Darubrahma Worship as Adi & Puri Jagannatha
Highten Hindu Confusion-ism
in Temple Traditions
[Compiled from Various Discourses &
Communications by N. R.
Srinivasan September 2019]
At
Puri, Orissa, the Lord Jagannath-Krishna is worshiped along with His brother
Balabhadra and his sister Subhadra writes Devadatta Pattanaik from Odisha,
putting end to all myths as well as reality drawing strength from great saints like Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and
Shankerdev, who allured by the classic
work Gita Govind of Jayadeva describing
the love of Krishna and Radha,
worshipped the deity as
Jagannatha-Krishna.
It is eminently clear from Odia Bhagabata that for its author, Krishna was only another name for Jagannatha and Sri Kshetra, the seat of Lord of the universe was the focal point of Odisha’s social life and culture. It is this Jagannatha consciousness that fully permeates Bhagabata.
Perhaps many in Odisha miss to quote a verse from Rigveda to support the theory that Jagannaatha Puri with its temple of wooden images is a very ancient center of pilgrimage and its Vedic origin:
“Ado
yaddaaru plavate sindhoh paare apoorusham | tadaarabhasva
durhano tena-gaccha parastaram” --Rigveda Mantra (10—155—30)
Sayana probably a Krishna devotee like
Jayadeva commented on this as follows:
“Vipra
krishnadese vartamaanam apoorusham yaddaarumayam purushottamaakhyam devataa,
devataa sareeram, sindhoh paare samudra
teere plavate… taddaru…hay stotah aalmebhasva
upaasva”
Oh
Unconquerable Learned man, located in the Land of Krishna! Meditate and follow the wood that comes floating
around and comes to the shore that has not been created by anybody seeking
its protection reach the yonder shores of Parampada (Supreme abode).
Odisha Jagannatha Philosophy draws its support from the above Rigveda mantra that this
natural log of wood which is not in the human form made it appearance on the
sea shore where River Sindhu merged with the sea and made its travel afloat to
the shores of Puri which is considered to be Bhoo-Vaikuntha (Heaven on Earth).
Alas! That original wood no
longer exists but probably lies buried in the Purushottamakshetra backyards
where a deities after Nava Kalevar lie buried! Hindus believe Brahma to be the
root, Vishnu to be the Trunk and Siva to be the top portion with leaves to be
the hair of Siva in Aswattha tree. That is how the log of wood has been
imagined to be Vishnu and the deity carved of it should be Jagannatha. This
belief is further fortified by the mythological background of Jagannatha Temple
in Puri. Bhagawan said in Gita “aswatthah aham sarva vrihkshaanaam”-I,
Narayana, is Aswattha among all trees.
The
present Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya
of Jagannatha-Krishna as popularized by Gowdiya Sampradaya inspired by
Jayadeva’s Gita Govinda runs as follows
and may be taken as the final word on Odisha Jaganntha Philosophy on Jagannatha
as Jagannath-Krishna. Jayadeva’s Dasavatara stotra is invariably sung in all
Jaganntha worships.
“After
the mortal remains of Krishna had been
cremated in Prabhas-Patan near Dwaraka, there rose from the ashes a great Pipal
tree that in time fell into the sea and made its way to the coast of Orissa
where it was found by the local king, Indradyumna. (This brings the story of Jagannatha of Purushottama Kshetra from Krita Yuga to the
end of Dwapara Yuga or even Kali Yuga)
The
king commissioned the celestial artisan, Viswakarma, to carve out the image of
the lord from the log of wood. Viswakarma demanded complete isolation until the
project was complete; but the impatient king broke his promise and entered the
workshop before the idols were fully ready. And so, even today the idols have
an unfinished look: flat faces, incomplete arms and no feet. The idols made of
wood are replaced every twelve years or eighteen years. The Jagannatha temple
is associated with great Ratha-Yatra that takes place on the second day of the
waxing moon in the month of Ashadha when the Lord with his brother and sister
goes to the shrine of their aunt Gundicha, on colorful chariot made especially
for the occasion”
It
is believed that Lord Jagannath was originally worshipped as Nila Madhava by
the tribal community residing in a dense forest. A king named Indradyumna of
the Malwa plateau (not Kritayuga or Tretayuga) had a dream that Lord Vishnu
could be viewed in his true form in Utkala (ancient name of Odisha). He
appointed a person named Vidyapati to search for this form. Vidyapati came upon
the tribal community and found out about the worshiping of the Nila Madhava.
Vidyapati married the daughter of the chief of the tribal and was shown the way
to the place housing the Nila Madhava.
Vidyapati informed the king about the place of worship but when the King
went there by himself, the Nila Madhava by then had disappeared. The King was
deeply dejected. Lord Vishnu, taking pity, issued a divine message to him in a
dream that he should go to the shores of Puri and create the image of Lord
Jagannath from a log of wood (not tree) that will be floating on the waves.
Lord Vishnu appeared as a carpenter and asked to leave him undisturbed for 21
days (not 14 days) in a room so that he could prepare the image. However, at
the insistence of the Queen, the room was opened early and only the unfinished
images of the three gods (not full figures carved out of tree) and the
Sudarsana Chakra were left behind. Thus its temple traditions essentially
based on a dream and fantasy.
An ancient monarch of Puri Indradyumna
is glorified in Brahma-vaivarta Purana also, Prakrita Khanda and Utkala Khanda
also. The pious king is stated to have performed a penance as a result of which
Vishnu appeared in his dream or vision in a four-fold form as Purushottama
Vasudeva, Sankarshana, Subhadra and Sudarsana. As he contemplated getting his
vision translated into iconic representations, a huge log floating on the sea,
and an old sculptor, Vardhaki, appeared on the scene and the sculptor
volunteered to carve out of the log the images exactly as the king saw them.
The wooden images that he carved out,
working in seclusion and left partially done were installed on a stone platform
called Ratna-vedhi. A temple was built in due course.
Jagannatha worship dates back to Treta
Yuga by ancestors of Sri Rama of Ikshvaku Dynasty mentioned in Adikavya,
Valmiki Ramayana, now accepted as Historic Itihaasa and not any mythology. But Skanda Purana says the solar dynasty
existed even in Krita Yuga and the kings of Solar Dynast worshiped Jagannatha.
Please go through the details of Skanda
Purana’s Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya that has the earliest reference to Lord
Jagannatha’s worship in Kritayuga and
so most ancient:
“In Kritayuga, there was a great king Indradyumna. He was righteous and
belonged to the Solar dynasty, and
was the fifth descendant from Lord Brahma.
He was a devotee of Lord Vishnu and very truthful. His capital was Avanti in
the Malva country. Down the line was Ikshvaku after whom the solar dynasty was
named Ikshvaku Dynasty. Rama of Ikshvaku Dynasty worshipped Lord Jagannatha as
revealed by Sri Rama himself. Rama was
also later glorified as Maryada (respectable) Purushottama (one who showed
respect to Purushottama) as a favorite devotee of Purushottama.
A certain widely travelled pilgrim once
revealed to a learned Bramin Assembly (Vidwat Sabha) about Sri Purushottama in Odhra Desa on the southern shore sea of
Bharata. Hearing this the king intended to settle there with his entire kingdom
and worship Lord Jagannatha. Vidyapati,
his emissary travelled all the way and met Viswavasu and expressed the desire
of the king. Vishwavasu though initially
worried because the sabaras (hunter
community) were secretly worshipping the Lord then, remembered a traditional
legend that in future the Lord would vanish and a king named Indradyumna will
perform hundred horse sacrifices and install the Daru (wooden) form of the
Lord. Vishwavasu showed the idol of Nilamadhava to Vidyapati. After deciding
about a place of residence for the king, Vidyapati left for Avanti. In the
meantime a violent gust of wind raised the sands of the sea shore and submerged
the Lord along with the Rauhina kunda. The devas became highly sorrowful and
lamented. Narada visited the king in the meantime and stayed with him to guide
the king in the great journey to Purushottama Kshetra. The king departed on the
auspicious day of Jyestha Shukla Paksha Panchami (a Wednesday). The entire
kingdom accompanied him. That is why Tamils consider Wednesday as the most
auspicious day in the week--(pon
kidaittaalum budhan kidaikkadu-- You can get gold but not Wednesday)
The king passed through various lands
and forests and reached the shrine of Carcika (Goddess Durga) at the boundary of Utkaladesa. At the behest of sage
Narada, the king got down the chariot and eulogized the Devi. Reaching Nila
Mountain the king wanted to worship the idol
of Purushottama installed on the bank. Then bad omens began to appear
before him. Sage Narada told the king that the deity being worshiped there has
suddenly vanished below the sand and he will not be able to see Nil Madhav. The
king fell on the ground unconscious. Bringing back his consciousness, sage
Narada told the king about the prediction of Lord Brahma and urged the king to
perform the horse sacrifices at Purushottama Kshetra. Indradyumna's grief was dispelled. Sage
Narada guided the king to the place where now the Lord was residing as Nrisimha. The idol was of extremely terrible
form and the king bowed to the Lord from a distance. Then he enquired the sage
about the exact spot of Nila Madhava before his disappearance.
King Indradyumna then decided to
perform the horse sacrifice and started the horse sacrifice at that place. Sage Narada invoked the celestial architect Vishwakarma, and instructed the king to build a shrine for Nrisimha at the
place of horse sacrifice with Viswakarma’s help, who completed the work in four
days. Narada himself got this second idol of Nrisimha built by Vishwakarma consecrated
meditating for five days and infusing the idol with the prana of the original Nrisimha idol (pranapratishtha-consecration). Thus the idol of Nrisimha was installed on
Jyestha Shukla Paksha Dwadashi in conjunction with the Swati Nakshatra.
A
celestial tree (not a
log of wood) was
seen at the sea shore whose fragrance spread across the whole surroundings
and caught the attention of all attending the sacrifice. Sage Narada told the
king that the hair of Sri Vishnu (not the hair of Siva) had incarnated as the tree (not the one floating from Dwaraka). In Gita Krishna says that he Himself
is Sankara and not His hair--Rudraanaam
Sankarah thereby implying He is the whole tree. He instructed the king to
complete the horse sacrifice and install the tree in the sacrificial altar.
When the tree was installed, an ethereal
voice told the king to conceal (cut off
from viewers) the sacrificial altar for fifteen days (not twenty-one days) during which time a
carpenter would build the divine idols
of the Lord. Music should be played during this time to hide the sound of
carving. Sri Vishnu (not Viswakarma) assumed the form of an old carpenter and started carving the idol of
the Lord. During this work divine fragrance, divine music and a shower of Parijata (so dear to Lord Krishna) flowers took place. After the work
was over, an ethereal voice gave instructions about how the idols (fully
completed and not half-finished as worshiped in Puri) should be painted
and decorated. When the king unveiled
the altar he saw the divine idols of Krishna (Jagannatha), Balarama and
Subhadra. The king was immersed in joy of bliss and stood there motionless.
All his exertions had finally became fruitful. The king eulogized the Lord and
prostrated before.”
The worship of Jagannatha started as
Daru (tree as in Devadaru) worship
both in Puri and Thiruppullani. Vishnu took birth as Chaturbhuja to Devaki and
Vasudeva in the prison and at their request took normal human form to present
himself as baby Krishna and eighth avatar of Krishna. In Tiruppullani earlier Vishnu appeared too
as Chaturbhuja Murti coming out of the tree at the request of Rishis. Rest is
all myth and belief. Why then discredit
the Kritayuga king Indradyumna and misguide the devotees now?
Rishabhanatha (also Ṛṣabhadeva, Rishabhadeva,or Ṛṣabha) is the first
ford maker and propagator of Dharma and the
founder of Ikshvaku
dynasty. Rama pays
tribute to Rishabha recalling the glory of Ayodhya under his rule on
returning to Ayodhya with Sita after vanquishing Ravana in Valmiki Ramayana.
Rishabha in Jain cosmology is called a "ford maker" because
his teachings helped one across the sea of interminable rebirths and deaths (saṃsāra). He is also known as Ādinātha which
translates into "First (Adi) Lord (nātha) as well
as Adi Ishvara (first ishvara), Yugadideva (deva of the yuga Prathama-raja (first
king) and Nebheya (son of Nabhi). He was the first of the twenty-four teachers
in the present half-cycle. Rishabha did not start Jainism but followers of his
philosophy called themselves Jains and integrated various schools of thought
among them and separated from Hinduism under the 24th Tirthankara
Mahabir Vardhamana.
According to the Buddhist texts, Prince
Siddhartha belonged
to this dynasty. The important personalities belonging to this royal
house are Mandhatri, Muchukunda, Ambarisha, Bahubali, Harischandra, Dilipa,
Sagara, Raghu, Dasaraatha, Rama and
Pasenadi. Both the Hindu Puranas
and the Buddhist texts include Shuddodhana, Gautama
Buddha in their accounts of the Ikshvaku
dynasty. But according to the Buddhist
texts, Mahasammata, an ancestor of
Ikshvaku was the founder of this dynasty, who was elected by the
people as the first king of the present era. According to the Puranas, Supreme preceptor of the Ikshvaku dynasty was
sage Vashishta. Both Rishabha and Buddha are avatars of Vishnu
worshipped by Hindus. It is therefore no
wonder Hindu Temples in USA have consecrated both Buddha and Vardhamana idols
in Hindu Temples.
You now
know why Lord Jagannatha is successively worshiped by Jains, Buddhists and Hindus as they all had
ancestry in Ikshvaku dynasty and Jaganntha was the family deity of Ikshvakus as
revealed by Rama himself in Ramayana. Parting advice given by Sri Rama to
Vibhishana in Ramayana is as follows: In Uttarakanda, Sarga 108, Slokas 30-31
he said to Vibhishana: “Rakshsendra Mahaa bala! Aaraadhaya Jagannaatham Ikshvaaku Kuladaivatam |
Aaraadhaneeyamanisham devairapi savaasavaih | tatheti pratjagraaha
ramavakyam vibhishnah ||”—O mighty Rakshasa King! Worship Lord Jagannatha
the presiding deity of Ikshvaaku dynasty. He (Vishnu) is to be worshiped even by the Devas (divines) together with
Indra”. The king of the chief of Rakshas accepted the words of Srirama keeping
in mind the orders of the descendant of Raghu.
The Adi Jagannatha Temple is a South Indian Hindu temple in Thiruppullani,
a village in the outskirts of Ramanathapuram in the South Indian
state of Tamil Nadu, dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu. Constructed in the Dravidian style of architecture,
the temple is glorified in the Divya
Prabandha, the early medieval Tamil canon of the Azhwar saints from the 6th–9th centuries CE. It
is one of the 108 Divyadesams
dedicated to Vishnu, who is worshipped as Adi
Jagannatha and his consort Lakshmi
as Padmaasini.
The Jagannatha Temple in Puri was built
in the 12th century during the Era of Eastern Ganga Dynasty by King
Ananta Chodaganga Deva, a dynasty
Well-known for building the Sun Temple
in Konarak and several Shaivism temples. King Choddaganga as a Vishnu devotee
remained significantly mesmerized by the teachings of Ramanuja.
There is said to be considerable influence of Sri Ramanuja on its temple
procedures, including the Ratha Yatra festival fashioned after Rathotsava in
South Indian Temples. Rathotsava is the
concluding festival of annual ten days of Brahmotsava celebrations that was
already in vogue in all Vishnu temples in South India before it was introduced
in Puri temple. May be this is to
remember Ratha Yatra in Kritayuga of Indradyumna in Skanda Purana. Or may be to
recall Lord Krishna as the Charioteer in Mahabharata War sitting on which He
preached Bhagavad Gita to Arjuna.
Rathotsava in Orissa introduced for the first time in the North in Puri
Jagannath Temple soon caught up the fantasy of devotees to make it popular,
unique in the North, which made Jagannatha Temple in Puri famous. Ratha with six horses and charioteer with its
occupant is philosophically discussed in Chandogya Upanishad about which we
discussed in the past. The name Jagannatha in Rathayatra mistakenly pronounced
as Jagger Naught (a strong military
vehicle) caught the admiration of all Western
rulers who ruled India later.
Thus Jagannatha became famous to ignorant too because of Ratha Yatra. It is believed that Jaganntha is worshiped
even by Christians and Muslims, like Murugan in Pazhani and Balaji in
Thirupati.
Tamils think Thiruppullani is the birth
place of Jagannatha worship being much older to Puri Temple. The prime deity faces east in the sitting
posture with Sri Devi and Bhu Devi here.
Similarly, His Consort Sri Padmasani Thayar sits and renders her blessings
to the devotees. Near this shrine is the
age-old Pipal (Aswatha) tree (Vatavriksha) and is considered to be the
incarnation of Aswatha Narayanan who revealed Himself to the three sages,
Pullavar, Kannuvar, and Kalavar. The Prime Deity is also known as ‘Dakshina
Jagannathan’, installed as a Saalagrama by the Devas during the Swayambhu
Manvantara. As per Hindu legend, Rama
in the epic Ramayana prayed to the Samudraraja (God of
Ocean) to seek way to reach Lanka. He
did a penance lying on Kusa grass, the act of which is described in Sanskrit as Dharbasayanam. Pulllani
means, bridge of grass. The name perhaps is coined after the great Setu and
abundant grass used in its construction from this place! As per another legend,
Dasaratha, the father of Rama,
performed different sacrifices and did a lot of penance to obtain the sacred payasam
(sweet pudding). He distributed it among his three wives, resulting in the
birth of Rama, Lakshmana,
Bharatha and Shatrughna. The presiding deity of this temple is Kalyana
Jagannathan. He is found in sleeping posture facing along the East direction.
Thousands of centuries ago, three
Maharshis, Pullavar, Kalavar and Kannvar performed severe penance on Lord
Mahavishnu sitting on the Darbha grass. The Lord gave Darsan (vision) to the Rishis in the form of an Aswattha
(Arasa Maram in Tamil) tree. Though they were happy to have the Darsan of the
Lord in the form of Aswattha Tree
they begged him to show them His original form. The Lord obliged and appeared
as Adhi Chaturbhujha Jagannatha
Perumal. This matches well with Odisha
belief that Jagannatha is Darubrahman
(daru means wood as well as tree as
in devadaru) and therefore believed
to be Vishnu (who later assumed form of baby Krishna) born to Devaki as in
Puri. This is the present Thirupullani
abundant with Dharbha grass.
Tirupullani is one of the celebrated 108 Vaishnava temples. Sri Rama
icon graces this place in a reclining form. The Bodhi Tree (Arasa Maram) dates back to centuries
said to have been graced by the Darsan of the Lord.
Based on the above it is logical to
conclude the Hindu deity Lord Jaganntha
in Tiruppullani is the
Sthiti (sustenance) aspect of
Prabrahman Vishnu and not the Avatar deity
Krishna, the eighth incarnation
of Vishnu of later days presented to the world in Dwapara Yuga. As we all know
He appeared to Devaki and Vasudeva as
Chaturbhuja Vishnu with conch and disc and at their request assumed the form of
baby Krishna Avatar (Balakrishna).
There
is no mention of Subhadra in Tiruppullani.
Subhadraa if addressed in prayers here only means an epithet of Lakshmi
as pretty faced. Subhadra is worshipped only in the lone temple of Puri
Jagannath in recent times that
brings her to the status of Devi
which surprises everyone probably due to the importance given to a sister in
Rakshabandhan. This goes well with the later story of driving away Lakshmi from
Ratnavedhi as some Odisha author writes!
May be it is based on the events of Kritayuga when Indradyumna had consecrated Subhadra whom someone now
interpret as sister of Krishna! But she was not a half-finished deity but
carved out of tree. No carving is
involved in the present deities of Puri except preliminary planning of shaped
parts of human body that later got and paintied. Jayadeva who is almost a
contemporary of Ramanuja firmly
established that this deity is Krishna in the form of Jagannath (jai jagannathasamy --and not an Avatar
like Balarama and hence big and prominent in display) which paved the way for
Krishna Consciousness Movement of today, inspired by Chaitanya Movement. ISKCON focus is on Radha and not on Rukmini
who is believed to be incarnation of Lakshmi. Story of Radha as
told by Krishna to Rukmini and Satyabhama in Odisha Haribansha by Achyutananda
Das is interesting. Krishna tells
Rukmini that Radha is a manifestation of Goddess Lakshmi and her father
found her on a lotus leaf (may be to justify his amours with Radha
Jagannath idol, once upon a time was
the god of tribal in eastern part of India (reminding us of sabarasa tribal tradition of Kritayuga)
and was made of some precious blue stone as Nila Madhava. Many
scholars suggest the current form is adopted from the tribal art form of the
then Odra desh, which primarily was ruled by the tribal kings. May be the
present worship of wooden deities could
be the inspiration from Vedic times because Jagannatha is mentioned in Vedas as
Daru Brahman or The Lord of
Tree. This was the first synthesis of
Brahmin culture with tribal and even today
the tribal community are one of
the main servitors of Jagannath in the Puri temple.
Gautama Buddha visited Puri and
converted the then King
to Buddhism. Kalinga (currently known as Odisha) then after
became a Buddhist country. After death of Buddha, his tooth was embedded into
the pedestal of the Lord and Puri Temple became a Buddhist shrine.
Right after, Jain religion raised its
head. The most powerful king at one
time, named Kharabela, who expanded
Kalinga to a vast empire, was a Jain and he prayed Jagannath as Lord of Jains
and Jagannath became a major deity of Jains.Valmiki writes in the last chapter of
Uttara Khanda Sloka 10: “Ayodhyaapi Puree ramyaa soonyaa varshaganaan
bahoon| Rishabham praapya Rajaqnam
nivaasamupaayaasyati || Beautiful
Ayodhya remaining desolate for long years, will become habitable again having
secured the protection of King Rishabha.
Rishabha is an incarnation of Vishnu glorified by both Jains and Hindus.
To
the Tantriks of India Puri is the most important Sakti Peetha and they consider
Puri as Srikshetra and not Puroshottma Kshetra— Sakti Peetha of Katyaayini.
Mother earth is hailed as Katyaayini
(MNU) though Saktas identify here as Durga (reminds of Kritayuga
Indradyumna’s first worship of Durga in Puirushottama Kshetra), influenced by
Devi Culture of Bengal. They say Indradyumna dreamt Krishna Balabhadra and
Katyayini.
Brahma
Vaivarta Purana says Vishnu appeared in dream in four fold form as
Purushottama (Vasudeva), Bala-bhadra (Sankarshana), Subhadra (Katyayini) and
Sudarsana. In the
dream Janardhana was stationed on a divine throne with four arms along with Balabhadra and Sudarsana; Balabhadra appeared
as seven -hooded snake and Subhadra was verily Lakshmi who
manifested herself as life-force of all beings (sarva Chaitanya rupini)
Skanda
Purana also says-- trayormadhya-sthitam
bhadraa Subhadraam that is Jagannatha, Bala-bhadra with Lakshmi or
Katyaayini, Bhuvaneshvari or Ekanaamsa). Subhadraa in this account stands separately
(prithak sthitam) is red complexioned, and two armed carrying in the hands the
gesture of boon bestowal and lotus (varaabha
dhaarini)
Deities
on Ratna Vedhi in Puri were for some time worshipped as Krishna, Rudra and
Katyaayani. There is a claim that the pole image with no carving represent
Narasimha form of Vishnu. We all know Rudra appeared as a column of fire.
Narasimha appeared from a wooden pillar as Jwala Narasimha. Panchabrahma
mantras are equally applied to Rudra and Narasimha as Sadyojata or instant
born. All these facts gave birth to speculation as to one of the deities being
Rudra.
Jayadeva was mainly responsible to bring in Haladhara Balarama on the
Ratnavedhi glorified in Dasavatara stotra as the eighth incarnation of Vishnu.
In this portrayal Jagannatha, Rudra and
Katyaayani represent Supreme Principle as, sustainer Vishnu, Rudra, the dissolution
aspect of Supreme Principle and Katyaayini as the power aspect of Supreme
principle. Brahma as creative aspect was
not considered as He had already completed his job when humans are born who are
only concerned with Sthiti (Sustenance) and Laya (Dissolution) and its Sakti or
Power aspect in keeping with Temple Traditions not to worship Brahma. Some
attribute Brahma Padartha to Trinity Brahma, the creative essence.
Ramanuja, the Vaishnava Saint during his conquest tour visited
Purushottama-kshetra. Swami Ramakrishnanada writes in his Book on Sri Ramanuja:
“Resting in Puri for some time Ramanuja founded the monastery there called Embar
Math after the name Govinda, his own disciple. During Satya Yuga, Brahma
performed great tapas on Vishnu, and Vishnu pleased with the worship instructed
Brahma to construct a temple here with a standing pose of Vishnu. This place
came to be known as Brahmagiri. It is said that Sri Ramanuja also visited this
temple during his Orissa visit. He must have been delighted to see a beautiful
deity of a four armed Sri Maha Vishnu, with Conch, discus, Mace and Lotus
flower. It is also believed that he named the deity ‘Sri Alwarnath’ or the
‘Lord of the Alwars’. As we know, the
azhwars were the divine saints of Sri Vaishnava Sampradaya. The place
which housed Alwarnath hence also came to be known as Alwarpur. And today the
words have been shortened with time, the temple known as Sri ‘Alarnath’ or ‘Alalanath’
and the place called ‘Alarpur’!
Ramanuja had many meetings with the then king,
holding religious discussions with him. ‘Ananta Varman Choda Ganga Deva’
(Chodaganga) was the king at that time, who earlier had a leaning towards
Saivite philosophy. The king developed a strong belief in Vaishnavism in his
later years, during which time he had the opportunity of meeting Sri
Ramanuja.
Despite Sri Ramanujar’s sudden
departure from Puri, the influence of his vision on Puri Jagannath temple
remains. There is a shrine/sannadhi for Lakshmi built inside the compound of
the Jagannath temple by Chodaganga, as suggested by Ramanuja. Even a metallic
Lakshmi icon is placed near Jagannatha, though not prominently displayed, on
Ratna Vedhi. The Puri temple is actually known as Sri Mandira, in line with the
belief that Jagannath is always with Lakshmi.
South
Indians believe Jagannatha in Krita Yuga revealed his identity as Kurma Avatar
on appearing as Vishnu to the three sages while people in Orissa today make people
believe that Jagannatha is none other than Krishna of Dwapara Yuga who called
himself Bhagawan in Gita influenced by Gowdieeya Sampradaya and Bhakti Vedanta
of Krishna Consciousness.
Adi Jagaantha icon in Pullani matches
with the description in Brahma–vaivarta-purana described above I am more
inclined to go by the description in Skanda Purana which treats Vishnu, Siva
and Brahma on equal footings unlike other Puranas which are sectarian biased
that I have explained in detail. Skanda Purana says-- trayormadhya-sthitam bhadraa
Subhadraam that is Jagannatha, Bala-bhadra with Lakshmi or
Katyaayini, Bhuvaneshvari or Ekanaamsa). Subhadraa in this account stands separately (prithak sthitam).
This goes well with the story popular
in Orissa where it is stated that Lakshmi was driven away from Ratnavedhi by
protagonists who believed in sister-in-law and daughter-in-law conflict
prevalent in Orissa culture in those days admitting the fact that Lakshmi was
originally there. To those who do not
like this story they have another story. An elder brother is not even supposed
to look at the wife of his younger brother. She always covers her head and face
with Sari when moving around the house
if brother-in-law or father-in-law or even older males are around. This explains why Subhadraa or pretty faced
Lakshmi stood separate (prthak sthitam)
and not in line with Jagannatha and Balabhsdra.
Also if Subhadraa were to be seen in the assembly she should be placed to the left and not to the right of Jagannatha as Laksmi is
the consort of Jagannatha.
Later
a metallic Lakshmi was installed on Ratnavedhi not very prominent to please those
who believe in Jagannatha as Vishnu and not the later Avatar of Krishna. Thus
we see that Ratnavedhi often went with house-cleaning which is not acceptable
to South Indian Temple traditions. They also do not approve Nava Kalevara with
new deity every time unheard of in temple tradition.
The images now worshipped in Puri
Temple are wooden ones but not the original images of the days of Indradyumna. As you all know every
twelve years or nineteen years the old images are discarded and buried and new
ones installed in their place in an elaborate ritual known as “Nava Kalevara”. So there is nothing ancient about these deities
whereas the deity of Adi Jagannatah is of stone and believed to be Udbhava
Murti (self-emerged) as it was discovered and consecrated. It is relevant here
to know how Attivaradar idol of
Kanchipuram made of wood is preserved from ancient times carefully under water
and revealed to the public once in forty years. Tirupati deity as well as
Pazhani Murugan are all believed to be wood and well preserved in original
form. Why Odisha did not do it is a myster? According to Puri Jagannath history
the first ever hand-crafted Jagannatha was made from a reddish brown wood
(daru) that Indradyumna got from the sea shore that started its journey from
the sea in Gujarat near Dwaraka where the ancient city of Yadavas got submerged
in water and the whole Yadu dynasty got destroyed as cursed lot after the
departure of Sri Krishna from the mortal world.
This makes one believe that the non-identifiable Jagannatha icon of Puri is that of Krishna. Even today lot of care is taken in identifying the trees suitable for the
purpose by experts which is kept as guarded secret and the wood brought every
time mysteriously. Here only logical thing to conclude is that Temple Tradition
started with Jagannatha worship as Nature, in the form of Aswattha Tree from
very early times. In Gita Bhagawan
declared that among trees I am Aswattha. While Adi Jaganntha of Tirupppullani
emerges from the divine tree Aswattha that extends to three Worlds Puri
Jaganntha is conceptualized from the tree found on sea by Indradyumna and also
a later concept. The idols of Krityuga Indradyumna were carved out of the whole
tree that appeared floating near the shores of Puri and not log of wood. Unfortunately
we do not have any trace of these original idols carved out tree.
It is strange that in Temple Traditions
today myths, beliefs, dreams and fantasies overrule historic facts or actual
Puranic happenings! With all the explanation above the worship of three deities
as Balarama, Subhadra and Jagannatha remains a mystery and unconvincing unlike
the Adi Jagannatha worship in Tiruppllanni where Vishnu and Lakshmi are
worshiped as Jagannatha and Padmasini. Some deep research needs to be taken
forth, if we need to come to a conclusion on this subject based on facts
recovered from the old artifacts discovered by the archeologists.
The foremost question is why the
unusual worship of Subhadra on the Ratnavedi. Here the Sakta traditional
worship sounds logical and convincing aligning
Jagannatha worship tradition to the most ancient Jagannatha Temple in Tiruppllani
with
Padmasini.
Jagannath is venerated as Bhairava or Lord Shiva, the
consort of Goddess Vimala, by Shaivites
and Shakta sects. The prominent eyes of the main
deity expresses Rudratva or ferociousness. The priests of Jagannath Temple at Puri belong
to the Shakta sect, then arises the question why the Vaishnava sect's influence
should predominate?
Both Vedanta Desika and Jayadeva have
glorified Balabhadra as an avatar of Vishnu and none has raised Subhadra to
even to the status of Draupadi in Mahabharata or Bhagavata. It would have been
more appropriate to include Arjuna as
Nara whose original identity Krishna reveals so telling that he was Narayana
and Arjuna was Nara and together they had spent lot of time together. I am not
sure whether Jayadeva has ever mentioned about Subhadra in fact anybody except
a myth and dream of Indradyumna of later days and not the actual revelation to
Indraduyumna of Kritayuga.
Along
with Jagannatha, Balabhadra (his elder brother), Subhadra (his sister) worship in Puri baffles everybody. These three should constitute the basic and
fundamental Trinity and considered to be the forms and manifestations of the
omnipresent, omniscient and omnipotent supreme power. Sudarsan who is supposed
to be the fourth important divine manifestation is also worshiped. They
therefore often justify Subhadra worship as Yogamaya and hence Sakti.
Yogamaya was born to Yashoda-Nandagopa
but Subhadra is the daughter of Rohini-Vasudeva. Yogamaya was born just a day after Krishna
was born, while Subhadra's birth
happened while Krishna and Balarama were at the Ashrama of Sandipani.
Vishnu Purana mentions Devi Yoganidra
as: - Arya, Durga, Vedagarbha, Bhadra, Ambika, Kaushiki, Bhadrakali, Khsemada
and Bhagyadaa. Subhadra is not included in the list of these names. Devi
marries no one else than Shiva and
Subhadra marries Arjuna.
Indra accepts Yogamaya as his sister
when she goes to paradise of Indra after warning Kamsa according to
Puranas. Then the son of that Indra
(Arjuna) would not marry Yogamaya being sister of Indra.
Based on
these facts I would go by the explanation of Madhvacharya, an authority on
Sastras and Puranas. According his work on Mahabharata
Tatparya Nirnaya, Subhadra is
reincarnation of Trijata, Vibhishana's daughter, who had served Sita Devi in
the garden of Asoka while she was held captive in Lanka. By the virtue of her
service, she took birth as sister of Krishna and Balarama.
In another Puranic version Subhadra is
mentioned to be reincarnation of Madhvi, the daughter of sage Galava. Madhvi was cursed by Lakshmi to have a horse
head in next birth since she wanted to marry Vishnu. Subhadra with horse face was born to Vasudeva
and Suprabha, his third wife. Krishna
had taken her to Hatakeshvara and performed a penance. Brahma was appeased and
blessed Subhadra to have the most charming and beautiful face that bewitched
Arjuna.
The projection of Mahamaya and Yogamaya
for identifying Subhadra as Sakti by ISKCON and others also seems incredible
and exaggerated to justify the present deities on Ratnvedi. Yogamaya and Mahamaya are verily the same
Goddess, and this fact is attested by Vishnu Purana. All these facts
justify that Subhadra has no place on the Ratnavedi as a deity or Devi and
Jagannatha Worship in Tiruppullani seems to be more authentic.
One more interesting fact is the
popularity of Narasimha worship along with Jagannatha. It is true Narasimha is
Darubrahma and assumed the peculiar form to kill Hiranya Kasipu coming out of a
wooden pillar. In Tiruppullani he came out of an Aswattha Tree. It is said that
Vishnu himself stood in the form of Peepal Tree. In Sanskrit Peepal is known as
“Achyastava or Ashvattha,” and its Botanical name is Ficus Religiosa. There are
many legends & mythologies which have been described in Vedic Puaranas. One
of the incident described in one of the Puaranas that when Demons (Asuras) were
very powerful and defeated divines or devas, Lord Vishnu took the shelter in
Peepal Tree. Since Narayan himself took shelter in Peepal, it gained the divine
significance for humans, and people began to worship the tree, considering it
to be one way to offer prayers to Lord Vishnu as Aswattha Narayana. Aswattha
Narayana name is very popular in Karnataka. Both Rudra and Narasimha are
worshiped as ”Sadhyojaata” instant born
and worshiped with Panchabrahma Mantras that I explained in detail before. This
worship of Narasimha made some believe Rudra is present on Ratnavedi with
fierce eyes!
Another popular worship in South India is
Aswattha Tree with stone-snake slabs.
While Aswattha symbolizes Narayana as Daru Brahman snake symbolizes
Adishesha on which Narayana reclined that took avatars of Lakshmana in Rama avatar
and Balarama in Krishna avatar.
While Laksmana and Rama idols are always consecrated together we seldom see
Krishna and Balarama Idols together except in Puri and Chennai and wherever
Krishna is hailed as Parthasarathy. Brahmavaivarta Purana states Balabhadra appeared
as seven -hooded snake to Injdradyumana
I
wonder why Odisha did not think of Radha on the Ratnavedihi t6o add to the
confusion since Radha Krishna Pair worship is most popular all over India where
Radha symbolizes Jivatma while Krishna is Paramatma and Sesha is the Sakti? The
placing of Radha in the same line along with Balabhadra and Jagannatha makes
sense as she is friend of both not married to any!
Present day Hindu worship seems to take
a fancy to myths and beliefs moving away from even actual facts. This can be
clearly understood looking at the Adi Vinayaka Naramukha Temple in Tamil Nadu
which worship in true Human form as created by Parvati has become history while
the unbelievable story of creation of Ekadanta by angry Siva has become so
popular further made most popular by our musicians. Parvati frustrated by being
deprived of a womb born child created her own version of a body-guard with her
Kriyasakti and Icchasakti to be worshiped as a deliverance of her Hladinisakti.
Today He is worshiped as Ekadaanta with pot belly elephant head riding on a
tiny mouse appealing to children and kindergarten level of religious
followers. Another myth and popularity
is Jagannatha worship of half-finished wooden carved idols left half-done in anger
by a divine carpenter and also a concocted dream by Indradyumna of later origin
made to believe by all. Among many puranas
Skanda Purana though sounds a Purana of Saivism is authentic, logical
and unbiased. Sanatkumra is Skanda says Chhandogya Upanishad. So this Purana is not biased as other Saivite
Puranas. Sanatkumara was born as Skanda as requested by Siva. I have seen Jaganntha’s arm studs are
decorated with Sankha and Chakra being worshiped on festive days of Ratha yatra
everywhere. Also one Odisha author describes Radha as incarnation of Lakshmi. I
do not know why anybody did not think of Radha in place of Subhadra so
popularized in Gita Govind in their speculations!
Hindu
Confusion-ism is not isolated cases of worship of Jagannatha and Ekadanta
Ganesha. Look at the current confused festival season! Gowri
Habba, or Gowri Ganesha Festival, is observed during the Ganesh Chaturthi, or
Vinayaka Chaturthi Festival in Karnataka celebrated on September 1, Sunday in
2019. Married women perform Ganesh Gowri
worship for a happy and peaceful married life. Unmarried women perform it for
getting good husbands. The popular belief is that Goddess Parvati visits her
devotees on the day and Lord Ganesha comes on the next day (Ganesh Chaturthi day)
to take her back to Kailasa, the abode of Lord Shiva.
Teej
Festival fasting day is also September 1 in 2019. The last day of Teej
(September 3, 2019) is observed as Rishi Panchami dedicated to Goddess Parvati and Lord Shiva and is observed
for three consecutive days as Hartalika Teej in India.
Teej commemorates the intense austerity observed by Goddess Parvati to get
Lord Shiva as husband. In Nepal, Teej is also the period when married women
visit their parents. The night before Teej day is known as Dar khane Di. The day after Teej is Ganesh Chaturthi and special
prayers are held. The next day is Rishi
Panchami and special prayers are offered to the Sapta Rishis. In India,
there are three Teej festivals and the most
important is the Hartalika Teej.
Jyeshta Gowri (Parvati) Pujan is
performed in many households during Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Maharashtra.
In 2019, Gowri Avahan is on September 5, 2019. Gowri Puja is on September 6 and
Gowri Visarjan is on September 7, 2019.
Two idols of Goddess Gaowri are brought home and worshiped. The arrival is regarded as the coming of the sisters
of Ganesha by some communities. Most people believe that it is Goddess Parvati,
mother of Ganesha. Legend has
it that the two forms Gowri follow Ganesha to the homes.
Gowri Puja is also
considered as Upasana of Goddess Lakshmi in some regions. The idols of
Goddess Gowri which are brought in pairs as two different forms of Gowri are decorated and special pujas are
offered. The popular belief is that
Goddess Goweri visits and resides in homes during the period.
Many Hindus
might raise an eyebrow when they hear Gowri as sister of Ganesha. A Gowri Puja is held the day before or on Ganesh Chaturthi in
Karnataka and in it Gowri is the mother of Ganesha. In West Bengal, Goddess
Lakshmi and Goddess Saraswati are sisters of Ganesha and all three are children
of Goddess Durga.
Varaha Jayanti 2019 on September 1 in
the North. In South India, Varaha Jayanti was observed in
Vaishakh Month (April - May) on Vaishakh Krishna Paksha Dwadasi Tithi. In 2019,
this was on May 31. In Kerala it was observed on fifth day during the waxing
phase of moon in Vaishakh month and this is on April 23.
Each region
in India has an independent culture of its own and most of these
cultures are sometimes 5000 years old. Each region has developed madness in its
own way of interpreting the make attempt to give form to the Nirguna
Parabrahman. Brahman cannot be defined they say but each Hindu defines Brahman
and enjoys the freedom to make an attempt to define in it. This
Freedom of Sanatana Dharma goes often hay wire in Hinduism and Temple
Traditions are more focused on an individual’s dictate of Brahman and
playing to the gallery than spiritually leading! American Hindus
have brought all these confusions from various lands not necessarily from
Bharat alone (more the merrier), and Hindu American Temples are
more confused than even India. Puranas and beliefs make mother sister, daughter
wife, son brother, calf-love wife etc., all
at the same time of creation for Hinduism nay Hindu confusion-ism where even
Hindu is a confused term. To top it we have the calendar confusion that stands
not corrected for several centuries. Hinduism says “Ask no question; follow the
elders, follow the Purans; If you don’t you are an atheist. There
are two Hanuman Jayantis and Krishna's Birth Days too. How can we
worship together like ancient Sanatana Dharma sages? So traditional Vedantins
live in their own world! Neo Vedantins are trying to remove confusion but are
fighting shy afraid of Religious Pundits!
Andal like
Radha did not marry Krishna she loved and dreamed Krishna to be her husband. In
South India Andal has shrines for her alone in most of the Vishnu temples. But
throughout India Radha as consort of Krishna being worshiped is very popular
and their wedding is celebrated in all temples ceremoniously. I believe there
are temples to Meerabai also!
Jagannatha
Philosophy friends of mine often explain to me thus the present thoughts of
Jaganntha strongly believing in the form as worshiped today: As
far as the uncouth form, art has no form and how the Paramatma really looks can
be anybody’s guess. It will be childish to even imagine that He looks like a human;
therefore is handsome. How can one fathom the unfathomable? What is beautiful
to you is uncouth and ugly to another. That is why the three deities were left
to your imagination; male or female or both? They represent all complexions of
humans as can be imagined at that early times. Look at the eyes too and you
will notice Balabhadra and Subhadra have two types of eyes of humans and
Jagannath’s stays open all times without eye lids to blink until the end of
this creation (one Bramhaa’s duration)”.
In Mahabharata Lord Krishna revealed
his Viswarupa as Universal Form three times in full form. I do chant Purushasukta daily. Here the
Supreme is described as “sahasraseershaa
purushah sahasraakshah saharapath”
in full- form. It further says “Padbhyaam
bhoomih sudro ajayata”-- earth and sudra emerged out of his feet showing
his lotus feet to the praying rishis. In Kritayuga Jaganntha revealed in full
form. In every Vishnu temple first worship begins with Padapuja and also in
Gaya. Vardhmana worshipion Jainism is only to the holy feet. So the above
explanation is not convincing. He always presents to devotees in human form
with extra powers like four hands confirmed by many Puranas.
Coming to the post that is identified
as Sudarshana, though it is kept to back of Lord Jagannath during Ratha
Festival the Sudarshana travels in Subhadra’s Ratha identifying Subhadra as the
manifestation of Shakti or Shridevi. Therefore, it will be a mistake to worship
her as the younger sister of Krishna as in Mahabharata. Only she need to
be either lowered down or elevated and not in line with Jagannatha and
Balabhadra.
Bhagavad
Gita says 'tasmaat saastram pramaanam te kaaryaakaarya
vyavasthithou.' Agamas also say that worships that
are not performed according to the auspicious time for the place are
ineffective without telling the right Sastra and auspicious time of worship
with right understanding of the deity. It is high time our
Religious Pundits and Spiritual Gurus come together, sit together and think
together to give a sense of single and straight direction to
practice Sanatana Dharma as our Rishis did in the past--Sangacchadhvam sam
vadadhvam; Samaano mantrah samitih; Samaano vaa aakootih:
Compiled
from:
PurushottAma Mahatmya in
SkandA Purana
Ramachandra S.K., Vishnu
Kosha, Kalpataru Research Academy, Sharadha peetham Sankar Math, Sringeri
APPENDIX
PURUSHOTTAMA KSHETRA MAHATMYA
(Skanda
Purana Vaishnava Khanda--7)
Introduction:
Enquiry
about visible manifestation of Lord Jagannatha:
Once in an assembly of learned Bahmanas and pilgrims he asked his priest
whether Lord Jagannath exists visibly in any place. The priest asked the
assembly of pilgrims. A certain widely travelled pilgrim told about Sri Purushottama
in Odhra desa on the southern shore sea of Bharata. There is a mountain names
Nilagiri surrounded by forests. In the middle of the forest there is a kalpa
tree extending a krosha whose shade dispels sins. To the west is a holy pool
named Rauhina filled with primordial waters which bestows salvation. On the
eastern bank Lord Jagannatha visibly exists holding conch, discus and club. On
the western side the sabaras (hunter community) live in hermitage known as
sabara dipika. The place is so holy that heaven dwellers come there every night
to worship the Lord. There is also a legend about a crow getting liberated
there. Saying this the pilgrim vanished.
Vidyapati
travelling to Sri Purushottama: Hearing this the king intended to
settle there with his entire kingdom and worship Lord Jagannatha. In
consultation with the priest he sent the younger brother of the priest named
Vidyapati to locate the place and also find a suitable place of residence. On
an auspicious day Vidyapati left in a chariot with emissaries.
Vidyapati
reaching Mahanadi: Vidyapati considered himself highly
fortunate to be able to see the Lord with his own eyes. Towards the end of the
day he reached the bank of river Mahanadi at Odhra. He performed his evening
rites meditating on the Lord and spent the night in the chariot.
Vidyapati
crossing Mahanadi and reaching Ekamraka vana and Nila mountain: Early
in the morning Vidyapati crossed the river Mahanadi and saw the villages of
Vedic Brahmanas. He then crossed the Ekamraka forest and came to the Nila
mountain. He climbed the top of the forested mountain but could not locate the
path further. He spread darbha grass on the ground and meditated on the Lord.
Then Vidyapati heard some voices discussing about the Lord. He saw Sabaradipika
surrounded by the house of Sabaras.
Skanda
Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 7 - 8):
Vidyapati
meeting sabara Vishwavasu and seeing the Lord:
Then Vidyapati approached a sabara named Vishwavasu who welcomed him and asked
about his purpose. Vidyapati told him about the mission of king Indradyumna and
his own eagerness to see the Lord. Vishwavasu was initially worried because the
sabaras were secretly worshipping the Lord. But he remembered a traditional
legend that in future the Lord will vanish and a king named Indradyumna will
perform hundred horse sacrifices and install the wooden form of the Lord.
Thinking that the time has come for this legend to come true, he took Vidyapati
through rugged mountain forest to the holy pool Rauhina. To the east was the
great Kalpa banyan tree and between these two was the presence of the Lord.
Vidyapati took his bath in the holy pool and eulogized the Lord with ecstasy.
Towards the evening they returned to the hermitage of Vishwavasu. Vishwavasu
offered a warm hospitality to Vidyapati with the Nirmalya (remnants of the
worship of the devas) of the Lord. Vidyapati was surprised. Next day in the
early morning, they took bath in the ocean and Vishwavasu showed the idol of
Nilamadhava to Vidyapati.
Skanda
Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 9 - 10
Vidyapati
returning and the Lord vanishing:- After deciding about a place of
residence for the king, Vidyapati left for Avanti. In the meantime a violent
gust of wind raised the sands of the sea shore and submerged the Lord along
with the Rauhina kunda. The devas became highly sorrowful and lamented.
Vidyapati returned to Avanti and reported everything to the king. The king was
overjoyed. At the same time sage Narada visited the king and stayed with him to
guide the king in the great journey.
Skanda
Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 11):
Indradyumna
to get ready to go to Purushottama Kshetra--The king departed on
the auspicious day of Jyestha Shukla Paksha Panchami (a Wednesday). The entire
kingdom accompanied him.
Indradyumna
reaching the shrine of Carcika on the boundary of Utkaladesa:
The king passed through various lands and forests and reached the shrine of
Carcika (Goddess Durga) at the
boundary of Utkaladesa. At the behest of sage Narada, the king got down the
chariot and eulogized the Devi.
Indradyumna
camping at the bank of river Chitrotpala and meeting the king of Utkala:--Later
on, the king camped at the bank of river Chitrotpala (Mahanadi) and performed
his evening rites. During this stay the king of Utkala came to meet him with
various gifts. King Indradyumna welcomed him and in the course of the
conversation came to know that the idol of Madhava has been covered by a
sandstorm. When the king left, Indradyumna was highly dejected but sage Narada
consoled him saying that he will certainly see the Lord.
Indradyumna
crossing river Mahanadi and going towards Ekamravana:
Next morning after performing the religious rites the king started the journey.
He crossed the river Mahanadi and proceeded towards Ekamravanaka (modern
Bhuvaneshwar). The king of Odhra showed the way.
Indradyumna reaching the river Gandhavaha and the shrine of Kotilingeshwara: After travelling some distance the king reached the river Gandhavaha and heard the sound of the forenoon worship of the Kotilingeshwara shrine. The Nila mountain was three yojanas from there. The king took bath in the Bindu Tirtha and worshipped the idol of Purushottama installed on the bank. Then he visited the temple of Koteshwara and sang devotional songs accompanied by Veena. Lord Koteshwara through a voice told the king that his desire will be fulfilled. Through another voice the Lord Koteshwara told sage Narada to guide the king to perform the horse sacrifices as per the command of the Lord.
Indradyumna reaching the river Gandhavaha and the shrine of Kotilingeshwara: After travelling some distance the king reached the river Gandhavaha and heard the sound of the forenoon worship of the Kotilingeshwara shrine. The Nila mountain was three yojanas from there. The king took bath in the Bindu Tirtha and worshipped the idol of Purushottama installed on the bank. Then he visited the temple of Koteshwara and sang devotional songs accompanied by Veena. Lord Koteshwara through a voice told the king that his desire will be fulfilled. Through another voice the Lord Koteshwara told sage Narada to guide the king to perform the horse sacrifices as per the command of the Lord.
Skanda
Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 12 - 13):
Indradyumna
reaching Kapotesha and Bilvesha:--The next day the king reached the
shrines of Sri Kapotesha and Bilvesha and worshipped them.
Skanda
Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 14):
Indradyumna
reaching Nilakantha and hearing about the Lord vanishing--Proceeding
further the king reached the boundary of the holy place of Nilakantha. Then bad
omens began to appear before him. Sage Narada told the king that the deity had
vanished below the sand and he will not be able to see Nilmadhava. The king
fell on the ground unconscious. Bringing back his consciousness, sage Narada
told the king about the prediction of Lord Brahma and urged the king to perform
the horse sacrifices at Purushottama Kshetra. Indradyumna's grief was
dispelled.
Skanda Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 15):
Skanda Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 15):
Indradyumna
climbing the Nila Mountain; Seeing the idol of Nrisimha and the former place of Nilamadhava: The king left
the chariot behind and worshipping Mahadeva and Devi Durga climbed the
difficult terrain of the Nila mountain. Sage Narada guided the king to the
place where the Lord was residing as
Nrisimha. The idol was of extremely terrible form and the king bowed to the
Lord from a distance. Then he enquired the sage about the former place of
Nilamadhava. When sage Narada showed him the spot, the king prostrated on the
ground and eulogized the Lord with deep devotion. An ethereal voice assured the
king that the Lord will be visible to him later and urged him to carry out the
direction of Brahma as mentioned by Narada. King Indradyumna was assured and
decided to perform the horse sacrifies.
Skanda
Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 16):
King Indradyumna building a shrine and
sage Narada installing Nrisimha at
the place of the horse sacrifice: Then sage Narada invoked the celestial architect Vishwakarma, and
instructed the king to build a shrine for
Nrisimha at the place of horse sacrifice with the help of Vishwakarma (this
was completed in four days). Narada himself got a second idol of Nrisimha built
by Vishwakarma and meditating for five days infused this idol with the prana of
the original Nrisimha idol. Then he installed this idol of Nrisimha on
Jyestha Shukla Paksha Dwadashi in conjunction with the Swati Nakshatra.
King Indradyumna eulogized Nrisimha with various hymns.
Skanda Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 17):
Skanda Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 17):
King Indradyumna performing thousand
horse sacrifices: Then the king constructed sacrificial halls and the houses
for the guests and invited all the devas and thousands of sages and Brahmanas. He made elaborate
arrangements for them and extended a grand hospitality. He beseeched the favour
of Indra deva to ensure that the sacrifice is completed without obstacles. The devas assured their full support for this
work of Madhava. The king started performing the horse sacrifices as per the
prescribed rules of the scriptures. Gradually all but the last sacrifice
remained to be performed. The king had a vision of Lord Vishnu in the milky
ocean. He eulogized the Lord with tears of joy.
Skanda
Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 18)
Emerging
of a celestial tree: On the last day of the last sacrifice
when the Sutya rite (extraction of Soma) was being performed, the servants
reported to the king that a celestial
tree was seen at the sea shore whose fragrance spreads across the whole
surroundings. Sage Narada told the king that the hair of Sri Vishnu had incarnated as the tree. He instructed the
king to complete the horse sacrifice and install the tree in the sacrificial
altar. When the tree was installed, an
ethereal voice told the king to conceal the sacrificial altar for fifteen days
during which time a carpenter will build the divine idols of the Lord. Music
should be played during this time to hide the sound of carving.
Skanda
Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 19):
Carving
of the idol of Purushottama: Sri Vishnu assumed the form of an old carpenter and started carving the
idol of the Lord. During this work divine fragrance, divine music and
shower of parijata flowers took place.
After the work was over, an ethereal voice gave instructions about how the
idols should be painted and decorated. When
the king unveiled the altar he saw the divine idols of Krishna (Jagannatha),
Balarama and Subhadra. The king was
immersed in a joy of bliss and stood there motionless. All his exertions had
finally became fruitful. The king eulogized the Lord and prostrated before Him.
Sage Narada and other sages also eulogized the Lord.
Skanda Purana (Vaishnava Khanda -
Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 20):
Forming of Indradyumna lake--During the
horse sacrifices the king donated crores of cows. A pit got formed by the
hoofs of the cows which got filled with water poured while giving charity.
This pool of holy water was known as Indradyumna
lake.
Skanda
Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 21):
King Indradyumna building a great
shrine for the Lord---Thereafter the king built a large shrine for the Lord.
Sage Narada told that Lord Brahma will himself inaugurate that shrine. Then
sage Narada started rising in the sky.
Skanda
Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 22 - 23):
Indradyumna going to the abode of Lord
Brahma--King Indradyumna requested sage Narada to take him to Brahmaloka. Both
of them started for Brahmaloka in a divine chariot. When the king reached the
presence of Lord Brahma, he requested the Lord to install the idol of Lord
Jagannatha in the shrine. Lord Brahma told him that during his stay in
Brahmaloka, a manvantara has passed in the earth and the first Yuga of second
manvantara (Swarocisa) has arrived. Crores and crores of kings have departed
from the earth but the Lord and His shrine still remained. Thereafter Lord
Brahma told Indradyumna to first go to the earth and make preparations for the
installation of the Lord. He himself would then come there to install the
wooden idol of the Lord. Lord Brahma told the
devas and Padmanidhi to assist Indradyumna.
Skanda
Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 24 - 26):
Indradyumna making arrangements for
installation and building the chariots: When Indradyumna reached the earth he
saw the Lord and the shrine still intact due to the grace of Purushottama. With
the help of sage Narada and Padmanidhi he started making all the arrangements
for the installation of the Lord. Sage Narada told him to build three chariots for Krishna (Jagannatha), Balarama and
Subhadra. The chariots were built by Vishwakarma on a single day and were
installed by sage Narada. During this time a king by name Gala was worshipping
a stone image of Madhava in the shrine
(when Indradyumna was in Brahmaloka) which Indradyumna moved to an adjacent
smaller shrine. The king was angry and came to attack Indradyumna with a huge
army. But when he came to know about him and his purpose, he submitted to him
and joined him in this work of Madhava.
Skanda
Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 27):
Lord Brahma installing the deities:
When all the arrangements for installation of the deities were completed, Lord
Brahma Himself came down from Satyaloka. He eulogized Narayana, Balarama,
Subhadra and Sudarshana and ceremoniously installed the deities from the
chariots inside the shrine. The installation was performed on Vaisakha Shukla Paksha Ashtami on a
Thursday in conjunction with the Pushya nakshatra.
Skanda
Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 27 - 28):
Lord
assuming the form of Narasimha: --After installing Madhava,
Lord Brahma repeated the Mantraraja a thousand times. By the power of
that Mantra, the Lord assumed the
terrible form of Narasimha with a blazing tongue as if licking the entire
universe. Upon enquiry by sage Narada, Lord Brahma said that this mantra was
used previously by Brahma when the Lord killed the demon Hiranyakasapu. Then
Lord Brahma eulogized Narasimha and initiated king Indradyumna in that mantra.
Skanda
Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 29):
Granting of boon to Indradyumna:
Thereafter Lord Brahma took away the Narasimha form and idols were seen as
before. Lord Brahma requested Madhava to bless the king to be able to continue
His worship with devotion. The wooden body of Lord Madhava then directly
blessed king Indradyumna with boons. Madhava blessed that his devotion will be
steady and He (i.e. Madhava) will never abandon that place even if the shrine
crumbles.
Skanda
Purana (Vaishnava Khanda - Purushottama Kshetra Mahatmya 29):
Lord telling about festivals to be
performed: The Lord told about some festivals to be performed by the king.
1. On the full moon day of Jyestha, the
birthday of the incarnation should be celebrated (The Lord incarnated on the
second Chaturyugas of Manu on Jyestha of Krita Yuga). The Lord should be bathed
and taken to the banyan tree.
2. The great procession named Gundicha
should be celebrated on the Ashadha Shukla Paksha Dwitiya preferably in
conjunction with the Pushya nakshatra. The Gundicha pavilion should be built on
the place of the altar of the thousand horse sacrifices. The Indradyumna lake
exists there consisting of all the tirthas. The Lord should be taken there for
nine days, after which the Lord should be taken back to the shrine.
3. On Phalguna Poornima, the festivals
of swing (dola) should be celebrated.
4. On Chaitra Shukla Paksha Tryodashi the festival of Karmaprapuranam should be celebrated. The Lord should be worshipped with Damana flowers on the Chaitra Shukla Paksha Chaturdashi.
4. On Chaitra Shukla Paksha Tryodashi the festival of Karmaprapuranam should be celebrated. The Lord should be worshipped with Damana flowers on the Chaitra Shukla Paksha Chaturdashi.
5. On Vaishakha Shukla Paksha Tritiya
(Akshaya Tritiya), the Lord should be smeared with special unguents.
Thus the Lord blessed king Indradyumna
and commanded to celebrate the great festivals and processions.
Nava Kalevara of 900 Year Old Hindu Monastery after
Demolisheing old one
Current News by Alpana
Agarwal August 31
The Puri administration is tearing down
many structures, including ancient Mathas, within 75-metre distance of the
Jagannath temple walls in the name of development. Some of these Hindu
religious institutions date back to hundreds of years. One of them is the 900
year old Emmar Matha, established by none other than Sri Ramanujacharya
himself.
Heads of these Mathas as well as
archaeologists, historians, and other experts have opposed this move by the
government. These Mathas have a huge religious significance for practicing
Hindus. Some of them house rare murals, manuscripts, sculptures and other
historical artifacts. If this was any other country, these temples would
have been declared as heritage monuments, and been carefully preserved and
maintained. Would such apathetic treatment ever be meted out to an old mosque
or a church?
The biggest tragedy here is that there
is not even a murmur by local Hindus or Hindu organizations. There were 2
petitions filed in the Supreme Court to stay the demolition, one from a Chennai
resident, and another by the Intercontinental Lawyers’ Association. However,
both were dismissed by the SC. The next hearing will happen on September 17th.
In the meantime, the century old
Languli Matha of the Naga cult was torn down by the administration citing
safety reasons. Odisha CM is promising to “rehabilitate” the Mathas. This is
highly irregular and uncalled for. Old, heritage structures should be
retrofitted and rebuilt by authorities, not torn down! Deities are sanctified
in a temple or religious place by doing prana pratishtha. They cannot be
moved at will after being sanctified. Rehabilitation is a dangerous idea
here, as this is not just loss of a building structure, this is loss of
cultural heritage. The people who are a part of the Mathas cannot simply be
“rehabilitated” to work on other jobs. They carry knowledge of the place and
the functioning of a Hindu monastery. That lineage gets destroyed by destroying
ancient monasteries.
Next to be demolished is the 900 year
old Emmar Matha, which was postponed due to the silent protest by the Mahant
Rajgopal Ramanuj Das. As of the date of writing this article, its historical
gate and Raghunandan library which housed ancient manuscripts had already been
razed to the ground.
This utter apathy and disinterest in
preserving the cultural and architectural heritage of Hindus is alarming.
Numerous mosques, which were built by demolishing Hindu temples, gather mold,
but are never demolished by authorities. But a Hindu monastery is now being
demolished, without a whimper from anyone.
Nrusimha
Worship in Puri
Prof.
Purna Chandra Mohapatra (2018)
Even-though
Puri is a famous Vaisnavite center there is no other Vaisnavite shrine, worth
the name except the Temple of Jagannath and minor Vaisnava shrines of other
incarnations of Vishnu.
The worship
of Visnu is very much popular among the Hindus. He is the Protector who rescues
humanity at the time of distress. The time when the evil prevails upon the
truth, Vishnu takes different incarnations to annihilate the evil and rescue
the saints and truthful. The Vaishnavas believe in the ten incarnations of Vishnu.
His fourth incarnation is the great god Narasimha, the body of a man and the
head of the lion. The concept of man-animal combined feature or the anthropomorphic
form are to be noticed in the icons of Daksha Prajapati, Varaha, Ganesha,
Gomukhi Keshaba and Narasimha. Similarly in Egypt, the people worship a goddess
Bast, who had a human body and the face of a cat. The image of Narasimhanath of
Paikamal, in Baragarh district is Marjara Keshari. The image of Sarabha is illustrated
in the composite of a man, bird and beast. Evolved as one of the Avataras of
Vishnu, Nrisimha grew into prominence and worshiped independently and
considered as the full incarnation.
The
story of Vishnu assuming Narasimha incarnation is very popular throughout the
country. Hiranya Kasyapu, the demon king, in order to avenge the death of his elder
brother Hiranakhya (who was killed by Vishnu in Varaha or boar incarnation)
decided to conquer death and worshiped Brahma the Creator. After prolonged and
rigorous Tapas, he received five-fold boon-he will not meet death at the hands
of a man, beast, bird, or demon or at the hands of any new creation. He should
not die inside or outside. Neither on the day nor at night, neither on earth
nor in the sky and finally not with weapon.
After
receiving the boon, he possessed unlimited power and ruled over all the
creatures. He prohibited Vishnu worship in his territory. But interestingly his
son Prahallad became an ardent devotee of Vishnu. Dissuasions and punishments did
not fault Prahallad in his devotion to Vishnu.
Hiranyakasyapu
challenged the omnipotence of Vishnu by his mocking querry whether Vishnu resided
in the pillar of the palace hall, which he kicked. The pillar broke open and
Vishnu appeared in his terrifying form and killed the demon,assuming man, lion
form observing all the conditions of the boon of Brahma, (neither man nor
beast, bird demon, or any creation,) at dusk, (neither day nor night), on the
threshold (neither indoor nor outdoor,) with his sharp claws, (not by means of
any weapon,) after placing him on his thighs (neither on earth nor sky.)
In
the Sakti Sangama tantra, it is mentioned that Vishnu assumed the Narasimha
Avatar in the Kritayuga, Angira year, Madhav month and 14th day in
the Swati Nakshatra. In the Skanda Purana, it is written that Narasimha
appeared on the lunar 14th day of Baishakha in Swati Nakshatra on Saturday
during dusk.
We
do not find the name Narasimha in the Vedic period. Only the name is found in Atharvaveda,
Narahari is worshipped by Ganadeva. Ashtadhyayi of Panini did not mention the
name. Epic Mahabharata (Harivamsa), Puranas like Matsya, Padma, Kurma, Vishnu,
and Vishnu Dharmottara associate Narasimha with Vishnu. Basing on these K.C. Das
believes that all these Puranic references on Narasimha were known during the
Gupta period. There are two broad types of Narasimha images i.e. Ugra and Saumya.
But T.Gopinatha Rao has divided the images of Narasimha into three groups,
Sthauna, Girija and Yanak. The word Sthauna, Narasimha coming out of the pillar
(Ugra) and Girija coming out of caves (yoga). Some call it Keshava, and Yanak
is seated on Garuda or Shesha with five hooded canopy held like an umbrella.
When Laxmi is on the left lap the image is called Laxmi-Narasimha. The deity
sitting in Utkutikasana with Yogapatta and Laxmi on the left lap is very common
and popular in Orissa, and Oriyas believehim as the embodiment of valour,
vitality and virtue. The popularity of the god is evinced from the hymns and Suktas
composed for him inclusive Stotram, Puranas and Upanisads. Not only in literatures
but also in epigraphic records and sculptural art, there are references of
Narasimha worship. There are 105 Narasimha temples with land endowments in Orissa.
The list prepared by G. C. Tripathy out of the materials collected by H.V. Stietencorn.
Besides this, there exists many more temples scattered throughout the State. In
addition, a large number of detached images find place in other temples as
Parswadevatas. The worship of Narasimha was sanctioned in Western Orissa during
the Gupta era. "In the research article of scholar Sasanka Sekhar Panda, "Purushyottama
Jagannath is Purushottama Narasimha" published in "Orissa
Review", Ratha Yatra Special Issue, June - 2006, it has been mentioned that
Three Narasimha images are found at Podagarh, Sarguli and Parwa in Nabarangapur
district which are believed to be the images of the Vakataka period who conquered
Puskari (Podagarh) of the Nala kings in 5th and 6th century A.D. Another image
of Narasimha of Maraguda now in Khariar Branch Museum is believed to be of the
period of the Sarabhapuriyas. In Sirpur Inscription, queen Vatasa, mother of
king Mahasivagupta Balajurna of Pandu dynasty had paid her homage to Lord Purushottam
and sought the blessings of Narasimha." During the Somavamsi rule, Narasimha
worship got a new impetus afterwards. Some of the ruling dynasties like Kadambas
of Goa, the Imperial Gangas of Orissa and the Vijayanagar kings in India have
Narasimhaas their tutelary deity.
From
the Dasagoba copper plate of Rajarajadeva, it is revealed that Sri Laxmi
Narasimha
was the tutelary deity of the Ganga. In the Kaleswar Siva Temple Inscription of
Anangabhimadeva-III, the Ganga ruler Chodagangadeva is compared with Narasimha.
Four
of the Ganga kings bore the title of Narasimha which proves the popularity of Narasimha
of that time. As found in the Dynasty Ganga Vamsanucharita from among the
27 kings of Eastern Ganga, seven kings before Chodaganga had the word Narasimha
added to their names. Narasimha temples and Narasimha sculptures of large
varieties of this time (10th to 13th century AD) found in every nook and corner
the State, proves the patronization the cult by theruling dynasties.
The
association of Narasimha with Puri is unique. Puri is the recognized Vaisnavite
center of India, in the Province of Orissa. Puri came to prominence, not as a
political center but as a socio-religious and cultural center. It has not been the
capital of the kingdom at any point of history of Orissa. Therefore, the rise
and fall of the dynasties in its long history have no role in the tale of the
sanctity of the city. Puri is the site of the gods from the time immemorial.
Puri, the city of gods, was the land of Narasimha at one time, the land of
Purushottama at other time and finally the land of Lord Jagannath now. With
scanty historical sources it is very difficult to reach a positive conclusion.
Puri was under the domain of different dynasties ruling over the kingdom in different
periods of history. We don't find any specific historical references about this
place during the rule of the Chedis, Murundas, Matharas, Pitruvaktas, Vigrahas,
Sailodvabas or the Bhaumakars. But during this period Puri had gained a remarkable
popularity as a place of religious importance and there are literary and archaeological
references of Madhava worship by the tribals at this place. It led Dr. S.N. Rajaguru
to justify that Madhavaraja II of
Sailodvaba
dynasty had established the shrine of Madhava at Puri and entrusted its
management to some of his kinsmen, who were supposed to be tribal. During this
period the philosophy of Vaishnavism was divided into two section School. The
Vaikhanasa worshipped Vishnu in three phases, namely Purusha (Omnipotent),
Achyuta (imperishable), and Aniruddha (unconstraint), while the
later Pancharatrikas followed Chaturvyuha cult and worshiped Vasudeva,
Sankarsana, Pradyumna, and Aniruddha. The Pancharatrika school might have gained
popularity in Kalinga, Kangoda and other neighboring tracts as long as the
Sailodvabas continued their rule in that region. The Sailodvabas were the
followers of Saivism. They must have constructed a large number of temples of
Lord Siva in their dominion, surrounding all sides of Chilika Lake. Srikshetra
(Puri) was topographically a religious center of Kangoda, where some muni-asramas
were established in the temples of Markandeya (Markandeswar Sahi near Markanda
temple and Markanda Tank), Angira (Dolamandap Sahi), Pandu or Kandu, (Gaudabada
Sahi near Jameswar temple) and Bragu.
According
to a system, introduced in Puri temples, the image of Sudarsana is carried to
visit those rishi-asramas on the auspicious days of Radhashmi, Kumarotsava and
Gamha Purnima. Sudarsana is to honor each sage at his temple or Asrama. That
old system is still practiced in Puri. According to Mahabharata (Banaparva) the
Pandavas were advised by Lomasha-muni to visit some sacred places after they
crossed the river Vaitarani on their way to Kalinga. Again Pandit Nilakantha
Dash states that the Jinasana brought back by Kharavela in the 1st century B.C.
was nworshiped as Purushottama Jagannath at Puri. But for want of any convincing
evidence, we are not able to accept it, although Puri was an ancient Tirtha
where Tapasvinis were dwelling in the hill caves. Some inscriptions of later
Sailodvaba kings of Kongoda narrate the following verse, expressing that a king
of that province could earn similar religious glory at his own capital what the yogis and munis could achieve by performing
hard austerity in mountain caves. Most probably those hermits who lived in
Kangodamandal, were worshiping either Vishnu or Siva in the coastal tracts
while in the hill areas. i. e. the western part of Kongoda, there lived Tantri
yogis who were worshiping Devi, (Durga) in the form of Stambheswari. In the
Bhagavad Gita, Sri Krishna says," I am Visnu among the Adityas"
(Adityanam aham Visnuh)". It is therefore presumed that Puri, the seat of
Madhava-Narasimha-Purushottama might not have experienced the apathy of Bhaumakaras
who were not hostile to Brahmanism, though they were Buddhists.
During
the Somavamsi rule, the epoch-making event was the coming of Sankaracharya to
Puri. The visit of Sankaracharya inspired Narasimha worship to be popular in
this locality. It is believed that Sankara had the blessings of Laxmi-Narasimha
and wrote Sri Laxminarasimha Pancharatna Stotram, Sankatanasan
Laxmi-Narasimha Stotram, and the Bhasyas of Narasimha Tapini
Upanisad. Narasimha worship in the Gobardhana Math and the figure of Sankar
beneath the sculpture of Laxmi-Narasimha in the Jagamohana of Sri Laxmi temple
of Shree Jagannath temple of Puri also associate Narasimha and Sankar. This
fact is supplemented in the Skanda Purana (narration of Indradyumna) and the
Narasimha temple construction near Gundicha temple. A Telugu inscription of
Chodagangadeva at Narasimha temple refers to Narasimha worship in the pre-Ganga
period.
During
the Ganga rule, after the coming of Sri Ramanuja of Sri Sampradaya, adevotee of
Narasimha and promoter of Bhaktimarga, Narasimha Worship reached its climax. Narasimha
worship reached every doorsteps of Sakalautkala in general and Puri in particular.
It led Sena king Laxman to adopt the title of "Paramanarasimha."
Narasimha became the Kshetrapala or the guardian deity of the kshetra. At
present we find a dozen or Narasimha temples in the city with many more in the
Maths of Sankar, Ramanuja, and Madhugaudeswara order as well as in the
Jagagharas. We also find Narasimha as Parswadevata in Vaishnava, Saiva and
Sakti temples.
Present
- Day Narasimha Temples in and around Puri :
(i)
Narasimha Temple, (Jagannath Temple Precinct) : It is a pancharatha rekha
deula. Its height is about 55 ft. The presiding deity is the Vidarana
Narasimha in ugra pose. The image is of 1 ft. high which is not matching
size to the height of the temple (in accordance with the Silpasastras).
(ii)
Yagna Narasimha Temple: It is near Gundicha temple. Its height is about 60ft.
The presiding deity is Laxmi-Narasimha. An elevated place has been levelled for
the erection of the main temple and its two front apartments. The area around
the temple complex mhas been protected by high masonry walls with provision of
a series of steps for entry into the premises on the eastern side. The main
temple built in pancharatha rekha order is fronted by a pyramidal Jagamohan
and a rectangular natamandap. All the structures within the premises
is thickly plastered in lime mortar painted in matching colors. The bada of
the main temple as well as the jagamohan indicate fivefold horizontal
divisions and five vertical paga projections. The gandi of the
main shrine is bereft of figure sculptures and decorative designs except however
the projecting lions of the central rahapaga of all directions. The mastaka
consists of the usual beki, amalakasila, khapuri, kalasa, and nilachakra.
The central niche of the outer walls contain figures of Varaha-Vishnu,
Trivikrama, of later workmanship and a Visnu image of early medieval period as
parsva devatas. The sanctum preserves a remarkable image of Laxmi- Narasimha on
a high masonry pedestal. The artistic finish and iconographic peculiarity of
the image take us back to the time of the Ganga period. The deity was very
likely installed at Puri by Chodagangadeva who is said to have introduced the
system of Narasimha worship in Orissa. A similar Laxmi-Narasimha image is still
noticed in the premises of Gangamandira of Cuttack town. The image in question
is seated in Yogasana with both legs crossed and tied nearthe knee. Laxmi is found
seated on his left lap. Of his four hands the two lower ones are stretched mover
the knees and the two upper ones display conch and disc, the most favorite
weapons of Vishnu. The jambs of the doorways leading to the sanctum are embellished
with floral motifs, creepers, nagabandhas and scroll works. Figures Jaya and
Vijaya, the two legendary door-keepers, of a Vishn temple are seen at the base
of the jambs. The architrave over the door entrance is relieved with the figures
of nine planets. A figure of Gajalaxmi is carved at the center of the door lintel.
The outer walls of the Jagamohan are set with several figures sculptures of
much later workmanship. A large panel on the left wall of the Jagamohana
represents three mounted elephants on the march. The window grills of the Jagamohana
are relieved with ladies playing on various musical instruments, salabhanjikas,
alasakanyas, and gajasimha motifs, also of much later
workmanship.
(iii)
Chakra Narasimha Temple : It is at Chakratirtha road. It is a Pidha Deula. Its
height is about 55ft. In the Sanctum of the temple there are three Narasimha images.
Among these three deities the middle one is bigger than the other two and is
seated inside the Chakra. It is known as the Chakra Narasimha and the others,
on left isPurushottmnarasimha is right on Anantanarasimha.
(iv)
Pandu Narasimha Temple: It is in Pandu Asrama near Jameswar temple, Gaudabada
Sahi. The presiding deity is the eight-armed Vidarana Narasimha in Ugra pose.
(v)
Laxmi-Narasimha Temple: It is at Mangalaghat road near Bali school. It is
a Pancharatha rekha Deula. Its
height is about 25ft. It has Jagamohan.
(vi)
Narasimha Temples: (inside Jagannath temple) (A) Baisi Pahacha (B) Suka
(C)
Simachala. (D) Uttar Dwara.
(vii)
Singada Narasimha Temple: (Near Lokanath Temple) The presiding deity is four armed
Laxmi-Narasimha, sitting on Utkatasan. A small image of Goddess Laxmi is
sitting on the yoga-pita at the left thigh of the deity. She is offering betel in
her right hand looking to the god. She has a lotus in her left-hand. Narasimha
in his uplifted backhands hold sankha and chakra and his front two hands rest
on his knee. The deity is crowned by Kiritamukuta and he has three glittering eyes. The deity is adorned with
different types of ornaments. He wears the Anantasarpa as sacred thread.
Seven hoods of the snake cover as canopy over his head, amidst which the face of
Balabhadra is seen with plough. Two female battendants like Sridevi and Bhudevi
are found with folded hands on either sides of the deity. A Gajatorana, supported
by two pilasters is found just by the side of the deity. At the right side base
of the pillar there is a standing royal figure with folded hands. Perhaps it is
the figure of legendary king Indradyumna. Just at the backside of Prahallad,
god Siva is found in a aradhana pose, the image of Brahma with folded hands is
seen at the left side. The presiding deity is flanked by two Vidyadharas with garlands.
It is said so because the image is very near to the pond full of a water-fruit
named
Singada.
(viii)
Narasimha Temple: It is at Gadanti Chowk by the side of Meghanada Pachery of
Srimandir. There is a miniature temple. The presiding deity is four-armed
Laxmi-Narasimha.
(ix)
Kanchisasana Narasimha Temple: Kanchisasana is a Brahmin sasana village under Chalisbatia
Gram Panchayat in the Sadar Block, Puri. This village is renowned for Narasimha
worship. Most of the Brahmins are Atharvavedi and Narasimha is their tutelary
deity. The village has one Narasimha temple on the eastern side of the village
temple. The presiding deity is four-armed ,Laxmi-Narasimha. The temple is of panchratra-rekha
order and the height of the temple is 25 feet.
(x)
Jagannathpur Laxmi-Narasimha Temple: Jagannathpur is a Brahmin sasana village
under Chalisbatia Gram Panchayat in the Sadar Block, Puri. It is 2 km from
Kanchi sasana. The temple is of pidha order and of about 35ft height.
The presiding deity is four-armed Laxmi Narasimha made of granite stone,
exclusively carved and a fine elegance of craftsmanship, about 6 ft. in height.
(xi)
Rendha Narasimha Temple: It is on Puri- Brahmagiri Road at a distance of 10 km
from Puri at Rendha Chowk. The god is highly revered. The presiding deity is
four-armed LaxmiNarasimha.
(xii)
Kusunikhuntia Jaga Narasimha : It is in the Jaga in Harachandi Sahi. It is a
Pidha Deula of about 25ft height. The presiding deity is fou-rarmed Saumya Narasimha.
The peculiar feature is the absence of any Laxmi figure. The deity is crowned with
seven-hooded Adisesha whichforms like a canopy over the head.
(xiii)
Jadamath Narasimha: It is a private Math in Pathuria Sahi. It is a pidha
deula of about 23ft height. The presiding deity is four-armed Laxmi-Narasimha.
(xiv)
Radhamadhav Narasimha Temple: It is located at Hatisal Chowk in Dukhishyama
Chhata Math. The temple is of 20ft height. The presidingdeity is four-armed
Vidarana Laxmi-Narasimha.
(xv)
Hinjalajaga Narasimha Temple: The temple
is
in the premises of the Jaga in Bali Sahi.
(xvi)
Barabatijaga Narasimha Temple: The temple is in the premises of the Jaga in
Harachandi SW=ahi. The presiding deity is four-armed Vidarana Laxmi-Narasimha.
(xvii)
Narasimha images in the temple-walls: Inside the temples in the premises of
Jagannath temple Narasimha images are worshipped as wall-god at least at 50
places like Mukti Mandap, Bhogamandap, Natamandir, Narasimha and Nisanarasimha,
Laxmi, Dadhibamana, Bhubaneswari and Madanamohan, Nandagopal temples, Ramamandira
at Baisapahacha, Lion's Gate near Patitapaban.
(xviii)
Narasimha images in the temple as Parswadevata: These images are generally four-armed
and in Vidarana posture on the back-raha niche of the temple (a) Gopinath
temple at Keponjharkothi on Grand Road (b) Radhakrisna
temple
at Gopinathpur near Atharnala,(c) Jagannath temple - Manikarnika Sahi, (d) Radhakrisna
temple - Manikarnika Sahi, (e) Patitapaban temple at Patitapaban Lane, Markandeswar
Sahi.
(xix)
Narasimha images in the temple as Parswadevata in Sakti temples : (a) a
four-armed 1ft image with back hands uplifted with sankha and chakra and
Kalikadevi Sahi and (b) a 4ft high,
three eyed, with ramanandi chita, back hands uplifted with sankha and
charka and front hands on his knee, sitting on a Garuda in the
Ramachandi temple, Ramachandi sahi are the examples. It seems like recent
installations.
(xx)
Narasimha images in the Saiva temples as wall-god: This type of images are
found in the temples of Jameswar, Lokanath and Kapalamochana.
(xxi)
Specific Image: (a) The image (sculpture) is known as Panchamukhi Mahavir
having five faces; Varaha in north, Narasimha in south, Siva or Hanuman in
east, Garuda in west and Hayagriba in top near Indradyumna Tank. It has ten
hands, holding sankha, trident, khatwanga, pasa, ankusa,
hillock, dhuma, musthi, mace and snake. He is standing over the
demon. It is stated in the Kapila Samhita that one will earn most punya if
he/she makes a darsana of Sri Nilakantheswar, Yajna Narasimha and Panchamukhi
Mahavir after the sacred bath in Indradyumna Tank. (It is related to Adapa Mandap
Yatra of Jagannath) (b) Garuda Torana: It is also an unique sculpture in the
niche of Bhogamandap. t is a two-armed image standing on dwibhanga pose
over the lotus pedestal. There is a Garuda image in worshipping pose in the
right side of the deity. In his right hand the deity is offering a laddu to
Garuda when his left hand is in katyavalambita posture. The legend associates
it with the great Sankar.
(xxii)
Laxmi images: In almost all Laxmi- Narasimha sculptures of Puri the size of
Laxmi is very small and two-armed. The peculiarity noticed here is that Laxmi
touches the mouth of Narasimha in her right hand in the process of offering
betel. Another variation is found with the image at Algum where Laxmi is
four-armed.
(xxiii)
Narasimha is worshipped in almost all the Maths of Puri. The Maths at Puri have
developed over the centuries into unique institutions, which have exercised
profound influence on the religious and cultural life of the local as well as
people coming to Puri. Adisankar is credited with, as the pioneer of Math
building. When he established Gobardhana / Bhavavardhana Math at Puri in the early
9th century A.D. there is a saying that Puri had 752 Maths. But the number is
far less below 100 at present. The head of the Math is the Mahanta. He lives in
these maths with sadhusanyasis, sisyas of the institution and
some inmate students. These Maths belong to various Sampradayas and socio-religious
groups. In these Maths various deities are worshipped as per the sect they
represent. The main deity or subsidiaries are worshipped in the Maths. By this
process all Maths of different monastic order have promoted Narasimha worship.
Ramanuja
followed Adisankar in establishing Maths in considerable mnumber which are
situated at every strategic places by his two categories of sisya order,
the Bagel and Dingal and they facilitated Narasimha worship like their guru.
These sisyas are of sanyasis and gruhastas (Narasimhachari
and Venkatachari).
Madhavacharya,
another saint of 13th century had established one Narasimha temple at Soda.
Some Maths of Madhavacharya order also worship Narasimha. Narahari Tirtha had
established one Narasimha temple at Srikakulam.
Ramayati Vaisnavas at Puri are worshipping Narasimha alongwith Rama and Sita.
Sri
Chaitanya advised his disciples to have Danda Pranama (Salutation by laying on
the ground) to Narasimha before the Darsan of Sri Jagannath. Sri Chaitanya himself
worshipped the Narasimha at third step of Baisapahach before going to have the
Darsan of Sri Jagannath. So in some Gaudiya Maths Narasimha is worshipped.
There is a legend that Sri Gauranga saved Thakur attack of an enemy assuming
the form of Haridas from the Narasimha.
There is a separate temple for Narasimha in the Sidhabakula Math of Thakur Haridas.
Similarly some Maths of Ramananda order also have Narasimha worship.
Atibadi
Jagannath Das, author of Oriya Bhagabat started his writing with salutation to
Narasimha. So the Math of Atibadi Jagannath Das order has Narasimha worship.
The plam leaf manuscript of Oriya Bhagabat is worshipped with great reverence
as the representative of Jagannath or Narasimha. Therefore with the spread of Bhagabata
and Bhagabata Tungi in Orissa, Narasimha became more popular as a deity. In all
these Maths Narasimha is worshipped either in iconic form or aniconic form. The
iconic forms are normally made of metals mostly astadhatu and sometimes stone.
The aniconic form is the worship of Salagrama on which the face of Narasimha is
drawn.
Traditionally,
seven Sahis of Puri were set up encircling Sri Jagannath temple with a view to have
Sevas of the Lord and to protect the shrine at the time of crises. Each Sahi
has an Akhada. Under each Akhadas there are some Jagaghars. These Jagaghars are
the center of physical andcultural training like Kusti (wrestling), Oddisi
song, Oddisi dance, Gotipua dance, special Jaga Sangeetas under reputed gurus.
The term of Jaga in Oriya connotes the "place" like jagar of Himachal
Pradesh. (In Kannada jaga means place) These Jagagharas in Puri are the ghara
root level. Considering from this angle it may not be out of place to state
that the term jaga is derived from the word Jagarana which means to keep
awake. The members of these Jagagharas the sources of power and strength. Even
some jagas have been named after Narasimha like Narasimha Ballav and
Nrusingha Ghar. Narasimha is associated with Saivism. It has been analysed by
Eshmann. She states that the representation of Lingodbhava where Siva appeared
from the endless flaming Lingam, usually represented as a huge column
resembling the sense of Narasimha bursting out of pillar. To support her view
we find a description in Vishnudhramottara Purana that the face of Narasimha
and manes surrounded with flames (Jwalamukhi Narasimha). The flaming Lingam of Saivism
and the flaming manes of Narasimha cult have close affinity. Eschmann has also
stated another story from Visnudhramottar Purana where a devotee worships the
Lingam until he has a vision of Narasimha appearing from it. This connection is
represented in one of the early Siva temple in Orissa near Baramba called
Simhanath. The figure of Simhanath is carved on the front entrance. Astanding
human figure with a lion head holding a trident is locally called as Simhanath.
This speaks of Siva-Narasimha or Siva incorporating Narasimha. The panels of
Bhimeswar and Madhukeswar temples at Mukhalingam contain Narasimha images. In
the Lingaraj templepremises, there is a Laxmi-Narasimha image. At the Manibhadreswar
temple at Bhubaneswar and Nilakantheswar temple at Denua, Narasimha is the
Parswadevata.
In
Puri, the association of Narasimha with Siva is intimately noticed. Near all
the Narasimha temples, there are Siva temples.Near Chakra Narasimha temple,
there is Panchabati Siva temple. Similarly, near Pandu Narasimha temple, there
is Jameswar temple and inside the Jagamohan of Jameswar temple there is the
image of Narasimha. In the temples of Lokanath and Kapalalochana the images of Narasimha
are there. A Narasimha image was found from the earth while digging of the compound
of the Grameswar Siva temple in Kanchi Sasana was going on. The beautiful image
was made of chlorite. Another interesting feature of this Siva temple is that
there is Narayan image at the right door-jamb as Dwarapala. Another peculiarity
of this temple is that animal sacrifice is given during Dasahara every year at
the sanctum of this Siva temple. This shows the close association of tantricism.
Another resemblance between Narasimha and Siva is its Ugra form. The Vidarana Narasimha
is Ugra as Lokanath of Puri on whose name the local people fear to take vow. In
some Puranas, Siva is Kirtimukha. In some Narasimha image there is Kirtimukha.
Ananta
is sometimes described as Sankarsana or Siva as well as Narasimha. Eschmann has
rightly pointed out Saiva element in Narasimha which probably also made him
eligible to be the tutelary god of the latter Gangas.
H.V.
Stetencorn narrated that in western Orissa people give more emphasis to the Narasimha
aspect of Vishnu. The trend was finally found in the Jagannath cult of Puri.
G.C. Tripathy has stressed the tantric element which helped the evolvement of
Narasimha cult from Vaishnavism. Narasimha's appearance from the pillar and the
body of Lord Jagannath, they believe, have some affinity. Eschmann has rightly
pointed out that the head of Jagannath is an attempt to represent a lion head
and the round eyes are typical features of Narasimha's furry.
According
to Indradyumna legend the satiated god assumed the form of Saumya Narasimha
with Chakra and bow in his up-lifted hands and main two hands are on the knee. Balabhadra
covers the head of Narasimha with the thousands hood. Narasimha is the guardian
deity of the temple and all the performances beginning from cooking to puja are
preceded by offering to Narasimha first. The initiation by a new servitor
(sadhibandha) starts with worshipping the Khamba Narasimha (image of
Laxmi-Narasimha) on the first pillar of Jagamohana. The Palia Pujapanda sits at
this pillar and offers the bhoga of the public to Narasimha, then to the
Lord and at the time of Pahuda (door-closed) offerings are also given here.
Narasimha is described as the protector of Jagannath. He is the protector of
Nandighosha chariot. It is customary that a wooden image of Narasimha after due
ritual (Rath-pratistha), completed by the Deula-purohit the only srotriya
Brahmin servitor of the temple is to be brought with proper procession with
Bijekahali and other Vadyas to the Chariots (Hanuman and Bhubaneswari for Balabhadra
and Subhadra, respectively). Narasimha is also one of the nine parswadevatas
of the said chariot. In the Nabakalebara the role of Lord Narasimha is indispensable.
The new images of the Lords are to be consecrated in presence of Narasimha and trees
selected for image making are to be cut also in the presence of Narasimha.
These rituals are called as Banajaga. In all these above rituals Mantraraja (the
Mantra of the god Narasimha) only are to be recited by the Brahmins. Yajna- Narasimha
is associated in the process of the journey of the logs of the Lord. Narasimha
is one of the Veshas of the Lord on the 13th day of month of Kartik and worshipped
as Narasimha on 14th day of lunar fortnight of the month of
Vaishakha (Narasimha Chaturdasi). Angyamala (garland) of the Lord is taken on
this day to Chakra Narasimha for his birthday-celebration. The birthday
celebration of Narasimha is celebrated at the temple of Narasimha near
Muktimandap. On the said day Narasimha image (from Dakhinighar) visits
Jagannath Ballav Math. On the 9th day of lunar fortnight of the month of
Srabana and the 14th day of lunar fortnight of the month of Margasira, Laxmi-Narasimha
move around the city.
Narasimha
is treated as the embodiment of valor and energy. Sometimes Sudarsan is linked
with Narasimha. Sudarsan is the Ugra aspect and the working force. Similarly Narasimha
is the Ugra form of Vishnu. When Sudarsan is consecrated, it is recited that he
belongs to Narasimha group. Representation in sculpture is made on the combined
aspect of Narasimha and Sudarsan. Sudarsan in form of wheel is found at the
back of the image of Narasimha in the sculpture Chakra Narasimha. Sudarsan is the
moveable image of Narasimha. It is claimed by the scholars that Jagannath and
Narasimha are inseparable and all the four deities of Jagannath pantheon are linked
intimately with Narasimha. Balabhadra as Ananta, Subhadra as post, Sudarsan as
fury and Jagannath as Narasimha, speak the story of intimacy of
Narasimha
in Jagannath consciousness.
The
Narasimha sculpture found at Puri are two-armed to twenty-armed images.
Important of them are the Garuda-tosana Narasimha, eight armed Pandu Narasimha,
Narasimha sitting on Garuda. All the parswadevatas are in vidarana
posture. These images are made of different varieties of stones but common is
chlorite. Metal images of the Jagagharas and Maths are of ashtadhatu.
Some of these institutions worship the salagramas with Narasimha, Chakra
and Sankha drawn on it and also called Chitra Narasimha.
It
is unique in Puri that the amalgamation of several cults are found here. It includes
exclusively the Narasimha Upasana. The most common images of Narasimha found in
Puri are Laxmi-Narasimha in utkurita posture. The Ugra aspect of the
deity is not there rather it represents the erotic elements in the character of
Purushottam.
Prof. Purna Chandra Mohapatra is a
Srimandir Purohit, Head of Department in History, Sadasiva Campus, Puri.(This is the latest thinking based on nresearch)
NARASIMHA LINGA REVEALS TO PUBLIC ON MARCH 30, 2020 AFTER SPANISH FLU 1920 PANDEMIC
While the reality of COVID-19 continues to involve and effect every part of our culture, in terms of public health, socialization, the economy, foreign policy, Religious worship and beyond, what might we glean from the lessons of our past? Not knowing what the eventual toll will be, looking into the lessons of history —and the impact of the 1918 Influenza Epidemic (which infected 20 – 30% of the world’s population, accounting for as many as 50 million deaths including roughly 675,000 Americans) — could perhaps offer clues to how we might navigate this moment collectively. It is also the Timing. 1918 was soldiers active time. They carried the virus where-ever they went. 2020 March was starting of Spring and Traffic season and spring rains!
One thing we know is the strong religious faith of Hindus that continues time after time to fight such crisis with Yajnas and Prayers. I believe Badi Nrusingh came out in 1920 and now after about 100 years he came out again to restore confidence. Pandemonium comes and goes but He will always appears to hear our prayers and help us in spite of our ego and neglect disregarding how to live in harmony with Nature, Bade Nrusingha came out on Saturday 30, 2020. For 100 years He was calm we worshiped Him as Darubrahma but in Sarvari 2020 year of Darkness He again came out in fury with Kalasarpa Dosha that we are faced with. Let us appease him with prayers ans Yajnas during the coming Rath Yatra!
The COVID-19 epidemic is without a doubt an enormous and unique challenge worldwide, and the battle is nowhere near being over. But there are signs that government policies in several countries, including Germany, South Korea, Bali in Indonesia and India have been able to contain the virus, and news about several antiviral drug trials on the anvil should give people hope. Even in China, where the pandemic appears to have originated, seems three months later, to have things largely under control. And as has been experienced from pandemics-- the 1918 Spanish flu to the H1N1 pandemic of 2009, do end. Sometimes with seemingly unbearable numbers of deaths, but eventually they do end. It therefore calls for not only flattening the virus, if not can’t be eliminated, but also flatten fear by proper EQ and SQ Management.
PURI: Even as the entire world grappled with the coronavirus pandemic, Badi Nrusingha, a deity worshipped as protector against various diseases, came out of the Sri Jagannath temple in a palanquin on Saturday on March 30 and moved around the city.
The deity was offered ‘pankti bhog’ by devotees at many places of the holy town. According to the convention, the image of Badi Nrusingha comes out of the temple on the fourth day of the month of Chaitra every year and makes parikrama of the city, including the four ancient ashramas of Rishi Markand, Angira, Bhrugu and Kandu located in four corners of Srikshetra. Popular belief is that Badi Nrusingha wards of all diseases from Shrikshetra and protects the devotees.
The ritual attracted attention as it came at a time when unprecedented panic grips the world, including India. Legend has it that when people are affected by different diseases and pray Lord Jagannath, he comes out in the form of Badi Nrusingha to cure his devotees. It is believed that by going around the temple city, the deity, in fact, traverses the entire world to cure people of diseases. ‘Badi’ in Odia means disease and Lord Jagannath blesses people every year to cure them of diseases on this day.After his ritualistic parikrama, Badi Nrusingha returns to the Jagannath Temple again. He is considered the Nrunsigha Avatar about which I wrote a lot though Jagannatha philosophers are silent and not reacted! I believe American Jagannatha Devotees are not alive or dormant to this fact since they did not talk about it during present crisis! I am not sure many Hindus in India know about it?
--E-Mail sent to HR participants on June 14, 2020
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDelete