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The words, “Laxmi” and “Mahalaxmi” haveone and the same meaning as described in

the Vedas. As also commonly understood, thewords are synonymous with the concept ofhappiness and prosperity in life. In the Rig Veda,the word, “Laxmi” is described as a primordialdivine force of the cosmic creation. Laxmi is alsoportrayed as the symbol of delusion. She is adoredas the cause of the divine procreation. InYajurveda, She is referred to as Devi-incarnateon earth. She is depicted as a symbol of energyand plentifulness. In Atharba Veda, Mahalaxmi isdescribed as “Sri” and the causative divine forceof goodness in life. In Saptasati- Chandi,Devimata is described and worshipped in theforms of Mahalaxmi, Maha Saraswati andMahakali. Mahalaxmi is portrayed as a divineforce representing the all-pervading “Mayasakti”of Lord Narayan. It is stated in this connectionthat without Mahalaxmi, the preservation of theuniverse is not actually possible.

In the Grand Temple, Puri, the deity ofMahalaxmi has a different significance. In the“Shastras” the Grand Temple is also known as“Srimandir”. “Sri” means Laxmi; which means thatthe Grand Temple at Puri is also known andadored as the temple of Mahalaxmi. As describedin the “Shastras” on Jagannath Culture, it is

Shree Jagannath and Maa Laxmi

Durga Madhab Dash

Mahalaxmi who prepares the ‘Prasad’ offered tothe deities seated on the divine altar of the sanctumof the Grand Temple.

There is a separate temple in the GrandTemple, Puri belonging to Mahalaxmi. She isseparately worshipped here with the dailyofferings differently prepared. At a different placein same temple, she is seen as sitting on the lap ofNrusingha which means that Nrusingha is anotherform of Lord Narayan. Thus seen, Mahalaxmi isworshipped in Sri Mandir as a positive divineforce and as a symbol of material and spiritualprosperity. She is also worshipped as a symbolof good fortune and joyous dispensation in life.

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There are seven deities on the divineplatform of “Srimandir” and Mahalaxmi is oneamong them. Of the seven deities, the images ofSri Balabhadra, Devi Suvadra, Sri Jagannath, SriSudarshana and Sri Madhav are made of Neem-wood. The images of the other two deities namelyBhudevi and Sridevi are made of a precious metal.Here, Sridevi represents Mahalaxmi, Who isworshipped as the main deity of ‘Srimandira’. Herimage actually adds to the lustre of the spiritualsurrounding. The devotees, who visit the templeto worship Lord Jagannath and the other deities,first offer adulations to Mahalaxmi in Herprominent temple. This is because Mahalaxmi isthe Mayasakti of Lord Jagannath. She isworshipped in the temple in Her Vidya-Mayaform.

As described in the “Mahabharat,” apopular scripture of the Hindus written by Vyasa,Mahalaxmi as a divine force symbolizes theBibhuti of long life tinged with the divine qualitiesof spiritual well-being and material prosperity inlife. The author has emphasized these divinequalities in reference to the life of Duryodhana asa blessed devotee of Mahalaxmi. Vyasadeva hasdescribed in this scripture that Duryodhanenjoyed all these qualities in his life as long asMahalaxmi was seated on his shoulders. He methis downfall and breathed his last in the battlefieldof Kurukshetra when he rose to the sinful heightof avowed injustice shorn of compunction andpenitence in his royal dispensation. This state oflife in the ‘Shastras’ is known as “Laxmichhada”i.e a state of life bereft of Mahalaxmi’s benignprotection.

Similarly, as described in the Ramayanawritten by Sage Valmiki, the demise of Ravanacould only be possible after he was estranged fromthe divine blessings of Devi Mata which alsoincludes Mahalaxmi in one of Her incarnated formson the earth.

In Laxmipurana, it is stated that SriJagannath and Sri Balabhadra had become‘Laxmi Chhada’ when They were estranged fromthe sympathy and the loving care of Mahalaxmi.They got back their divine lustre only after theygained the loving care of Mahalaxmi. This episodeoverwhelms the readers when they readLaxmipurana written by Balaram Das.Laxmipurana is based on a spiritual story whichruns as follows:-

Maa Laxmi is the divine consort of LordJagannath. As stated above, She is the MayaShakti(the power of delusion) of the Lord. She isvery sprightly in her divine appearance. But Sheis very quick and brisk in Her nature. In no place,She likes to stay long. Importantly, She getsimpressed and unimpressed in quick succession.

Hindu women observe this spiritual ritualon every Thursday in the month of Margasiraevery year. This ritual is known as “Mana BasaGurubar”. This is observed for the prosperity ofthe family and the long life of the family members.It is described in Laxmipurana that Mahalaxmion every such occasion moves along to the placesof Her devotees in quick succession and offersHer blessings to the devotees where She isimmensely pleased with their devotion.

As stated in Laxmipurana, on one suchoccasion, Mahalaxmi visited the house of lowcaste woman known as Shriya Chandaluni. Shewas performing the ritual with utmost devotion.Getting up very early in the morning, she haddaubed her place with cow-dung water andpainted the floor of her cottage with differentdesigns in rice-water known as “Jhoti”.Mahalaxmi visited her place in course of Herspiritual rounds. She was immensely pleased withShriya’s devotion and good spiritual behavior. Asa mark of satisfaction, She blessed Shriya withprosperity in material gains.

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Shri Balaram, the elder brother of LordJagannath, did not approve of Mahalaxmi’s action.She did not approve of Mahalaxmi visiting thecottage of a low-caste woman. He directedJagannath not to allow Mahalaxmi to enter thetemple on Her return. At this, Shri Jagannath wasgreatly flabbergasted. He did not expect this sortof behavior from his brother. He was helpless atthat moment. Feeling abandoned, He had to carryout the instructions of His brother.

When Mahalaxmi returned, She learnteverything from Her maidens. She did not approveof the disposition of Her consort and also his elderbrother. At last, Sri Jagannath and His brotherbecame the victims of Mahalaxmi’s anger.Mahalaxmi deserted the temple and the twobrothers were deprived of the oblations in thetemple as Mahalaxmi was not present in the GrandTemple to cook Their “Prasad”.

At last the two brothers left the Temple.In disguise, They begged from door-to-door.Deprived of Their divine lustre, They were lookeddown upon by the people. Nobody gave themany offering. They had to go without food forseveral days. Even They were deprived of waterfrom the public wells. At some places, peoplechased Them and threatened them with direconsequences. They didn’t approve of the twobrothers begging as They looked quite healthyand able to earn Their living by working aslabourers. Shorn of other details on this score,later They came to the temple due to thecompassion of Mahalaxmi. Thereafter, They wereproperly looked after by Mahalaxmi but by then,They had realized Their mistakes.

“Mana-basa-Gurubar” is a very famousritual among Hindu women. Laxmipuranaeulogizes the divine compassion of Mahalaxmi asthe only divine source of everybody’s goodfortune and prosperity. This also establishes the

idea that Mahalaxmi loves the devotion of Herworshippers, irrespective of caste. So, caste isno barrier in any ritualistic practice of Hindureligion, particularly in the propitiation of goddessMahalaxmi. This eclectic attitude prevails uponthe service-pattern of Jagannath Temple wherethe devotees irrespective of caste partake of theMahaprasad of Lord Jagannath together.

Mahalaxmi is the Alhadini-Sakti of LordJagannath. She is always seated in His heart.When the Lord is absent from the Grand Templeduring Ratha Yatra, Mahalaxmi is worried in Herbehavioral disposition. On one occasion, Shecomes out of the Grand Temple during RathaYatra function and meets the Lord in the GundichaTemple. She makes an appeal to Him to returnto Srimandir early. On another occasion duringthis period, She again meets the Lord in Hischariot in front of the palace of Gajapati Maharaj.This divine meet is popularly known as Laxmi-Narayan Bhet. Here again, Mahalaxmi welcomesthe Lord to the Grand Temple without further lossof time.

There is another aspect of this spiritualstory. This reveals that when the Lord aftercompletion of the Yatra returns to the GrandTemple after alighting from His chariot,Mahalaxmi, overpowered by Her vanity as thesupreme goddess of the temple, does not allowthe Lord to enter the sanctum although His elderbrother Balaram and younger sister Subhadrawere already inside the temple. For some time,they had aspersions and counter aspersions. Incourse of exchange of Their accusing remarks,Mahalaxmi at last states “Prabhu, you will haveto now make a pledge that in future, you will notmove out of the temple. And, unless you make acommitment in this order, you won’t be allowedinto the sanctum.” That was an unusual demandfrom the side of Mahalaxmi.

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Mahaprabhu states very politely“Bhadre, I am bound by a divine commitment tomy devotees. I give public audience to countlessfallen devotees at least once a year. So thissojourn of mine is known as Patitapaban Yatra.You also visit your devotees on all Thursdaysduring the month of Margasir every year. Andyou should also take my sojourn during RathaYatra in that spirit.” With this argument,Mahaprabhu at last convinces Mahalaxmi. Thisis an irrefutable submission of the Lord toMahalaxmi. In context of the Lord’s pleadings,Mahalaxmi has no other go than to accept Hisviewpoint. Mahalaxmi finally opens the door ofthe sanctum and Jagannath goes inside. This isan important ritual of the temple.

This ritual has an important sociologicalsignificance. This emphasizes the efficacy of animpeccable relationship between a wife and ahusband in the usual course of their life. A wifehas a right to misunderstand her husband if thelatter plans out a programme meaning a longtimeabsence from home although in the company ofhis own brother and sister. There should be noiota of misunderstanding between a wife and herhusband in any social or filial matter. This is thewhole idea behind this episode. The cult ofJagannath reveals the implication of this ideologyin reference to our day-to-day life. This is animportant aspect of Jagannath Culture.

As stated earlier, there is a separatetemple for goddess Mahalaxmi on the premisesof the Grand Temple. This is an importantlandmark in the history of Vaishnavism in Odisha.The emergence of Jagannath religion has virtuallycoincided with the emergence of Laxmi worshipin the Grand Temple, Puri. There have developedin this respect a series of legends and religiousmyths which highlight Mahalaxmi as the presidinggoddess of the Grand Temple. It is believed that

construction of the Mahalaxmi Temple dates backto 9th century AD. Mahalaxmi was thereafterworshipped in the iconic form as the presidinggoddess of the temple. Adored as the goddessof fortune, affluence and prosperity, She was laterworshipped in every Hindu household in UtkalPradesh. This ritual is now followed as animportant Hindu worship in every nook andcorner of Odisha.

The image of Mahalaxmi, worshipped inHer temple is made of chlorite stone. She is seatedhere on a double lotus-pedestal in “Padmasan”as the presiding image of the Laxmi Temple. Sheis a four-armed deity holding fully blossomed lotusflowers in Her two upper hands. Her lower lefthand is found holding a “ratna” in Varada” poseand the lower right hand found in “Avaya-Mudra”blessing Her devotees seeking Her “darshan” inHer temple. Added to the above position, thereare two elephants-one on either side of the image-standing on lotus flower. The elephants are foundanointing the deity with water from inverted jars.The image of Mahalaxmi is also covered withclothes and flowers. She is adorned with variousornaments. It is said that the height of Mahalaxmiis 3ft shorn of Her adornment. She is about fourand a half feet high in Her full-fledged adornment.

As per the traditional ritual, the temple ofMahalaxmi is opened after the opening of thedoors of the Grand Temple. The servitor ofMahalaxmi Temple known as ‘Khuntia’ performsthe divine ablution of the deity. He baths the imageof Mahalaxmi in sweet scented water preparedout of various fragrant-objects like ‘chua’ (ascented oil), sandal-paste, vermilion, SriKarpura(scented camphor), scented Collyriumetc. He also adorns the deity with variousornaments and flowers dressed in perfect “Odisi”style. This is a unique divine practice. Aftermorning oblation i.e “Sakala Dhupa”, the image

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of Mahalaxmi is next decorated with a garland ofSri Jagannath along with the graceful flowersdecorating his nose known as Naka-Fula. Withthe decoration as above, Mahalaxmi, as describedin the Rig-Veda, looks like “HiranyabarnaHarinim” which means that Mahalaxmi presentsa radiant charming divine-form looking exquisitelybeautiful in turmeric colour imbued with splashesof golden shade.

In the matter of general worship of thedeity, a peculiar practice is being followed in thetemple of Mahalaxmi on the premises of the GrandTemple at Puri. The practice is like this. Adevotee going to the Grand Temple for ‘darshan’of the Lords is bound by a customary practice.The devotee first needs to have ‘darshan’ ofMahalaxmi in the outer hall of Her temple. Hesits there for a while. The ‘Sebayats’ say thatMahalaxmi is ‘chanchala’ in Her nature. As statedin Laxmipurana, She is very fast and quick in allHer actions. Even She does not remain presenton Her divine alter constantly for a pretty longtime.

So the popular belief is that during theperiod of a devotee’s visit to Mahalaxmi Temple,the goddess may not be present on Her divinethrone and so the devotee has to wait forsometime to have Her ‘darshan’ as Mahalaxmi isin the habit of returning to Her divine alter atfrequent intervals.

Sadguru Jagi Vasudev has a differentview in this regard. He says that a temple is notsimply a sacred place of worship because ofconsecration of a certain god or goddess. Atemple is prima facie a divine centre of energy. Itabounds in the proliferation of different spiritualvibrations. The devotee sitting in the temple hasan immaculate influence of a well-accomplished

spiritual environment. Normally the devoteeroams very high in his spiritual emotion. At least,he has a tendency to do so and this is a steadypath of alleviation to fulfillment of his spiritual goal.Here the devotee stoops to meditation and sitscalmly to pray to god for spiritual blessings. Hereagain, he has the urge of an immaculate mind whichultimately leads him to positive thoughts. All thenegativity in him is automatically annihilated byvibrant divine inspirations. All temples are attunedto this spiritual order. Under such circumstances,it is necessary that a devotee visiting the templeof Mahalaxmi should sit in its outer hall for a whileremembering the name of the goddess for hisspiritual well-being. Stretching this analogy to thetemple of Mahalaxmi further, we may also holdthat whatever be the traditional practice in thisregard, a devotees sitting in Mahalaxmi temple isbound by a spiritual necessity. Mahalaxmi is theAlhadini-Sakti of Sri Jagannath. A devotee beforeentering the main temple of the Lord, needs tohave the blessings of His Maya Sakti so that themind of the devotees is not otherwise disturbed;it is mobilized in a positive order when he goes tothe main temple of Sri Jagannath.

This is the whole philosophy ofMahalaxmi worship in the Grand Temple at Puri.In Vaishnavism, Sri Jagannath and Mahalaxmi areinseparable in all spiritual rituals. Presence of SriJagannath is inconceivable without Mahalaxmi’spresence by His side. Even in the car festival,Mahalaxmi is associated with all the ancillaryrituals of the function. All the rituals related toMahalaxmi during Ratha Yatra actually add to thelustre of the festival.

Durga Madhab Dash, Ananta Vihar, Phase-II, HouseNo-138, Phase-II, Pokhariput, Bhubaneswar.