The Puri
Jagannath Temple
in Orissa will have new idols of the presiding deities in 2015. The new deities will be made available for darshan on July 16. The new murtis will particiapte in the Rath Yatra taking place on July 18. The present
murtis will be replaced with new murtis made out of neem tree. The change of
murtis is known as Nabakalebara and takes place when there is an Adhik Ashada
Masa or extra Ashada month as per traditional Hindu lunar calendar. In 2015
there is an additional Ashada month.
The change of murtis last took place 19 years ago.
The murtis are made from a special type of neem wood known
as Daru Bramha. The murtis of Jagannath, Balabhadra, Subadhra and Sudarshana Chakra are changed. The new body is referred to as Nabakalebara. A wrapped
package of brahma (life) is removed from the old murti and is place in the new
one.
The old murtis are buried.
Preparations for the ceremony start in the month of Chaitra
Month (March – April) (Chaitra Shukla Paksha Dasami).
Last Nabakalebara ceremony was performed in 1996.
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