Puri: The public darshan at Jagannath Temple in Puri will remain suspended for public darshan for six hours tomorrow for Banakalagi Niti (the ritual of painting the idols) of Lord Jagannath and his siblings.
As informed by the I & PR department on ‘X,’ the general darshan of the deities will be suspended from 6 PM to 12 midnight as the Banakalagi ritual will be performed on the day of Baisakha Krushna Amabasya.
The general darshan will be closed after the completion of ‘Dwitiya Bhogamandap,’ the I&PR stated.
Banakalagi Niti or Shrimukha Sringara means applying fresh colours on the idols of the deities. This secret and special ritual holds a lot of significance in the tradition of the Srimandir.
As per tradition, the Dutta Mohapatra Sevakas (Servitors) and Khadiprasad Daetapati Servitors perform the rituals. Different types of natural colors like Hingula, Haritala, Kasturi, Keshar, glue of Kaintha are used to prepare a Banaka.
