Ratha Yatra

The popular Odia festival of Rath Yatra is one of paramount importance, as it signifies the emotions of love and longing from the traditional tale of Krishna in the Vedas, and draws the attendance of millions of devotees to Puri from all over Odisha, India, and the world. 

The scene of three majestic chariots being pulled by a horde of devotees reaching into the hundreds of thousands is unfathomable in even the wildest of dreams - yet that is precisely what happens every year during the month of Āshādha, which typically falls around late June and early July. The Rath Yatra festival has its roots tied into a traditional tale of Krishna. 

When Krishna, God of Creation, was young and born in Vrinadavan, he was a beloved figure, loved by everyone from his friends, family, and girlfriends, also known as gopis. As Krishna grew older and was forced to undertake his emperor roles in creation, he was cast into a state of immense longing and remembrance - he missed his gopis, and his gopis missed him. One day, in the presence of his siblings Baladeva and Subhadra, he fell into a state of immense shock and heartache - he could not bear his sadness any longer. He was tended to for 15 days through his period of heartache, before returning to Vrinadavan and curing his broken heart. 

Rath Yatra’s chief focus is to commemorate Krishna’s heartache and return to his home. Lord Jagannath, a form of Krishna, along with his siblings Baladeva and Subhadra, undergo a cycle of sickness and recovery every year. At the inception of the festival, the three gods are open to the public and bathed with holy water, after which they are quarantined because they have “fallen sick” from their bath. They are quarantined for 15 days, much like Krishna was and are tended to by priests who treat them with herbal medicines. During these 15 days, a new coat of paint is often applied to the statues of the three deities. Once they’ve been cured, the three deities are pulled in chariots back to a main temple, which is meant to signify the return of Krishna to his homeland. This practice of pulling the chariots is what truly separates Rath Yatra from all other Indian festivals. 

Rath Yatra is an ancient, and traditional festival rooted in history, one that conveys the deep emotions of love, heartache, and recovery in an effort to spread positivity to all practitioners of Hinduism.