Unique Role of The Most Revered Alarnath When ShreeJagannath Falls In Fever

Alarnath or Alvarnatha Temple is dedicated to ShreeVishnu and situated in Brahmagiri, Odisha, (around 22 Kms from Puri).The Sri Alarnath Vishnu Temple in Brahmagiri is a 12th-century construction. It is believed to have been built by the Ganga dynasty emperor Madan Mahadev. The Rekha style garbhgriha ( Sanctum Sanctorum) and the Pidha style Jagamohana have a rectangular roofed Bhogamandapa. The temple’s garbhagriha, which is about fifty feet high, houses a standing idol of life size Shree Vishnu. The idol of Shree Vishnu, made of black chlorite stone, is about six feet high and adorned with conch ( sankha), wheel (chakra) and mace(gada) is very beautiful and graceful.

It gets flooded with tourists during the krishnapaksha of Ashadha, after the Snana Yatra when Mahaprabhu Jagannath doesn’t give DARSHAN to the devotees in Puri. It was a direct result of extreme shower , when Shree Jagannath himself falls in fever. This is all about the human pastimes of our loving God ShreeJagannath.

Let me give a little idea about the Snana Yatra festival of Shree Jagannath here . The Deba Snana Yatra, likewise spelt Snana Yatra, is an imperial bathing celebration of the heavenly Trinity (Sibling Gods Shree Jagannath, Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra). It is performed on the purnima of the Hindu month of Jyeshtha. It is the promising birthday of ShreeJagannath. Consistently on the event of Jyestha Purnima, kin divinities and Chakradhar Sudarsan, scrub down with 108 pots of sacrosanct water.It is a significant celebration for Hindus.On the very next day , ShreeJagannath falls in fever and devotees are no more allowed to have DARSHAN ( see and worship) of the three sibling God’s.

Let me explain a little bit about the kind of treatment given to our Lord Jagannath and His siblings when they fall in fever after a heavy shower on the day of Snana Yatra.After the ceremonial bath, they undergo a 15-day period of rest and rejuvenation known as Anasara. During this time, they are secluded and not publicly visible. 

This is an essential  secret ritual that is around 1000 years old. Anasara gupta niti( secret ritual)of Phuluri oil massage on the Sreeanga ( Devine body )by the servitors can’t be made open to the public . It is accepted that the divinities are enduring extreme body throb due to fever.

This is a home grown treatment applied to the sickly sibling deities by the Daitapatis. This is a unique Sesame oil blended in with a great many regular ingredients chiefly fragrant flowers,herbs and roots, for example…Ketaki,Malli,Juee,Boula,Champa,Kia,Bena chera,Sandalwood powder,Camphor etc.All these things are blended with hand crushed Sesame oil n kept in an earthen pot and afterward covered under the earth since last year’s Hera Panchami(Aashada sukla Panchami) and left to mix under the earth for almost a year.

On this day,the Mahanta Maharaj of Bada Odia Math,Puri unearth the earthen pot from the pit and channel the Seasame oil in an exceptionally hallowed way to the Temple for massaging the ailing divinities. Consistently almost 4 seras(kgs) of this natural oil provided by the Bada Odia Math,Puri.The researchers are of assessment that the option to supply Phuluri tela(oil) was given by the Gajapati Purushottam Dev.Atibadi Jagannath Das was provided accommodation in Bada Odia Math during those days by the king. Atibadi Jagannath Das was assigned that duty to prepare the Phuluri oil during the early years.

During this period, prevalently known as Anasara or ‘Anabasara’ (in a real sense meaning no tourist is allowed to see Jagannath , the master of universe ). In stead of the Darubrahma ( wooden idols) of Shree Jagannath , Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra, three patta paintings ( otherwise called Pati Dian) of the deities, are worshipped. These paintings are hung on a temporary “tati” (made of bamboo strips ) erected in front of the gem stone throne or Ratna simhasan . The Pati Dians are not kept on the ground, but are placed on the “tati” at the Jay Bijaya Dwara. 

Let me give a brief idea about the Pati Dians. The Pati Dian of Shree Balabhadra is Shree Vasudeva, the Pati Dian of Devi Subhadra is Ma Bhubaneswari, and the Pati Dian of Shree Jagannath is Shree Narayan . Near the pedestal of Shree Vasudeva, the idols of Rama, Narasimha, Krishna are kept. Like that, near the pedestal of Ma Bhubaneswari the idols of Sri Devi and Bhudevi are kept and near the pedestal of Shree Narayan, the idols of Madanmohan and Dolagobinda are kept.The drawing work of the Pati Dians begins from the Shitalsasthi. The Pati Dian of Devi Subhadra and Shree Balabhadra is made in the Chitrakar Sahi under Dolamandap Sahi, while the Pati Dian of Shree Jagannath is made in the Chitrakar Sahi under Baseli Sahi.

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Mahaprabhu Jagannath, Balabhadra, and Subhadra do not return to the Ratnasimhasana after the Snana Purnima (or Snana Yatra) ritual. Rather than having darshan in Jagannath Temple, devotees accept that Lord Jagannath during this time appears as Alarnath Dev, at the Alarnath temple in Brahmagiri. During Anabasara time , the Kheeri bhoga offered to Alarnath Dev is abundantly advertised and popular.