A handful of thoughts

The Rath Yatra or Chariot festival at Jagannath Temple, Puri is one of the most popular Hindu festivals in India; and also one of the largest, judging by the footfall.  But, there remain certain controversies and conjectures that projects the temple of Jagannath and Hinduisim in a different light.

Idol

The idol of Jagannath, Balaram and Subhadra, interestingly, are made of wood and unmistakably resemble tribal gods and godesses worshipped by various tribes and clans in India. It must also be noted that wooden idols are rarely to be seen in Hindu temples in India. They are either made of stone or of some metal. What prompted the Jagannath idol to like as it does, is a mystery. The legend says that Lord Vishnu had come disguised as a carpenter to carve the idol while the king who commissioned him was asked to wait outside until the idol is complete. But curiosity had the better of him and he opened the door only to find these unfinished idols. The carpenter had turned to thin air.

Rath Yatra

A similar chariot festival is celebrated in kandy in Sri Lanka. There the chariot carries the tooth relic of Gautama Buddha. It is believed that the chariot festival actually originated in Puri and was taken by travelling Buddhist monks to Sri Lanka, later. The place where the Jagannath temple now stands was probably a Buddhist Stupa and was demolished (like many others) and transformed into a Hindu temple. The stupa is believed to have contained Buddha’s relic. Even today, there is a sacred and secretly guarded box inside the Jagannath temple which is referred to as Brahmabastu. What the brahmabastu actually is nobody knows. This is the life that resides inside the Jaganntah idol. The carpenter who carves the Jagannath idol every 12 years transfers this life from the old deity into the new ones. During this process he is blindfolded so that he cannot see what that bastu or pinda actually is. It is conjectured that this pinda is nothing other that Lord Buddha’s relic - his tooth.