Puri: As per Hindu tradition, women never enter the sanctum sanctorum of the temple but this unique tradition of ‘Gahan Bije’ of Jagannath Temple empowers the queen to enter the sanctum sanctorum once in her lifetime thus providing her with the right of servitor to worship the deities.
The daily rituals of Lord Jagannath performed in the temple are popularly known as nitis, which signifies a particular religious rite.
As per convention, the queen of Puri visits the temple along with the king once in her lifetime and worships the deities.
The holy service was commissioned after King Dibya Singh Dev, considered as the foremost servitor in front of Lord Jagannath.
According to the religious code Loknath Mudirasta, a minor servitor boy chosen earlier by the temple guided the queen and the king to the temple and performed a complex set of religious services to the three presiding deities – Lord Jagannath, his elder Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra on behalf of the queen.
Apart from the family members of the Puri King, the invitees include royal couples of Nilagiri, Khandapara, Kalahandi, Jaipur, Bamanda, Bolangir, Kishengarh, Khadial and Dhenkanal.
The privilege is also given to all the queens of other princely states of Odisha once in their lifetime to perform ‘Gahan Bije’.
