Odisha: Stage set for rare Nagarjuna Besha in Puri Jagannath temple sans devotees

BHUBANESWAR: With the stage set for the century’s first Nagarjuna Besha at the Jagannath Temple in Puri on Friday, the district administration has imposed prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the CrPC around the 12th century shrine to prevent the congregation of devotees during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Nagarjuna Besha, which was last observed on November 16 in 1994, will see the sibling deities of Jagannath and Balabhadra take on the form of warriors.The temple’s servitors will make the deities wear the costume of Nagarjuna between 4am and 7am. These will be removed at 3pm. The temple administration will preserve the costumes and showcase them in a proposed museum in Puri.
Sources in the Puri temple said Nagarjuna Besha commemorates the killing of Sahashrarjuna by Parsuram. It is held in those years where the panchaka, the last five days of the holy month of Kartika, is observed for six days.
The 144 regulation will remain in force from 2am (early hours of Friday) to 2pm. “We will not allow devotees to gather either in front of the temple or its periphery from 2am till 2pm on Friday. Patitapaban darshan from the Lion’s Gate will be stopped during the period. Devotees will be allowed to have Patitapaban darshan once the Nagarjuna Besha rituals are completed,” Puri district collector Balwant Singh said.
After Rath Yatra in June, Nagarjuna Besha will be the second such major festival in the Jagannath Temple to be observed without the participation of the devotees in the wake of Covid-19.
The administration will allow only duty-bound servitors and officials into the shrine for the smooth conduct of the Nagarjuna Besha. Before 1994, the Nagarjuna Besha had been observed on November 26, 1993, November 3, 1968, November 16, 1967 and November 26, 1966. At least six pilgrims had died following a stampede during the 1993 event.
“We have finalized a detailed security plan for the conduct of the festival. Proper checking will be done to prevent non-servitors from entering the shrine. Duty-bound servitors are not allowed to carry mobile phones,” Puri superintendent of police Kanwar Vishal Singh said.