India Guide
Orissa
Around the temple
The crowded streets around the Jagannathtemple buzz with activity – commercial as much as religious. Grand Road, Puri's broad main thoroughfare, is lined with a lively bazaar, many of its stalls specializing in rudraksha malas (Shaivite "rosaries" made of 108 beads), Ayurvedic cures and images of Lord Jagannath. Look out too for the wonderful "religious maps" of Puri.
Leading south from the main square in the temple surrounds, Swargadwar ("Cremation") Road leads through a dingy bazaar to the main promenade. The cremation ground itself, situated well beyond the south corner of the beach, is among India's most auspicious mortuary sites, where inquisitive tourists are definitely not welcome.
A more enjoyable foray from the main square is the trip to the sacred tanks in the north of town (best attempted by bicycle). Follow the north wall of the Jagannath temple up to the little road junction in the far corner, then turn right and stick to the same narrow twisting backstreet for about a kilometre until you arrive at the Markandesvara tank. This large, steep-sided bathing place is said to have been the spot where Vishnu once resided in the form of a neem tree while his temple was buried deep under a sand dune. There's no sign of the tree, but the temples on the south side are worth a look, particularly the smaller of the group, which contains images of the Jagannath trio.
If you retrace your route from here back down the lane as far as the first road junction, then bear left and continue for another kilometre or so, you'll emerge at the Narendra Sagar, Puri's most holy tank. A small temple stands in the middle, joined to the ghats by a narrow footbridge. During the annual Chandan Yatra, a replica deity of Lord Jagannath, Madan Mohan, is brought here every day for his dip. The list also advertises services offered by the temple pujaris, including the unlikely sounding "throw of bone" and "throw of hair" – references to the tank's role as another of Puri's famous mortuary ritual sites.