Bhubaneswar: Lakhs of devotees from across the country and abroad thronged Odisha’s Puri city to witness the Suna Besha ritual of Lord Jagannath and his siblings Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra on Saturday.

The sibling deities were adorned with Suna Besha (Golden Attire) on their respective chariots at the Lions’ Gate of Srimandir in the evening.

The deities had returned to the Lions’ Gate of the 12th century shrine from Srigundicha temple by riding their chariots on the Grand Road after completion of their nine-day sojourn on the occasion of Bahuda Yatra on Friday.

Jagannath temple servitors started decorating the deities with gold ornaments including Sri Hasta (golden hand), Sri Payar (golden feet), Sri Mukuta (golden crown), Sri Mayur Chandrika (golden peacock feather), Sri Kundal (golden earring), Sri Rahurekha (golden aura) and Sri Mala (gold necklace) on their chariots soon after the completion of Madhyahna Dhoopa, Mailam and other rituals in the afternoon.

They took more than an hour to decorate the deities with the gold ornaments. They had earlier brought huge quantities of ornaments from the Ratna Bhandar (treasury) of the shrine to the chariots amid tight security.

The administration deployed thousands of police personnel to maintain law and order and manage crowd on the Grand Road during the ritual. The authorities also introduced several measures to avoid traffic issues in the Holy City.

As per the tradition, Suna Besha ritual of the deities is conducted five times in a year. The deities are adorned with the Golden Attire four times in a year inside the sanctum sanctorum of Srimandir while the ritual is held once on the chariots during the annual Ratha Yatra. 

It is believed that Suna Besha ritual of the deities was introduced during the reign of Gajapati King Kapilendra Deb in 1460. Kapilendra Deb had donated huge quantities of gold and silver ornaments to Srimandir after conquering several kingdoms during his rule in Odisha.

Notably, Lord Jagannath and his siblings had embarked on their journey to Srigundicha temple for a nine-day sojourn by riding their chariots on the Grand Road on the occasion of Rath Yatra on July 16.

After making a night halt midway, the deities reached Saradhabali near Srigundicha temple on July 17. The deities were escorted to the Adapa Mandap of Srigundicha temple from their chariots on July 18.

As per the schedule, the sibling deities will be offered Adhara Pana (a delicious drink) on their chariots on July 26 (Sunday). The deities will be taken back to the sanctum sanctorum of Srimandir from the chariots through the Pahandi procession on the occasion of Niladri Bije on July 27 (Monday).