The Deities of Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra, Subhadra and ChakraSudarshan are made of margosa wood.
The tree worship is a very ancient cult. However the most acceptedand popular theory over origin of Jagannath relates to ‘SAVARS’ oraboriginal traditions. The word wood 'DARU' is used to indicate materialof which the universe (JAGAT) is made. Jagannath is specifically knownas Darubrahma both in Puranas as well as by the people.
The image of Jagannath (of black colour representing sunya) Subhadra(the creative energy) and Balabhadra ( of white colour representingphenomenol universe) have evolved from Nilamadhava of the ancientKalinga Jaina. According to him 'Sudershana' is the Hindu name of theDharmachakra of Jaina symbol and the term Kaivalya (liberation)exclusively common in the cult of Jagannath is derived from Jainatradition. Jagannath is regarded as Daru Brahma, i.e. the Godheadmanifestation in a modern image. The worship of Daru Brahma is traced toVedic sources and to Bhagbat Gita.
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