India Guide
Orissa
The Jagannath temple
Puri's mighty Jagannath temple is one of the four holy dhams, or "abodes of the divine", drawing pilgrims, or yatris, here to spend three auspicious days and nights near Lord Jagannath, the presiding deity. The present temple structure, modelled on the older Lingaraj temple in Bhubaneswar, was erected at the start of the twelfth century by the Ganga ruler Anantavarman Chodaganga.
Non-Hindu visitors, despite the temple's long-standing "caste no bar" rule, are obliged to view proceedings from the flat roof of the Raghunandan Library (Mon– Sat 10am– noon & 4–6pm), directly opposite the main gate. One of the librarians will show you up the stairs to the vantage point overlooking the East Gate. Make a donation for this service – but don't believe the large sums written in the ledger. From the rooftop a fine view encompasses the immense deul, at 65m by far the loftiest building in the region. Archeologists have removed the white plaster from the tower to expose elaborate carving similar to that on the Lingaraj. Crowning the very top, a long scarlet pennant and the eight-spoked wheel (chakra) of Vishnu announce the presence of Lord Jagannath within.
The pyramidal roofs of the temples' adjoining halls, or mandapas, rise in steps towards the tower. The one nearest the sanctuary, the jagamohana (Assembly Hall), is part of the original building, but the other two, the smaller nata mandir (Dance Hall) and the bhoga-mandapa (Hall of Offerings) nearest the entrance, were added in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. These halls still see a lot of action during the day as worshippers file through for darshan, while late every night they become the venue for devotional music. Female and transvestite dancers (maharis and gotipuas) once performed episodes from Jayadev's Gita Govinda, the much-loved story of the life of Krishna, for the amusement of Lord Jagannath and his siblings. Nowadays, piped songs have replaced the traditional theatre.