Nabakalebara
is the reincarnation of Lord Jagannath of Puri. Though in every Jagannath temple
Nabakalebara takes place, the one meant for the famous temple of Lord Jagannath
in Puri is the most important. The great sacred and divine festival is
celebrated amid a number of rituals where the sacred woods, called Daru (out of
which the idols are made) are searched, cut and brought to the main temple (Sri
Mandira).
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| Daru (neem tree) of Lord Balabhadra near Goddess Sarala temple at Jhankada in Jagatsinghpur district |
Yagnyas are
done at the site where the ‘most sacred’ trees are found. These yagnyas are
done with ‘Patala Nrusingha mantra (hymn)’. During Nabakalebara new idols are
made not only for Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra and mata Subhadra, but idols of
‘Parswa Debatas’, weapons of the God (Ayudha) and carriers (Bahana) are also prepared
on this occasion. The old idols are buried at the ‘Koili Baikuntha’, a garden inside
the temple. Nabakalebara can be considered as the end of an era.
Akin to the
life of Lord Srikrishna, whose all living and non-living elements vanished with
his demise in the Dwapara Yuga, all devatas as well as stuff related to Lord
Jagannath are buried during each Nabakalebara.
Nabakalebara
falls in an interval of 12 to 19 years. The year that has two ‘Asadha’ months
is selected for Nabakalebara. As per mythological texts the idols were first
made in the ‘Aadapa Mandapa’. And they were brought to the temple (Srimandira)
in a chariot by the then king (Gajapati) of Odisha Indradyumna Deba. It is an
amazing fact that though a number of idols are buried in a small place, these
are not found in the next Nabakalebara.