In the olden days many people flung themselves under the chariots wheels hoping to achieve instant salvation. In fact, the English word 'juggernaut', meaning an inexorable force that crushes everything in its path, comes from 'Jagannath'.

Today thousands of people pull the chariots along the Bada-Danda, the grand road in Puri, which remains the most exciting part of the yatra. The chariot of Lord Balabhadra comes first, followed by those of Devi Subhadra and Lord Jagannath. The chariots grind forward until they reach the Gundicha Temple entrance where the three deities spend the night in the chariot. They enter the temple the next day and stay there for seven days.

The deities then commence their return journey, called the Bahuda Yatra.

On the way back, Lord Jagannath stops at Ardhasani Temple, popularly called Mausi Ma temple, and accepts from the mausi (aunt) his favourite rice cake, Poda Pitha. The three chariots reach the Simhadwara in the late afternoon and the deities remain in the chariots.

The next day, Bada Ekadasi, the three deities are attired in costumes of glittering gold and worshipped by thousands of devotees. On Dwadasi, the three go back to their original place, the Ratna Simhasana, with fanfare. Their arrival into the sanctum sanctorum marks the end of the yatra.

Also see: Glimpses of India