: Daitapatis servitors of Lord Jagannath will set out on a journey for a ‘night out with dream’ from Sunday. Their dreams will be basis for locating suitable Neem trees for giving Lord Jagannath a makeover.
The journey — Banajaga Jatra — will commence from Puri on Sunday. More than 150 persons including selected Daitapatis and Brahmins will cover a 60-km distance barefoot on a pre-decided route.
The Banjaga Jatra , which is known as search for suitable Neem tree, is the first leg of Lord Jagannath’s Nabakalebara festival that marks the replacement of the old wooden idols of the Lord Balabhadra, Lord Jagannath and Devi Subhadra with newly carved wooden statues.
The vast contingent for Banajaga Jatra will reach Deuli mutt near Kakatpur in Puri district on April 2. After several complex rituals at Mangala Temple in Kakatpur, they will return to Deuli Mutt.
