Darshan at Puri Srimandir will be restricted for four hours today due to ‘Banaka Lagi’ or Srimukha Sringara ritual of Lord Jagannath and his siblings. The temple will be remain closed from 5 pm to 9 pm for the ritual.
The darshan of the deities at Srimandir will be restricted for the devotees from 5 PM to 9 PM today. Only a small group of servitors will be allowed inside the ‘Garba Gruha’ or sanctum sanctorum for the special ritual.
Banaka Lagi ritual is also called ‘Srimukha Simhar’ niti. ‘Banaka’ word denotes colours derived from Vana or forest. This ritual also means decoration of the face of the Lord or ‘Srimukha Simhar’. In simple terms, it can be described as the repainting of the deities.
During the ‘Banaka Lagi’ ritual the Datta Mahapatra sevayats will repaint the deities with various traditional organic colours. Banaka or these colours include aromatic organic materials like Hingula, Haritala, Kasturi as well as glue from the Kaintha fruit.
The Holy Trinity (Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra) will adorn a new look after a special make-up ritual on the Ratnabedi. As it is a secret ritual, devotees will not be allowed to have darshan of the deities. During this ritual, the sanctum sanctorum of the temple remains closed and no outsiders are allowed inside. So, the devotees do not get darshan of the deities for around four hours.
Literally ‘Banaka’ means colours and this ritual means decoration of the face of the Lord. In simple words, it can be described as repainting of the deities. During the secret ritual, the deities would be re-painted with various traditional organic colours by the Datta Mahapatra servitors. This ritual is performed several times a year. Through this ritual, the Trinity always remains fresh and attractive for the devotees.
