VADODARA: Lord Jagannath
along with Lord Balram and Devi Subhadra will make their gala journey
in the city on a decorated chariot on Wednesday that marks the
auspicious day of Aashadh sud bij as per the Gujarati calendar.
After a break of five years, the 32nd annual Rath Yatra that will pass
through rain-kissed roads will witness an elephant leading the festival
of chariots.
In the wake of the serial blasts that rocked
Mahabodhi Temple in Bihar, security has been beefed up at Gotri temple
of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) that has
been holding the annual Rath Yatra since last 31 years.
The
Rath Yatra will begin at railway station at 2.30 pm when mayor of
Vadodara Municipal Corporation Bharat Shah will emulate the ancient
ritual enacted yearly by the Gajapati Maharajah of Puri, in which he
will symbolically sweep the road in front of the cart of Lord Jagannath
to inaugurate the august event.
Vadodara district collector Vinod Rao will be the chief guest at the inauguration of the procession.
"We have obtained the permission for an elephant to lead the
procession. With this the Rath Yatra this year will be held in its most
traditional way. Over the years, the Rath Yatra has turned into one of
the largest cultural and religious festival of Gujarat's cultural
capital," ISKCON Baroda's president Basu Ghosh Das informed media
persons on Monday.
"Fifteen tones (15,000 kilogram) of 'shira
prasad' cooked in desi ghee will be distributed to devotees from four
trucks moving behind the chariot. Also, the forest department has
arranged for distribution of 20,000 saplings during the procession as
'taru prasad'. This is the fifth year that the forest department will be
distributing saplings on the route of the Rath Yatra," ISKCON Baroda's
secretary Nityananda Ram Das said.
Quintals each of rava,
sugar, pure ghee specially brought from Jamkhambhalia, cashew nuts,
raisins and cardamom will be used for the 'shira prasad' that will be
distributed along with bananas en route.
Later on Wednesday
evening once the Rath Yatra procession gets over, full plates of
'prasad' that includes 'shira', 'puri', rice-kadhi will be distributed
to around 40,000 visitors at the ISKCON temple premises.
The
Rath Yatra will proceed from the railway station to Sayajibaug,
Kalaghoda, Salatwada naka, Kothi Kacheri, Raopura main road, Jubilee
baug, Padmavati shopping centre, Sursagar lake, Dandia Bazaar, Khanderao
Market, Lal Court, Nyay Mandir, Madan Zhapa Road, Kevdabaug and end at
Baroda High School, opposite Polo ground.
BOX: 50 students from 26 countries to chant 'Hare Rama, Hare Krishna'
Vadodara: Amidst the colorful procession of the Rath Yatra that will
include a chariot, elephant, bands, buggies, horses and even 'bakra
gadi', a group of 50 Gurukul students will shine out as they fill the
air with chants of 'Hare Rama, Hare Krishna'.
Fifty students of
Bhaktivedanta Academy (Gurukula) who reside at ISKCON's spiritual world
headquarters at Sridham Mayapur, West Bengal, the birthplace of the
founder of the Sankritan movement Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, have arrived in
the city to participate in the Rath Yatra along with their teachers.
Starting from a one-year-old kid to a 26-year-old youth, these
students, hailing from 26 countries across six continents, are being
educated at the academy on the principles of the Vedic Gurukula system.
"At the academy, established in 1984, we make them fully Krishna
conscious. These students hailing from North and South America, Europe,
China, Taiwan, Russia, Australia and other Asian countries learn how to
sing, worship the deity, conduct yagna puja along with English,
Sanskrit, Mathematics and Science," principal Priti Vardhana Das told
TOI.
"These students are on a month-long 'parikrama' which is
part of their education curriculum. The Rath Yatra is the last leg of
the parikrama," he said.
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