Puri, July 2:The offering of ‘Anna Bhoga’ at the Shree Jagannath Temple continues uninterrupted even during the Anasara period, as temple tradition mandates that a break in the ritual even for a single day would prevent the offering from being resumed for the next 12 years, senior Suara servitor Balabhadra Mohapatra said.

Speaking about the temple's age-old customs, Mohapatra said that all daily rituals and food offerings are conducted during Anasara in accordance with prescribed traditions. While Lord Jagannath and His siblings remain in seclusion for recuperation following Snana Purnima, the offerings are made to the ‘Pati Dian’ (representative deities) and other ‘Bije Pratima’. However, the quantity of bhoga prepared during this period is reduced to less than half of what is cooked on regular days.

The representative deities are placed in the Jagamohan for devotees' darshan while the main deities remain in the Anasara Ghara. Temple rituals, including Mangala Alati, Abakasha, Gopal Ballav, Sakala Dhupa, Bhoga Mandapa, Madhyahna Dhupa and Sandhya Dhupa, continue without interruption. The deities are offered traditional preparations such as cooked rice, dal, dalema, besara, mahura and other dishes, while khichdi is served during the morning Sakala Dhupa.

Mohapatra said the reduced footfall of devotees during Anasara leads to a significant decrease in the quantity of Mahaprasad prepared. On normal days, around 60 to 70 quintals of rice are cooked at the temple, whereas during Anasara the quantity comes down to nearly 30 quintals. Special commissioned offerings, or Baradi Bhoga, also decline during this period.

He further said that nearly half of the Suara servitors remain off duty during Anasara as the cooking requirements are substantially lower. Many of them utilise the period as leave and attend to other work.

As per temple tradition, Lord Narayan is worshipped in place of Lord Jagannath, Goddess Bhuvaneswari represents Goddess Subhadra, and Lord Ananta Vasudeva is worshipped in place of Lord Balabhadra. Other associated deities, including Madan Mohan, Lord Krishna, Bhudevi, Sridevi, Dola Govinda and Lord Narasimha, are also ceremonially worshipped.

Despite the Anasara rituals, devotees continue to offer prayers to the representative deities and receive Mahaprasad, ensuring the centuries-old traditions of the Shree Jagannath Temple remain unbroken.