Bhubaneswar, June 27: Devotees of Lord Jagannath will be deprived of the Nabajouban Darshan this year. A decision in this regard was taken by the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) on Tuesday.

This year, the Rath Yatra falls on July 7. The deities ‘Nabajouban Darshan’ and ‘Netra Utsav’ are also falling on the same day. Such a rare convergence was last witnessed in 1971 and 1909.

Since Rath Yatra, ‘Nabajouban Darshan’ and ‘Netra Utsav’ are falling on the same day, a huge crowd at Srimandir, the abode of Lord Jagannath, is expected. Keeping this in view, the SJTA has taken the decision to not allow devotees to have ‘Nabajouban Darshan.’ Besides, there will be no Pahandi (procession) tickets and devotees will not be allowed entry into Srimandir on July 7.

According to Jagannath culture pundits, Nabajouban Darshan' refers to youthful reappearance of deities who have kept themselves confined to ‘Anasara Gruha’ or a quarantine room after 'Snana Purnima.'

As per mythology, the deities – Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra - fall sick due to taking excessive baths during 'Snana Purnima' and therefore, remain indoors.

This year, Snana Purnima Yatra Utsav was observed on June 22. Lakhs of devotees witnessed holy Snana Yatra. During the Snana Yatra, Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra were given holy showers with 108 pots of water. On the same day evening, the deities fell sick due to heavy showers and are now on a 15-day quarantine in Anasara Gruha.

“This year, there will be no Pahandi ticket darshan. As ‘Nabajouban Darshan’ and ‘Rath Yatra’ are falling on the same day, no devotee will be allowed into the temple. Devotees will have a darshan of deities at the Lion’s Gate (Singha Dwar) when they come out of the sanctum sanctorum in ‘pahandi.’

That will be ‘Nabajouban Darsah’ for the devotees,” informed Madhab Pujapanda, temple management committee member.

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