Little girl sends Rakhis to Puri Srimandira for her brothers Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra

Puri: Height of devotion. Such high value of devotion and affection for God is rarely seen. A little girl from Bhadrak district sent Rakhis to the Srimandira in Puri of Odisha a few days back. Along with the Rakhis she sent a letter in which she mentioned that the Rakhis that she has sent are meant for her brothers Lord Jagannath and Lord Balabhadra. She also sent a  currency note of value Rs 500 and mentioned in the letter that the money should be spent towards sweets for the trinity.

The temple administration decided to do whatever had been asked in the letter. Proper steps were taken so that the sent Rakhis can be offered to Lord Jagannath and Lord Balabhadra.

Moreover, the temple administration sent back a pack of return gift to the little girl, the sister of Lord Jagannath and Balabhadra along with an official letter issued properly with all formalities like number, date etc. The letter said that whatever had been urged in the letter was done. Besides, a return gift constituting the clothes used in the Chariot of the deities, a piece of the rope used to pull the chariots during Rath Yatra, a piece of chariot wood and Nirmalya (dry rice offering of Lord Jagannath) was sent back to the little girl.

The little girl who had sent the Rakhis to the deities is Sai Sukanya Mohanty, a Class VI student from Bamanbindha village in Bhadrak district of Odisha. She had sent the packet via speed post. She wrote the letter herself in her own handwriting.

The letter that the little girl wrote in Odia bears this meaning if translated to English: Respected Uncle, Please accept my prostration. I am sending Rakhis with love to my brothers Jaga and Balia. On the day of Rakhya Bandhan, please tie the Rakhis to my brothers and offer ladu (sweet) to my brothers and sister (Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra) (She sent a Rs 500 currency note along with the letter.). In the sender space she wrote, your affectionate sister of Jaga and Kalia, SN Sai Sukanya Mohanty, Class VI.

In reply Sri Jagannath temple office, Puri in the letter No. 11155 Dt. 29-8-23 addressed the girl along with her address. About the Rakhis that you had sent meant for the Lord —  the subject column of the letter reads.

The body of the letter said: Best wishes from the lotus feet of Mahaprabhu Lord Jagannath. Our office has received the Rakhis that you had sent. Appropriate steps have been taken to offer the Rakhis to Lord Balabhadra (Bada Thakura) and Lord Jagannath. Similarly, the Rs 500 that you had sent has been received as donation meant for the Mahaprabhu and the money receipt (of this donation) bearing Receipt No. 370274 Dt. 29.08.2023 has been attached with this.

With this thanks letter a packet containing Rathakatha (Chariot wood), Rathadaudi (Chariot rope), Rathakana (Chariot clothe) and Nirmalya (offering) has been sent to you as the blessings of the Thakura. May the grace of Mahaprabhu always bestow upon you, reads the body of the letter while it was sent undersigned by Ranjan Kumar Das, IAS, Chief Administrator, Sri Jagannath temple Administration, Puri.

Everybody who knew about the incident were full of praise for the great devotion as well as affection of the little girl. And the timely and appropriate steps taken by the temple administration was also highly praised.