Puri, Sept 2: The sacred Rekha Panchami is being observed today on the Krishna Panchami tithi of the Odia month of Bhadrav. On this occasion, the traditional Rahu Rekha ritual will be performed at the Jagannath Temple.
During the ritual, the Rahu Rekha, a special ornament made from gold-plated strips, will be placed on the faces of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra and Lord Sudarshan. The ornament is meant to enhance the divine appearance of the deities.
The Rahu Rekha ritual is one of the confidential rituals of the Srimandir and is performed by the Daitapati servitors as a group with strict religious observance.
According to the temple administration, the ritual will begin after the first Bhogamandap offering is completed. To facilitate the ritual, public darshan will remain closed from 2:30 PM to 7:00 PM today.
The Rahu Rekha had been removed from the faces of the deities during Snana Purnima, when the deities were given a ceremonial bath with 108 pitchers of water. Following the bathing ritual, the deities are traditionally considered to have fallen ill, and the Rahu Rekha was removed.
Today, the Rahu Rekha will be taken out from the temple treasury in the presence of the Deulakarana, Tadaukarana and Bhandar Mekap servitors.
After the first Bhogamandap ritual, the Pushpalak servitors will perform the Jhoba Kanthi Mailam ritual. The Mahajana servitors will then place Devi Bhudevi and Devi Sridevi in the Khataseja Ghar.
The Patimahapatra servitor will subsequently perform the required purification of the Rahu Rekha. The Badagrahis of the four deities will then place the Rahu Rekha on the faces of the Chaturdha Murti using medicinal preparations and cloth.
Once the Rahu Rekha ritual is completed, the deities will undergo Mahasnana, or a ceremonial grand bath. Public darshan will resume after the completion of these rituals.
