The Banakalagi ritual of Lord Jagannath and His Siblings will be performed at the Puri Srimandir on Wednesday on the occasion of Jyeshtha Krishna Chaturthi, leading to temporary suspension of general darshan for the devotees.

According to the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA), darshan will remain suspended for four hours, from 6 pm to 10 pm, to facilitate the conduct of the ritual.

Ritual Schedule And Observances

The Banakalagi ritual, also known as Shreemukha Shringara, will be carried out after the completion of the second Bhoga Mandap offering. During this process, the deities will undergo ceremonial bathing (Mahasnana) followed by facial adornment.

The ritual is traditionally performed by the Dutta Mohapatra sevayats, who use natural substances for the adornment. These include conch shell for white, black derived from diya, Haritala for red, Hingula for yellow, along with other naturally sourced materials. Kasturi is also applied as part of the process to protect the bodies of the sibling deities.

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The entire ritual is expected to take nearly four hours.

Darshan Arrangements For Devotees

While the main temple will remain closed to the public during the ritual, devotees will still be allowed to offer prayers to other deities within the temple premises.