Vadodara. The 38th Jagannatha Ratha Yatra started with great fanfare and bhajan-kirtan of “Hare Rama…Hare Krishna”. In a traditional manner, Mayor Dr. Jigeeshaben Seth peformed the first rites and started the festival.
The Rathayatra, which was organised by the ISKCON temple, of Gotri, Vadodara, departed from Station Road. On this occasion, President of ISKCON Gujarat Jasothamandan Das, Dinabandhu Das, Vallabh Vidyanagar ISKCON President Sachidanand Das, Vadodara ISKCON Vice President Nitinandaram Das were present along with the mayor.
The gorgeously decorated figures of Lord Jagannath, sister Subhadra Devi and older brother Lord Balaram ascended the cart. In the afternoon, starting in front of the Rathyatra, nicely decorated, costumed children, including a rider in the form of Bharat Mata, horse-carts, camel carts, and different forms of God in various costumes were charming. In addition to this, along the Rathyatra’s course, including Amdavadi Pol, Nyaya Mandir, Raj Mahal Road, youth groups and leading figures welcomed the Rathyatra.
Jagannatha Wanders the City in a Robo-Ratha
Vadodara. In the city, members of the Mahatma Gandhi Youth Organization prepared a “robo-ratha” (robo-cart), in which Lord Jagannatha took His place and meandered through the city. Installed in the Robo-Rath circuitry was a bluetooth wireless interface, which an operator could control with a mobile device. In this Rathyatra, a reconciliation of science and tradition were on display.
(हिंदी पढ़ने के लिये, क्लिक करें)
Original article in Hindi by Gyan Prakash Sharma, “वडोदरा : इस्कॉन मंदिर से रथयात्रा निकाली”, 5 July 2019. पात्रिका. viewed 6 July 2019. <हिंदी में असली लेख पढ़ने के लिये, क्लिक करें>
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