Legends of Jagannatha
God following Devotees
The
relationship between God and the devotees, especially that between Jagannatha
and His bhaktas, is no one-way traffic.
Kabir sang
of total surrender to God, and found solace in following God wherever He led
him. He became Mutia, a pet dog on a leash held by the Supreme One. Kabira
kutta Ram ka, mutia mera naam….
Salabega,
the 17th century devotee and Odia bhakta-kavi visualised Jagannatha following His devotee as lovingly as a calf follows its mother. God following the
devotee, in a reversal of roles.
Jagannatha’s Compassion
Of the many
legends of Jagannatha, the following two relating to Rathayatra illustrate His infinite compassion.
Salabega
Salabega was
born to a Muslim father and a brahmin mother. Though raised a Muslim, he was an ardent devotee of Jagannatha and Sri Krishna and composed several
bhajans and jananas which are popular even today. However, he could not enter
the Srimandira owing to his religion, and had to await darshan of his favourite
God during Rathayatra.
There is a
legend related to one of his poems. Salabega had gone on a pilgrimage, and had timed
his return to Puri for Ratha Yatra, but got delayed owing to sickness. He offered
a fervent prayer and petitioned Jagannatha:
Jagabandhu, he Gosain!*
Tumbha sricharana binu anya gati nahin .....
Moha jiba
jaen Nandighoshe thiba rahi.
O, Friend of
the World!
O, Lord and Master!
There is no salvation
Except upon surrender at your auspicious feet, .....
Please stay
put on Nandighosha,
Till I reach
You.
The gracious
Lord granted his prayer, the ratha did not budge despite the effort by thousands
of devotees pulling the thick ropes. Only after Salabega’s arrival and darshan
of Jagannatha did the ratha move forward on its journey.
On Bada Danda (Grand Avenue) near Balagandi, Salabega’s mazar is at the spot where he is believed to have sighted Jagannatha and offered his prayers. During Rathayatra, out of affection for His devotee, Jagannatha’s Nandighosha makes a brief halt here. An amazing gesture of the Compassionate Lord for his Muslim devotee!
Balaram Das
There is another legend associated
with Ratha Yatra. Balaram Das was one of the Pancha Sakhas, the five
pre-eminent sant-kavis of the 16th century; and the only non-brahmin of
the five. He authored Jagamohan Ramayana, and the hugely popular Lakshmi Purana which is still read in every Odia home. He also wrote many beautiful bhajans for Lord Jagannatha.
Once, he was prevented from mounting
the Lord’s ratha since he had come unwashed after spending the night with a woman of ill repute.
Deeply hurt, Balaram Das withdrew to the sea-shore, made a ratha of sand and
worshipped Jagannatha all alone.
Nandighosha got stuck and could not be
pulled forward despite all effort. Jagannatha appeared in the dream of the King
of Puri, and told him the reason why the ratha was stuck. Next morning, the
king and the pandas went to the seashore, and invited Balaram Das to join the
ratha yatra. As soon as the dear devotee touched the ratha’s rope, it began
moving effortlessly.
Jagannatha is not juggernaut; He is Krupasindhu, the Ocean of Mercy!
***
A beautiful exposition of the unique Jagannath bhakti .
ReplyDeleteJai Jagannath 🙏
ReplyDeleteNice depiction of two stories associated with Lord Sri Jagganath
ReplyDelete