File:India and daily life in Bengal (1912) (14596012370).jpg

Identifier: indiadailylifein00grif (find matches)
Title: India and daily life in Bengal
Year: 1912 (1910s)
Authors: Griffin, Z. F. (Zebina Flavius), 1844-1938
Subjects:
Publisher: Philadelphia, Boston (etc.) American Baptist publication Society
Contributing Library: Mugar Memorial Library, Boston University
Digitizing Sponsor: Boston Library Consortium Member Libraries

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the rath jatra, or car festival, is totake place. This is the occasion of the annual ride ofJuggernaut. There are in fact three days duringwhich the idol is exposed to public view. The firstis the bathing festival, when he is taken from histemple, and, on a lofty platform in the presence of avast multitude of people, is bathed by the priests.They bathe themselves every day, but their god onlyonce a year, so not being used to cold water he is sup-posed to take a severe cold. He is therefore taken backand put into his temple for ten days, when he is againbrought out, and by the assistance of the priests is madeto walk up the inclined bridge from the ground to theplatform of his huge car. He is placed under a canopymade of different-colored cloths, and his car is fes-tooned with flowers. By his side sit his brother Bala-rama and his sister Subhadra, or they may have sepa-rate cars. Three ponderous ropes, a thousand or fifteenhundred feet long, are attached to the car, and these 1*3 eg a.
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A Glance at Hinduism 173 are laid along the street as far as they will extend.When the priests and musicians have assembled onthe platform of the car, and the people have taken holdof the ropes, to the number of sometimes ten thousand,the officiating priest gives the order for the car tomove. The musicians, with drums and horns andcymbals, and other kinds of instruments, more designedto produce noise than harmony, begin to play, and thepeople begin to shout, and the great car begins to move.It is a monstrous, unwieldy affair, and with nothingto guide it but the ropes, often does damage to build-ings along the streets. Juggernaut is taken to a neigh-boring temple, where his maternal aunt is supposed toreside, and after staying there a week is again placedon his car, though with much less enthusiasm on thepart of the people than on the first occasion, and istaken back to his own temple, where he sits until thenext year. In the city of Puri pilgrims congregate to the num-ber of from one

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