Orissa Review July - 2008 The Pilgrimage, Rituals and Worship - A Study on Puri as Tirtha Kshetra Sunil Kumar Patnaik Travellers from within the land and abroad, visit and Goddesses and resonant with purity. A tirtha a tirtha (pilgrimage) to discover the soul of our possesses three elements that make it so sacred ancient land. Tirthas are seldom anonymous -it is suchi, pure; it brings punya; merit and places. They all have their unique character and goodness and it is shubha; auspicious. This makes ambience. Places of pilgrimage are distributed a tirtha a place where you can gain Nirvana; throughout India and are called tirthasthanas or enlightenment and achieve Moksha or liberation. Kshetras. These ancient cities are like living Pilgrims aspire to attain salvation by visiting holy symbols of history. The concept of tirtha in Indian shrines to prepare for release from the temporal context originates from the time when Puranas world. Moksha cannot be attained before fulfilling began to be composed around 4th century A.D. one's duty towards one's family and society. The gargantuan size of the tirthas in some of the Pilgrimage, thus, came to be consciously Puranas was clearly the result of their promoted by traditions that have grown up around unprecedented proliferation and continual a shrine and its locale. They are used to explain addition to the Puranic list. According to the and sustain the shrine's claim to sanctity. Thus, Brahma Purana, their number is so large that arose a large corpus of literature called they cannot be enumerated. A rough statistical Sthalapuranas (ancient stories of a sacred site) estimate prepared by P.V Kane fixes the number or Mahatmya (greatness of a shrine /site).A of Puranic verses devoted entirely to the subject sacred geography is created by the process of of tirthas as about 1,200 in Matsya Purana, 3,182 bringing together cult centers of a particular in Varaha Purana,4000 in Padma Purana and tradition through myths and symbols. In India this 6,700 in Brahma Purana. Some exclusive studies has happened at various levels i.e. local, regional on the subject based on single Purana, especially and pan-Indian. Cults created their own religious Skanda Purana, would further bear testimony to topography through links with other regional such over growth. A statement in Skanda Purana centers by means of myths and legends evolving claims as many as half crore tirthas in the country. around a specific cult. Many such cultic A place of pilgrimage is a tirtha or geographies emerged in India particularly in south tirthasthana. A pilgrimage is a tirthayatra and a India between the 7th and 17th centuries. The pilgrim is a tirthayatri. The meaning of a tirtha is a cult of Balajee, as the famous Venkateswara at sacred place charged with the power of Gods Tirupati (a Vishnu temple) is known, acquired a 101 Orissa Review July - 2008 pan-Indian status being elevated to it after the performance of rituals at tirthas is infinitely more Vijayanagar rulers made Venkateswar their effective than performed in one's home (Matsya tutelary deity. So also the cult of Jagannath Purana). Infact, tirthas came to be recommended acquired a pan-Indian status after the Gangas and in the Puranas as cure for most ills, an infallible Gajapatis made Lord Jagannath as their state means of spiritual quest, an ultimate source of deity. Infact, pilgrim networks expanded in the moral redemption. Ganga and post-Ganga periods when significant The greatest tirthas are often a combination reorganization, elaboration and changes in the of a number of sacred elements. The supreme temple ritual and festivals, incorporating manifold tirtha Kasi offers the combination of a river, a Vedic and Agamic practices, took place. temple and Ganga, the Kasi Vishwanath Temple The tirthamahatmyas speak aloud about a and the presence of Shiva. Puri has the Lord particular place (tirtha), especially with regard to Jagannath Temple, the Mighty ocean Mahodadhi their cultic and functional importance and magical and the grand festival, famous Ratha Yatra and potency. The Skanda Purana (v.2) itself is the presence of Vishnu. Puri is known in the brimming with such sections as Sulvaramahatmya ancient scriptures as Shri Dham, Purusottama varnana, Simhesvara-mahatmya, Ekanamesa Kshetra, Jagannath Dham etc. It is recognized as Mahatmya, Avantikshetra-Mahatmya, Dham or a tirtha particularly after 9th century Purusottama Kshetra Mahatmya etc. However, A.D. Although, the Epic Mahabharat in the Matsya Purana,which is considered as one of the tirthayatra section has a reference about oldest of the Puranas mentions Purusottama Swayambhu Lokeswara and the Vedi, a famous Kshetra in two places. It mentions only deity spot in Puri itself. Scholars try to trace the antiquity Vimala in Purusottama Kshetra. Among the later of Puri from the time of Mahabharat. However, Puranas, namely Visnu, Agni, Padma, Narada, no concrete evidence is available so far. But from Brahma and Skanda, we get references to our recent exploration in the old city of Puri, we Jagannath, the deity and place of his installation. have traced some of the mounds particularly, But it is only in Agni, Padma, Brahma and Skanda Balisahi, Markandeswara Sahi and behind Purana, there occur passages about the sanctity Gundicha Temple to Indradyumna tank. From of the place, construction of the temple and part surface exploration, it is found that number of red, played by Indradyumna. J. Padhi writes that black and slipped pot-shreds available in plenty. Kurumaurana mentions that Purusottama tirtha It can safely draw a conclusion that there might belongs to Narayana although it is named after be an earlier city buried which could be dated Purusottama. The supreme Purusa Narayana earlier to Somavamsis. Some sporadic findings resides here with all glory. A pilgrim after taking such as sculptural pieces, brick bates, parts and holy bath in this sacred tirtha and worshipping architectural pieces are also reported from different supreme Visnu (Narayana) and feeding the places in recent times. To get the clear stratigraphic Brahmanas secure the abode of Visnu. position of early historical period of Puri intensive A set of uniform popular form of ritualism study with excavation is highly necessary. were prescribed for a tirtha. Some of these are However, the cult of Sri Jagannath has its snana, dana, puja vrata, pinda dana, katha deep root as pre -Aryan or un-Aryan or Tribal recital etc. According to one Puranic dictum the features. In the remote past, at the earliest phase, 102 Orissa Review July - 2008 the God represented a simple form of tree worship Matsya and Varaha very definitely had totemic or it may be that he was worshipped in the form affiliations, suggesting their close links with tribal of a wooden deity by aboriginal Savaras in cultic beliefs. In fact, we have a temple dedicated Eastern India. Orissa was continued to be a tribal to Marjara-Kesari, the feline incarnations of Lord dominated area for long period at least up to early Vishnu at Narasimhanath, in Western Orissa. mediaeval period. We have references in Another example could be given here as how was Emperor Asoka's Edict (3rd C. BC) as well as in the impact of tirthas on the tribes of Chhotnagapur. various literatures. We believe that there must be According to a popular legend connected with somewhere in ancient Orissa, wood or tree the construction of a Jagannatha Temple situated worship (Daru) was in vogue at least up to 3rd about 10 kms from Ranchi by Thakur Ainisahi in century A.D ( Daru Devata, Beni Madhav Padhi, 1691, A.D, both Thakur and his Oran servant 1964). Scholars like BM Padhi, S.N Rajguru had visited Jagannatha temple of Puri and after (1996) have focused Jagannath's origin, again, in their return, it is said Lord Jagannath appeared in relation to the Sabara tribes of South Orissa. dream and asked to build a temple for Him in K.C Mishra (1971), A Eschman (1978), came Chhotnagpur. According to Karma Oran, the forward with the discovery of several peculiar annual Ratha Yatra at Jagannathapur is the biggest relations between Jagannath cult and religious religious and social event connected with any practice of the Konds in Dhenkanal/ Talcher religious creed in Ranchi district and is exercising region of Orissa. very strong influence in Hinduizing the tribes, who Puri emerges as a tirtha having pan-Indian are known to freely join the festival in pulling the character since early part of 12th century A.D., ropes of the chariot. with the increasing process of ritual royalization It was during 12th century A.D, that the of the deity Lord Jagannath. Among the prominent temple town Puri might have assumed the greatest Gods extensively portrayed in Puranic mythology prominence under the rule of Imperial Gangas as being instrumental in tirtha formation were (1078-1435. A.D). The present magnificent Vishnu, Shiva and Shakti/Devi. It may be pointed temple of Purusottama-Jagannath was out that Vishnu in His milder and more popular constructed during this period. It is mentioned in aspects portrayed through His numerous an inscription in the temple Garttesvara (Siva) at incarnations, particularly those having tribal or Alagum, about 15 km from Sakhigopal that pastoral affiliations, such as Narasimha, Krishna, Chodoganga seems to have invited some selected Balarama, Dattatreya, Purusottama, Brahman Pandits or Vaisnavas from Kanchi and Venkatesvara etc., naturally bore closer affinity settled near Puri, for propagation of Dvaitya- to those native groups that originally subscribed philosophy. to those cults. Thus, we find that Krishna had special affiliations with pastoral tribes like the Sri Jagannath temple was more organized Yadavas. Similarly a special relationship seemingly during the rule of Anangabhima III (1211-1238).