Part one: THE OPULENT ANSWER
Many devotees ask how we are to understand the Ulta, or Bahudha return Ratha-yatra in Jagannath Puri? If (as Gaudiya Vaishnavas state) we consider the Gundica-yatra, or Ratha-yatra to respresent the ecstatic emotions of the residents of Vrindavan taking Krishna home from Kuruksetra. How do we then understand the return Ratha-yatra?
Is it a festival celebrating taking Krishna away from Vrindavan?
There are two sides, two answers, that can be offered to this question. To understand them, one first needs to consider something about the nature of Sri Jagannath Puri Dham. In his book, “The Embankment of Separation” (chapter 7), Srila Prabhupada’s Orissan disciple, Sri Srimad Gour Govinda Maharaja describes Lord Jagannath and Puri as: aisvarya-madhurya yugala-milana – “The combination of both opulence and sweetness.” This point is substantiated by Srila Sanatan Goswami who writes in his Brhad-Bhagavatamrta (2.5.212):
sri-krsna-devasya sada priyam tat
ksetram yatha sri-mathura tathaiva
tat-paramaisvarya-bhara-prakasa-
lokanusari-vyavahara-ramyam
“Just as Mathura-Vrindavan is eternally dear to Sri Krishna, so too is his abode of Purushottam Kshetra Jagannath Puri. There in Puri, Krishna displays supreme opulence and while at the same time presents pastimes that are full of sweetness.”
This may strike the learned readers as confusing, for in terms of siddhanta, there is a vast difference between the qualities of aisvarya, opulence; and madhurya, sweetness. When jnana and aisvarya, knowledge of the Lord’s opulence and position, are present then rati-sankucita ? love is shrunken. Srila Krishnadas Kaviraj Goswami has described in (Cc madhya 19.194):
aisvarya-jnana-pradhanye sankucita priti
dekhiya na mane aisvarya?kevalara riti
“When opulence is prominent, love of Godhead is shrunken. According to kevala devotion, however, even though the devotee sees the unlimited potency of Krishna, he considers himself equal with him.”
How then do we understand Jagannath Puri and the return Ratha-yatra?
A few years ago we wrote an article in issue 13 of our “Sri Krishna Kathamrita” journal, called, “Only Hindus Allowed”, which addressed the subject of why Jagannath doesn’t allow foreign devotees inside of the temple. In the course of discussing that topic from various angles, another topic came up which is very central to the return Ratha-yatra:
The marriage of Lakshmi and Jagannath.
The Gundicha temple is said to be the place where Lord Jagannath was originally carved by Visvakarma and where he was initially installed by Lord Brahma. Hence, Gundicha represents the sweet home of Krishna’s Vrindavan.
What many devotees don’t know is that the events leading to the Ratha-yatra actually begin several days before the actual event. On the Sukla Ekadasi day of the month of Jyaistha (May June), better known to devotees as Pandava-nirjala Ekadasi, there is a festival Rukmini-harana or Rukmini-vivaha. This event takes place inside the Sri or Jagannath temple, and consists of the priests ceremoniously marrying Lord Jagannath with Goddess Lakshmi.
It is a very romantic festival, part of which entails the ceremonial tying together of the cloths of Jagannath and Lakshmi. Four days later is the day known as Snana-Purnima, wherein Lord Jagannath has a public bathing festival called, Snana-yatra. Snana-Purnima is considered to be the day that the deity of Lord Jagannath was first installed by Lord Brahma.
After his public bath of hundreds of pots of water, Lord Jagannath falls “sick” and goes into seclusion to regain his health. This time is called, anavasara. During this period the newly wedded Lakshmi acts as the ideal wife, and for the next fifteen days she doesn’t sleep, but only nurses her beloved husband.
After fifteen days without rest Lakshmi eventually falls asleep (you can’t blame her!). At that time her newly married husband quietly unties the knot in their cloth and leaves to go see his girl friends Radharani and the Vraja-gopis.
We call that Jagannath Ratha-yatra.
Lakshmi Devi wakes up a few days later to find her husband gone. When she inquires where he is, Jagannath?s servant nervously explains that he went to see his girlfriends. Hearing this, Lakshmi leaves the altar, and goes to stay in the storage room of the Jagannath temple ? like a depressed wife might. She refuses to take bath or eat any opulent food, and dines like poor Orissan people on simple village rice and spinach.
In Odisha there is a sthala-purana known as the Vamadev-samhita. This book describes many aspects of the worship and activities of Lord Jagannath and is one of the main texts followed by the priests in the Jagannath Mandir. Chapter sixteen therein offers many details of the Ratha-yatra (for a more elaborate exposition of the contents thereof, interested readers can see our article in Sri Krishna Kathamrita). It states that after a few days Lakshmi Devi goes to ask advice from Goddess Bimala inside of the temple. To paraphrase things, she basically says, “This is not right! I’m a newly wedded wife! Why did my husband leave me? I was being so good taking care of him. Moreover, he took Subhadra with him, at least he could have taken me!”
Bimala Devi offers some womanly advice saying something to the effect, that, “Yes. I understand. All men are like this.”
Bimala then offers some magic churna or powder to Lakshmi, which she says will, ?Help restore your husband’s intelligence.”
The following morning, on the fifth day after Jagannath?s departure, Lakshmi wakes up in a sulky mood. She finally has a bath and puts on ornaments. Then, collecting some of her associates (traditionally represented by the deva-dasis), she is carried on a palanquin to the Gundicha Mandir to see her newly-wedded husband. This festival is known as Hera-pancami, and takes place on the fifth day after Ratha-yatra. Hera means ?to behold?, while pancami means ?the fifth day?. The festival is also sometimes called, Laksmi-vijayotsava, or ?the victory celebration of Lakshmi?.
Angry and jealous, Lakshmi Devi is in the mood of an adhira nayika, a restless, aggrieved heroine. By the time she arrives at the Gundicha Mandir, Lord Jagannath is already inside with his brother and sister. At that time Lakshmi and her girl friends and her harass the Pandas outside who are taking care of Jagannath’s cart and they break part of the cart.
In her angry mood, Lakshmi then goes into the temple to see her husband. She does not speak to Jagannath, but merely comes before him bows her head. Then she blows the magic powder at the Lord that she received from Bimala Devi. Finally, still without speaking, her and her girl friends depart from the temple.
She tells some of the servants of Lord Jagannath, “Tell your master that his wife has returned to their palace.”
Perhaps this makes Lord Jagannath transcendentally nervous as two days later he decides to return to the Jagannath Mandir to see Lakshmi. While Jagannath is returning the king of Puri performs an important function and goes to see Lakshmi Devi. This ceremony is called, Laksmi Narayana Bhet, and the king acts as a kind of go-between marriage counselor.
He shows Lakshmi that her husband has returned, “See his cart.” And tells her that he loves her and she should forgive him. At this time Jagannath traditionally, (not followed any more) sends an elephant for Lakshmi to ride on to come and see him.
Still in a sulky mood, Lakshmi refuses, and when Jagannath requests her a second time she finally comes out of the temple, surrounded by her girlfriends on a palanquin, (not by the elephant sent by her husband). She goes to Jagannath’s cart circumambulates her husband and then quietly goes back inside of the temple. This generally takes place on the tenth day of the bright fortnight of the month of Asadha.
Jagannath wears a special dress the next day known as suna vesa. That day is known in Orissa as Bahudha Ekadasi or the ?return Ekadasi?. Having returned to the Sri Mandir, Lord Jagannath wants to pacify his sulky newly-wedded wife. Some say that it is for this purpose that on the evening of Bahudha Ekadasi he wears the suna-vesa, golden dress. This most opulent of all Jagannath?s dresses consists of solid gold hands and feet, and many, many gold necklaces, earrings and various gold ornaments. It?s said that on this day, between the three deities they are wearing more than one ton of gold ? an appropriate dress to pacify the goddess of fortune and assure her that he has left his girl friends and fthe simple village of Vrindavan.
The following day, the deities go back inside of the Sri Mandir. First Balaram and Subhadra return to their places on the altar. However, when Jagannath is about to get down from his cart to go inside, Lakshmi’s maidservants slam the Lion-gate shut and bar Jagannath’s entry. Following this there is a dialogue carried out in the form of Sanskrit songs between a representative of Jagannath and a representative of Lakshmi. Jagannath’s spokesperson goes to the gate and loudly proclaims something to the effect of, ?Jagannath loves his wife Lakshmi very much. He feels very bad, and is begging for her forgiveness.?
Many things take place after this, which would make our article unnecessarily long. Suffice to say that after many sweet words (and presents!) from Jagannath, Lakshmi finally relents and allows her husband back inside (it’s not only foreign devotees who are barred entry into the temple!).
Jagannath’s triumphant return to the Sri Mandir, is called the Niladri Vijaya and commemorates the day that he was first installed in the temple by Lord Brahma. Once he has returned inside the temple there is another final ceremony wherein they again tie together Lakshmi?s and Jagannath?s cloth.
The couple is finally re-united.
This is a brief description of the opulent reason for the return Ratha-yatra. With the blessings of Hari, guru and the Vaishnavas we intend to present something in part two of this series about the sweet reason behind the return Ratha-yatra.
Jaya Jagannath!
Part two: THE SWEET ANSWER
In part one of this presentation we addressed a question that many devotees have: “How are we to understand the return Ratha-yatra in Jagannath Puri?” In the previous article we addressed the first, or opulent answer to that question, which is that Jagannath has to return to his newly married wife Lakshmi.
However, considering that Gaudiya Vaishnavas deem the Ratha-yatra to represent the ecstatic emotions of the residents of Vrindavan taking Krishna home from Kuruksetra, there is also a sweet, and more internal answer to the question. How do we understand the return Ratha-yatra from that perspective? Is it a festival celebrating taking Krishna away from Vrindavan?
We will also address a second important doubt in this final installment: “Did Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu take part in the return Ratha-yatra, and if so, how did he participate?”
It might be helpful if we first contemplate something about the profound mood and emotions experienced by the Vrajavasis at Kurukshetra. They were going through a wirlpool of conflicting ecstatic feelings. On one hand there was the sweet bliss of finally meeting with Krishna again after such a long time — a meeting that they were not even sure was going to ever happen. At the same time, there was some sulkiness, especially amongst the vraja-gopis: “You left us! You promised you would return, and you didn’t!”
Although they were experiencing the highest happiness of again meeting with their beloved Krishna. They also couldn?t forget the fact that he had left them.
Other emotions they were poignantly experiencing include the fact that although they were so, very, very happy to be reunited with Krishna, they were unhappy with the opulent regal atmosphere present there at Kuruksetra.
They wanted him to come home to Vrindavan.
Aside from this, there was yet another conflicting feeling churning the waves of their ocean-like hearts: They were painfully aware that soon, Krishna was going to leave them again to return to Dwarka. And after his departure, they didn’t know if they would ever see him again or not.
The atmosphere in Jagannath Puri is a kind of emotional mirror of the mood at Kuruksetra when Krishna met the Vrajavasis there.
These seemingly opposite emotions work together to help create an inconceivable atmosphere in Puri that Sri Srimad Gour Govinda Maharaja called, “aisvarya-madhurya yugala-milana ? a simultaneous combination of opulence and sweetness”, and the place of “Two opposites in one container — union and separation.” As the Vrajavasis experienced in Kuruksetra, there is union in Puri. Having darsan of Jagannath Krishna provides unlimited pleasure for Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Yet at the same time, in Jagannath Puri, as in Kuruksetra there are also the pangs of separation.
So then what about our above question: “Did Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu take part in Lord Jagannath’s Bahudha or return Ratha-yatra, and if so what was his mood?”
Srila Krishnadas Kaviraj Goswami describes in Sri Caitanya-caritamrta (madhya 15.16), that during the four month period of caturmasya, the associates of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu took part in all of the festivals of Lord Jagannath in Puri. When I first came across that statement I remember thinking to myself, “ALL of the festivals? And if so then what about the return Ratha-yatra?”
Moreover, after contemplating further on the matter, it seemed obvious to me, that the devotees of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu never would have attended the return Ratha-yatra if Mahaprabhu didn’t observe it. Kaviraj Goswami says that those devotees were more attached to his association than even having darsana of Lord Jagannath. So it seemed to me that Mahaprabhu must have attended the festival.
If so, what was Mahaprabhu’s mood at that time? Can we accept that he was helping to take Krishna away from the Vrindavan like Gundicha temple to return him to the Dwarka like atmosphere of the Sri or Jagannath Mandir?
With these thoughts in mind, I began further research on the subject. As part of that research, I inquired from many sadhus and learned persons in Puri, including the King of Puri and many of the mahunts, or spiritual leaders of various groups there.
Basically the reply I got was, “No. He didn’t observe that festival.”
Srila Murari Gupta was one of the personal associates of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in Nabadwip. He wrote in Sanskrit, one of the first biographies of Lord Chaitanya, entitled, “Sri Krsna-caitanya-caritamrtam”. Therein he speaks about Mahaprabhu’s attendance at the return Ratha-yatra. He elaborates slightly on it saying, gaura-candro ratham anugata ? “Moonlike Gauranga followed *behind* the cart of Lord Jagannath.” (text 4.21.2)
Finally I had an answer that I found satisfying! In the same way that Radharani and the gopis followed behind the chariot of Akrura when he was taking Krishna away from Vrindavan, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu followed behind the cart of Lord Jagannath in Puri when he was leaving the Vrindavan like Gundicha Mandir. Neither, the gopis, nor Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu pulled the Lord’s cart to Mathura, or the Puri Sri Mandir. Rather, they were following behind (anugata); crying and pleading, “Don’t go! Don’t go!”
Jagannath Puri Dham has many names. It is called Purushottam Ksetra (the place of the Supreme Lord), Sri Ksetra (the place of Lakshmi Devi), Anna Ksetra (the place of prasadam rice), and Durlabha Ksetra (a difficult place to enter). Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati also addressed it as Vipralambha Ksetra, or the place of separation. Yet another name is Gupta Dham, a hidden mysterious place. I hope from this humble presentation that the Vaishnavas may have a deeper understanding of this festival and this very deep, mysterious abode of separation.
Vaisnava-krpa-prarthi (praying for the blessings of the devotees),
Madhavananda Das
Source: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=29556
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