Grand Installation Ceremony of Lord Jagannatha and Sri Sri Gaura-Gadadhara

Date

On 25th January, on the auspicious occasion of Pusyabhiseka, the devotees of Sri Narasingha Caitanya Matha performed the installation ceremony of Their Lordships Sri Sri Gaura-Gadadhara and Sri Patita-pavana Jagannatha. (Pusyabhiseka is the same day, as in Satya-yuga, that the original Deity of Lord Jagannatha was first installed.)

About 250 devotees and guests from Bangalore, Mysore, and Mandya came for the festival at Govindaji Gardens. Sripada Jayadvaita Swami Maharaja of ISKCON, Sripada Bhakti Vedanta Vaikhanasa Maharaja of Gaudiya Vedanta Samiti and Caru Dasa Prabhu of the Sri Sri Radha-Krsna Temple of Utah, USA were some of the special guests that attended the function.

At 8:30 am Srila Narasingha Maharaja requested Sripada Jayadvaita Maharaja and Sripada Vaikhanasa Maharaja to give class to the assembled devotees on the first verse of Siksastakam extolling the glories of the Holy Name.

At 10:00, everyone gathered outside Lord Jagannatha's new temple to witness the abhiseka of Sri Sri Gaura-Gadadhara. Amidst a roaring kirtana led by H.H. Bhakti Srirupa Madhava Maharaja and the blowing of conches, the Deities were brought out to the snana-vedi and bathed by Srila Narasingha Maharaja and Srila Visnu Maharaja in panca-gavya, pancamrta and other auspicious substances.

After the bathing ceremony was over, Sri Sri Gaura-Gadadhara were taken into the temple where the prana-pratistha was performed, formally requesting Lord Jagannatha and Gaura-Gadadhara to accept worship from Their servitors. Then, as the kirtana gathered momentum, the doors were opened and everyone took darsana for the first time.

It would be no exaggeration to say that the darsana was so breathtaking that all the devotees were instantly stunned. All the devotees and guests then came up to the temple to offer puspanjali to the lotus feet of Jagannatha while Narasingha Maharaja and Visnu Maharaja performed puspa-abhiseka with rose petals.

Returning to the verandah of the temple, Narasingha Maharaja spoke about the specialty of Gaura-Gadadhara and Jagannatha. He explained that when Jagannatha is worshipped alone then He is known as Patita-pavana Jagannatha and it was this form of Jagannatha that was worshipped by the ancestors of Bhaktivinoda Thakura for 400 years. Patita-pavana Jagannatha is considered to be most merciful to His devotees.

Narasingha Maharaja also explained the importance of worshipping Gaura-Gadadhara for the Gaudiya Vaisnavas who want to understand the essence of Sri Sri Radha Krsna lila. Maharaja also explained that Gadadhara is considered to be the devotee who has the greatest love for Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and that Gadadhara represents the guru-tattva in Gaura lila for devotees absorbed in madhurya-rasa. He also explained that the inspiration for the temple of Jagannatha and Gaura-Gadadhara at Govindaji Gardens came from the temple of Srila Bhakti Pramoda Puri Gosvami Maharaja at Gopinatha Gaudiya Matha in Mayapura where Patitapavana-Jagannatha and Sri Sri Gaura Gadadhara are worshiped on the same altar in the mood of separation, vipralambha-bhava.

After the lecture, naivedya was offered to the Deities and then the devotees sang the new Jagannatha / Gaura-Gadadhara arati song. All the devotees then assembled in the prasadam hall and honored a wonderful feast of Jagannatha mahaprasadam.

Without a doubt, the darsana of Lord Jagannatha and Sri Sri Gaura-Gadadhara at Govindaji Gardens is the most spectacular darsana of Lord Jagannatha in the entire world save and except for the darsana of the original Lord Jagannatha in Jagannatha Puri!