Jagannath Rath Yatra Begins in Puri with 1 Million Devotees

The annual Jagannath Rath Yatra, one of Hinduism's largest public festivals, commenced in Puri, Odisha, on Thursday, July 16, 2026, drawing more than a million devotees. The nine-day festival marks the ceremonial journey of the deities Lord Jagannath, his brother Lord Balabhadra, and sister Devi Subhadra from the 12th-century Jagannath Temple to the Gundicha Temple, approximately two miles away.

The day's events began with the Pahandi Bije, the solemn procession in which the deities were moved from the temple's inner sanctum to their waiting chariots on the Grand Road. Carved from sacred neem wood, the idols were gently guided by hereditary temple servitors using silk ropes, their rhythmic, swaying movement described by devotees as a divine dance. The procession order saw Lord Sudarshan emerge first, followed by Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra, and finally Lord Jagannath.

This movement symbolizes a core tenet of the tradition: the deity leaving the temple to bless all people without distinction. The chariots, fully constructed and decorated, had been positioned in front of the temple's Lions Gate on Wednesday, July 15, following the Agyanmala ritual where the deities grant...