteenth century Puri has been of the Universe; the sanctity of the place exists mentioned as the city of Purushottam. In the early from pre-historic period where traditions cannot years of British rule, in the Government records, l reach." Puri has been described as the city of Jagannath Puri revolves around the great Jagannath and called Jagannath Puri. William Hamilton in Temple. Not only is the temple holy, but the whole his description of 'Hindostan' (1820) mentions the of its surroundings has been extolled as holy in city as Jaggernath and Jaggarnath Pooree. 55 Orissa Review July - 2008 Andrew Stirling in his 'Accounts of Orissa' arguments. Actually Jagannath is never a sectarian published in 1824 describes this place as deity. The Jagannath worship at Puri is an Jagannath Pooree and simply Pooree. assimilation of divergent modes of worship of different religions, creeds and sects. In the daily Puri is a unique place where all shades of rituals and annual festivals of Sri Jagannath temple Hindu religious faith have converged. Dr. Suniti at Puri, Hindu, Jain, Buddhist, Saivite, Shakta, Kumar Chatterjee, National Professor of India, Tantric and Vaishnavite influences are clearly in his forword of K.C.Mishra's 'The Cult of discernible. The cult of Jagannath is an epitome Jagannath' writes;- "Puri or Jagannath is one of of divergent religious creeds and schools of the pan-Indian Hindu religious centres and shrines philosophy. and it is of primary importance in modern Hindu corporate as well as personal religious Iife. The This holy city of Puri is also a great center temple of Jagannath is known all over the world of learning. Adi Shankaracharya, and people are interested in the history and its Ramanujacharya, Ballavacharya, Sri Chaitanya, religious surroundings." 2 Atibadi Jagannath Das, Guru Nanak, Bhakta Kabir and heads of different other Sampradayas In modern chronicles and world famous and creeds have come to this sacred shrine and Gazetteers and Encyclopedias Puri is described established there Mathas and Ashrams in this holy as a famous holy city. In 'The Chamber's World city. These Ashrams and Mathas are patronizing Gazetteers and Geographical Dictionary' Puri is different schools of study and learning here. The narrated as "Puri, Pooree or Jagannath-Orissa, Sri Jagannath Sanskrit University and the Rastriya India, ancient town long sacred as the abode of Sanskrit Sansthana's, Sadashiv Campus here are the Golden Tooth of Buddha, but owing its great centers of Sanskrit learning. The world reputation to a temple (1174-1188) to Vishnu as famous 'Odissi dance' and 'Odissi sangeet' have 3 Jagannath (Lord of the World)." But the their roots in Puri. 'Britannica Ready Reference Encyclopedia' depicts:" Jagannath as form under which Lord For centuries now the blue sea at Puri, Krishna is worshiped at Puri, Orissa, a famous called sacred 'Mahodadhi', has been the venue religious centre of India. His temple at Puri dates of countless pilgrims taking the traditional from the 12th century. The Rath Yatra or Chariot purification dip. Puri beach offers the rare Festival is held in his honour each year in June or opportunity of witnessing the colorful sunrise and July."4 The Hutchinson's New 20th Century sunset on the same beach where they can bathe and laze for hours on the golden sand. The world Encyclopedia' indicates-"Puri (Poori) town in famous Travellers Guide - 'The Illustrated Guide Orissa, India, on the Bay of Bengal the shrine of to India of the Reader's Digest' describes Puri as Jagannath (q.v.) is there, dating from C.A.D. 318; one of India's most important pilgrimage centers. the annual festival attracts thousands of pilgrims".5 This Sea-side town is dominated by the Towering But in the 'Jagannath Charitramruta' Jagannath Temple. Early European sailors, for Jagannath has been described as the Supreme whom 65m. (213 ft) high spire was an important Lord or 'Purna Brahma', where as Krishna landmark, called it -'White Pagoda' to differentiate represents only a part of his glory.6 This is not the it from Konark's Sun Temple which they called place to go into these arguments and counter- 'Black Pagoda'. Puri beach is other attraction .7 56 Orissa Review July - 2008 Puri is also the seat of numerous artisans References: and craftsmen who produce rare and exquisite 1. M.M. Ganguly, 'Orissa and Her Remains', world famous stone sculptures, handicrafts, Calcutta -1912, Page 398. wood-carvings, sea-shell items and Patta paintings 2. Dr. Suniti Kumar Chatterjee's Forword: "The Cult depicting several aspects of the Jagannath culture. of Jagannath" K.C. Mishra, Page-VII, Firma KLM This holy city's sacredness is inherent in the Pvt. Ltd. Calcutta 1984. sacred "Mahaprasad' of Mahaprabhu Sri 3. Chamber's World Gazetteers & Geographical Jagannath. The Puri District Gazetteer observes:" Dictionary, Edited by T.C. Callocott, M.A and J.O. Thorne M.A., Pub. - W&R Chambers Ltd., it is on record that as many as 435 items of food Edinburgh, London - 1961, Page-550. were being offered to the deities at Madhyana Dhupa in 1910."8 The 'Anand Bazar' of Sri Mandir 4. Britannica Ready Reference Encyclopedia, Vol.- 5, Page-166. Encyclopedia Britannica Pvt. Ltd., can feed more than one lakh people in a day. In New Delhi - 2006. this holy city the pilgrims and tourists get the 5. Hutchinson's New 20th Century Encyclopedia. sumptuous taste of several varieties of nutritious Edited by: E.M. Horsley, Publisher : Hutchinson Orissan food in typical Oriya recipes. of London, Revised edition 1970, Page 879. The people of Puri are simple, friendly, 6. Jagannath Charitramrita-Union Printing Works, hospitable and helpful. There are large number of Cuttack, Page 169. Dharmashalas, Lodging Houses and all categories 7. Illustrated Guide to India, A Reader's Digest & of Hotels, Holiday Homes, Guest Houses and Penguin India Book, 2005, Page- 312. Tourist Bungalows to serve lakhs of pilgrims and 8. Orissa District Gazetteers - Puri, Page-809, Sri tourists in this holy city. Nilamani Senapati, ICS (Rtd.) Chief Editor, Department of Revenue, Govt of Orissa. In Orissa, particularly in the holy city of Puri, Purushottam Jagannath is a living God enshrined in the hearts of the children of the soil. Here Sri Jagannath forms a part and parcel of the religious, social and cultural ethos of the people. The spirit of tolerance and co-existence are the basic tenets Lalmohan Patnaik lives at N-197, I.R.C Village, of Orissan culture. Bhubaneswar-751 015. 57.