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History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v5.c74.t4: Puruṣottamatīrtha (Jagannātha)

History of Dharmaśāstra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v5.c74.t4

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Puruṣottamatīrtha (Jagannātha)

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Much has been written about Puruṣottamatīrtha or Jagannātha, both in Sanskrit and in English. The following works in English may be consulted by those who desire to make a thorough study of the sacred place; W. W. Hunter's 'Orissa' vol. I. pp. 81-167, Rajendralal Mitra's 'Antiquities of Orissa' vol II. pp. 99-144, R. D Banerji's 'History of Orissa' (in two volumes, 1930), Gazetteer on Purī, vol. XX pp. 409-412.

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There are four most important tīrthas in Orissa, viz. Bhuvaneśvara (or Cakratīrtha), Jagannātha (or Śaṅkha-kṣetra), Konārka (or Padma-kṣetra), Yajpura or Jajpur (Gadākṣetra). The first two are still held in high esteem, while the last two are altogether neglected.

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Among the Purāṇas, Puruṣhottama-tīrtha is extensively dealt with in the Brahma (chap. 41-70, about 1600 verses), in the Bṛhannāradīya (uttarārdha chap. 52-61, 825 verses). Among digests, the Tīrtha-cintāmaṇi of Vācaspati that devotes nearly one-third of the work to Puruṣottama-tīrtha (pp. 53-175) and that quotes about 800 verses from the Brahmapurāṇa on Puruṣottama, Raghunandana's Puruṣottama-tattva (which is brief and mostly based on the Brahmapurāṇa) and the Tīrthaprakāśa (pp. 561-594) may be mentioned. It is worthy of note that the Kalpataru (composed about 1110-1120 A. D.) does not describe Puruṣottama-tīrtha in its Tīrthakāṇḍa, though it speaks of a few little known tīrthas like Lohārgala, Stutasvāmin and Kokāmukha.

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Raghunandana in his Puruṣottama-tattva quotes a verse¹⁵⁷² (which as printed is corrupt) from the Ṛgveda that from the context appears to be addressed to some evil spirit (*alakṣmī*) and means 'O evil spirit with a wicked looking chin (or that art difficult to be killed)! Have recourse to that far-off wood in the sea, that has no connection with human beings and go to distant lands with it'. Then he states that the Atharvaveda has a similar verse. Probably following Sāyaṇa's interpretation, Raghunandana connects this Ṛgveda verse with Puruṣottama, the image of which is made of wood.

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¹⁵⁷² तथा 'अादौ यद्दारु प्लवते सिन्धोः पारे अपूरुषम् । तदालभस्व दुर्हणो तेन याहि परं स्थलम् ।' अस्य व्याख्या साख्याचनभाष्ये । आदौ विप्रकृष्टदेशे वर्तमानं अपूरुषं निर्मातृरहितत्वेन तदालभस्व दुर्हणो हे स्रोतः । अथर्ववेदेपि । आदौ सिन्धोर्मध्ये अपूरुषम् । तदा ... स्थलम् । अत्रापि तथैवार्थः । मध्ये तीरे । पुरुषोत्तमत्तत्त्व (Jīv vol. II p 563). The first verse is really Ṛg. X 155 3 अदो यद्दारु प्लवते सिन्धोः पारे अपूरुषम् । तदा रभस्व दुर्हणो तेन गच्छ परस्तरम् ॥ सायग takes this vedic verse as referring to पुरुषोत्तम in the words यद्दारु दारुमयं पुरुषोत्तमाख्यं देवताशरीरं * हे दुर्हणो दुःखेन हननीय केनापि हन्तुमशक्य हे स्तोतः आरभस्व अवलम्बस्व उपास्स्वेत्यर्थः *. सायण mentions a predecessor's interpretation of this verse viz. that it is addressed to an evil spirit (alakṣmī) and asks it to resort to a boat or a log of wood (as a scapegoat) and to go to a far-off region where there are no human beings. This interpretation is natural and suits the context very well I could not trace the verse in the Atharvaveda

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It would be proper to set out as briefly as possible the story of Jagannātha contained in the Brahmapurāṇa. In Bhāratavarṣa there is a country called Oḍra situated on the shores of the southern ocean, which extends northwards from the sea up to Viraja-maṇḍala¹⁵⁷³ (chap. 28. 1-2). In that country there is a holy place, destroyer of sins and bestower of *mukti*, surrounded on all sides by sand and ten yojanas in extent (chap. 42. 13-14). There is the famous shrine of Puruṣottama in the country of Utkala the whole of which is very holy owing to the favour of the all-pervading Jagannātha (chap. 42. 35-37). Men who reside in Utkala are blessed like gods since Puruṣottama resides there. Chapters 43 and 44 narrate the story of Indradyumna who ruled at Avanti (Ujjayinī) in Mālava (modern Mālvā). He was a very pious, learned and good king who after reading all Vedas, śāstras, epics, purāṇas and Dharmaśāstras came to the conclusion that Vāsudeva was the highest Deity, started from his capital Ujjayinī with a vast army, servants, priests and artisans and came to the shores of the southern sea, saw the kṣetra of Vāsudeva, ten yojanas in breadth and five yojanas in length and encamped there. Formerly there was a Vata tree on the shores of the southern sea near which there was an image of Puruṣottama or¹⁵⁷⁴ Jagannātha made of sapphire, which became embedded in sand and was concealed by creepers and plants. King Indradyumna performed Aśvamedha there, erected a great temple (prāsāda) and was anxious to establish a suitable image of Vāsudeva in the temple. In a dream the king saw Vāsudeva who told him to go alone to the shore in the morning and cut the Vata tree growing just on the water line with an axe. The king did so in the morning and then two brāhmaṇas (who were really Viṣṇu and Viśvakarmā) appeared. Viṣṇu told the king that his associate (Viśvakarmā) will manufacture the image. Three images of Kṛṣṇa, Balarāma and Subhadrā were made and given to the king and Viṣṇu further conferred the boon that the pool called Indradyumna (where the king bathed at the end of his Aśvamedha) will be known by the king's name, that whoever took a bath once in it would go to Indraloka, and that whoever offered piṇḍas on the bank of the pool would save 21 ancestors of his family. Then the king established the three images in the temple built by him.¹⁵⁷⁵ The Skandapurāṇa contains a Puruṣottamamāhātmya in a sub-section called Utkala-khaṇḍa in its section Vaisṇava-khaṇḍa, where the story of Indradyumna is given with some variations.

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¹⁵⁷³ Virajā-kṣetra extends a little beyond Jājpur on the river Vaitaraṇī in Orissa. On 'Kalinga, Oḍra and Utkala' vide R. D. Banerji's 'History of Orissa' vol. I. pp. 42-58.

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¹⁵⁷⁴ उत्तमः पुरुषो यस्मात्तस्मात्स पुरुषोत्तमः ॥ ब्रह्म 45.52; अस्मिन्नायतने पुण्ये दीक्ष्यते पुरुषोत्तमः। इन्द्रनीलमयी श्रेष्ठा प्रतिमा सार्वकामिकी ॥ 45.71' इन्द्रनीलमयो विष्णुर्यत्रास्ते बालुकावृतः। अन्तर्धानंगते तस्त्वा ततो विष्णोपुरं व्रजेत् ॥ ब्रह्म 58.3.

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¹⁵⁷⁵ Vide Hunter's Orissa vol. I. pp. 89-94 for a somewhat different account based on Kapilasamhitā, the most important points of which are that Viṣṇu shows to Indradyumna as His image a log of wood thrown up by the ocean, that the images were being fashioned by the divine carpenter, that it was ordered that no one was to see them till they were ready and that in spite of this, the queen insisted on seeing them when they had been chiselled only up to the waist and when only stems stood in the place of the arms for the images of Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, while the image of Subhadrā had no arms at all. The present images are to this day in the same condition. The images are described by Rajendralal Mitra in 'Antiquities of Orissa' II. pp 122-123. The story of इन्द्रद्युम्न occurs in नारदीयपुराण, उत्तरार्ध 52 41-93, 53-57, 58. 1-21, 60-61. नारदीय agrees very closely with the Brahmapurāṇa and seems to have borrowed its text from the latter.

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Stripping this story of the supernatural, it appears probable that the holy place Puruṣottama was called Nīlācala in very ancient times, that Kṛṣṇa worship was introduced from Northern India at that place, and that three images of wood were established in comparatively early times. It may be stated here that in the Maitrāyaṇī Upaniṣad¹⁵⁷⁶ an Indradyumna is named among a host of cakravartins. The Kūrmapurāṇa (II. 35. 27) makes a brief and colourless reference to Puruṣottama (tīrtham Nārāyaṇasyānyat-nāmnā tu Puruṣottamam). Rajendralal Mitra ('Antiquities of Orissa') surmises that there were three periods in the history of the Puruṣottama-kṣetra, viz. early Hindu period, the Buddhist period and the Vaisṇava period (after the 5th century A. D. when Buddhism began to wane). He notices that from about the 7th century A. D. considerable temple records on palm leaves exist, but that the temple records for the Buddhist period are untrustworthy (p. 104) and that there are indications that Purī was probably a place of Buddhist sanctuary (p. 107). The indications of the existence of Buddhism in Orissa are the existence of Aśoka's rock edicts on the Dhauli Hill (C. I. I. vol. I. pp. 84-100), the existence of many caves of the Buddhist period on the Khandagiri range about five miles to the west of Bhuvaneśvara, the procession of the car of Jagannātha which resembles the procession of Buddha's Tooth relic as described by Fa Hien (Hunter's Orissa, vol. I. p. 131-132) and the three crude wooden images of Kṛṣṇa, Subhadrā and Balarāma which are hardly found anywhere else and which correspond to the three peculiarities of Buddhism viz. Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. Vide Mitra's 'Antiquities of Orissa,' vol. II. pp. 122-126 (where he gives wood-cuts showing the figures of the images and comparing them with Buddhist symbols and Cunningham's 'Ancient Geography of India' pp. 510-511 (the remarks in which appear to me far-fetched). In J. R. A. S. vol. 18 at p. 402 (new series) Sewell thinks that the celebrated image of Jagannātha was originally one of the Triśūlas or developed Taurus symbols.

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¹⁵⁷⁶ परेऽन्ये महाधनुर्धराश्चक्रवर्तिनः केचित् सुद्युम्नभूरिद्युम्नेन्द्रद्युम्नकुवलयाश्व-यौवनाश्ववध्र्यश्वाश्वपतिशशिबिन्दुहरिश्चन्द्राम्बरीषननक्तुसर्यातिशय्यात्यनरप्योक्षसेनादयः। मैत्रायण्युप. I. 4.

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At present the sacred enclosure of Jagannātha is a square surrounded by a massive stone wall 20 feet high, 652 feet long and 630 feet broad with 120 temples containing various forms of God, 13 being temples of Śiva, some more of Pārvatī and a temple of the Sun. This clearly shows the catholicity of Jagannātha. Almost every form of Hindu faith is represented here. Even the Brahmapurāṇa gives expression to this tolerant view when it says that the holy Puruṣottama-kṣetra forbids all the wranglings between Śaivas and the devotees of Viṣṇu.1576a The great Pagoda of Jagannātha has four chambers, the first being the Hall of Offerings (*bhoga-mandira*), the 2nd the pillared hall for music and dance (the *naṭa mandira*), the third the audience hall where pilgrims assemble (the Jaganmohana mandira) and the 4th the inner sanctuary. The great Pagoda of Jagannātha has a conical tower 192 feet high surmounted by a *cakra*¹⁵⁷⁷ and a flag. The temple is situated at the distance of about seven furlongs from the sea shore and stands on a mound about 20 feet above the level of the surrounding ground, the mound being dignified by being called Nīlagiri (the blue hill). There is a large gate-way on each side of the enclosure, that on the east being the most magnificent On each side of the entrance there is a colossal crouching lion and hence the door-way is called simha-dvāra (lion gate).

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1576a शैवभागवतानां च वादार्थप्रतिषेधकम् । अस्मिन्क्षेत्रवरे पुण्ये निर्मले पुरुषोत्तमे ॥ शिवस्यायतनं देव करोमि परमं महत्। प्रतिष्ठाप्य तथा तत्र तव स्थाने च शङ्करम्॥ ततो ज्ञास्यन्ति लोकेऽस्मिन्नेकमूर्ती हरीश्वरौ । प्रत्युवाच जगन्नाथ स तुभ्यस्तं महामुनिम् ॥... नावयोरन्तरं किञ्चिदेकभावौ द्विधा कृतौ ॥ यो रुद्रः स स्वयं विष्णुर्यो विष्णुः स महेश्वरः। ब्रह्मपुराण 56. 64-66 and 69-70.

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¹⁵⁷⁷ The *cakra* surmounting the temple is mentioned in the Brahmapurāṇa itself 'यात्रा करोति कृष्णस्य श्रद्धया यः समाहितः । सर्वपापविनिर्मुक्तो विष्णुलोकं व्रजेन्नरः ॥ चक्रं दृष्ट्वा हरेर्दूरत् प्रासादोपरि संस्थितम् । सहसा मुच्यते पापैरनरो भक्त्या प्रणम्य तत्॥ chap. 51 70-71 = नारदीय (उ) 55. 10-11.

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There are certain peculiar features of the great shrine of Jagannātha. In the first place, in the court of Jagannātha and outside the Lion Gate no distinction of caste¹⁵⁷⁸ is observed Jagannātha is the god of all people. The second special feature is that the holy rice cooked as offering to Jagannātha is regarded as so sanctified that all barriers of caste are transcended, so much so that a Purī priest will receive the holy food even from a low caste Hindu. The feeling is that cooked rice when once placed before Jagannātha never ceases to be pure. Hence the *Mahāprasāda* is dried, is taken to all parts of India and at the periodical śrāddhas among Vaiṣṇavas a grain of this holy rice is invariably put on the cake as the most sacred article that can be offered to the Manes (vide Mitra's 'Antiquities of Orissa', vol. II p 199). The third special feature of Jagannātha is the car festival (*rathayātrā*) which is the most important of the 24 high1578a festivals at Purī. The festival is described at length by Hunter in his 'Orissa', vol I. pp. 131-134. The car festival starts on the 2nd day of the bright half of Āṣāḍha. The car of Jagannātha is about 45 feet in height, 35 feet square and is supported on 16 wheels of 7 feet diameter with 16 spokes and has Garuḍa as a crest; the 2nd car is that of Subhadrā, which is a little smaller than Jagannātha's car, resting on 12 wheels with 12 spokes in each and having a *padma* (lotus) as a crest, the 3rd car is that of Balarāma resting on 14 wheels with 14 spokes in each wheel and has Hanūmān for crest. The cars are drawn by pilgrims and hired labourers from the temple to the country-house of Jagannātha (which is about two miles away) amidst the shouts and emotional songs of thousands of pilgrims. Owing to the references in English literature to the car of Jagannātha it is supposed by many that pilgrims used to throw themselves before the car in a religious frenzy and were killed. But there is hardly any truth in these suppositions. There might have been a few accidental deaths. Hunter in 'Orissa' (vol. I. pp. 133-34) scouts this idea of suicide under the car and Rajendralal observes (in 'Antiquities of Orissa', vol. II. p 99) 'No Indian divinity has a more unenviable notoriety in English Literature than Jagannātha. It is certain, nevertheless, that human conception has never realized a more innocent and gentle divinity than Jagannātha and the tenets of his votaries are the very reverse of sanguinary or revolting. Never was opprobrium more unjustly cast on an inoffensive object than in this instance and none merited it less'. On the 10th day of the bright half begins the return of the car from the country house.

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¹⁵⁷⁸ Hunter in 'Orissa' (vol. I. pp 135-136) notes that only 21 classes and castes (including Christians and Mahomedans) are excluded, they being mostly flesh-eating and animal-life destroying castes Even the washerman and the potter whom Hunter includes in the list are allowed to enter the outer court.

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1578a विद्यानिवास (in the middle of 15th century A.D. in Bengal) wrote a work called द्वादशयात्रामयोगप्रमाण on 12 festivals in 12 months connected with जगन्नाथ (vide No. 2429 in MM Haraprasad Sastri's Cat. of mss. vol. III.)

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According to Rajendralal Mitra the oldest temple in Purī is that of Alābukeśvara built by Lalātendu Kesarī (623-677 A. D.), the builder of the tower of Bhuvaneśvara; the next oldest is Mārkandeśvara and next comes the great temple of Jagannātha (vol. II. p. 112). Manmohan Chakravarti in his paper on the 'date of Jagannātha temple in Purī' (J. A. S. B., vol. 67 for 1898, part I pp. 328-331) quotes two verses from the Gaṅgavaṁśa copper plates of Orissa which state that Gaṅgeśvara alias Coḍagaṅga built the great temple of Puruṣottama¹⁵⁷⁹. As Coḍagaṅga's coronation took place in śake 999 (i e. 1078 A. D.) according to M. M. Chakravarti, he put forward the view that the *prāsāda* of Jagannātha was built about 1085-1090 A. D. Dr. D. C. Sirkar (in 'God Puruṣottama at Purī' J. O. R., Madras vol. 17 pp. 209-215) points out that the celebrated Oriya Chronicle *Mādalā-pāñjī* attributes the construction of Puruṣottama Jagannātha not to Coḍagaṅga but to his great-grandson -Anaṅga-bhīma III, who also installed an image of Puruṣottama in a temple at Vārāṇasī-Kaṭaka (modern Cuttack)

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¹⁵⁷⁹ प्रासादं पुरुषोत्तमस्य नृपति को नाम कर्तुं क्षमस्तस्येत्याद्यनृपैरपेक्षितमयं चक्रेऽथ गङ्गेश्वरः॥ These verses establish that the shrine of Puruṣottama existed long before the date of the inscription and that the kings who preceded Coḍagaṅga did not care to build a befitting temple It appears that Coḍagaṅga built only the minor sanctum and the Jaganmohana i. e. the first maṇḍapa (vide R. D. Banerji's 'History of Orissa' vol. I. p. 251).

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which was desecrated by Sultan Fīruz Shāh (vide Elliot and Dowson's 'History of India', vol III. pp 312-315). These Gaṅga kings built magnificent temples at Bhuvaneśvara (ancient Ekāmra), Koṇārka and Purī, which are the finest surviving specimens of North Indian Hindu Architecture. Mitra ('Antiquities of Orissa' vol. II. pp. 109-110) and Hunter ('Orissa' vol. I pp. 100-102) note that Anaṅga-bhīma wanted to eclipse the grand tower of Bhuvaneśvara and renovated the temple of Jagannātha in śake 1119 (i. e. 1198 A. D ).¹⁵⁸⁰

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¹⁵⁸⁰ 'शकाब्दे रन्ध्रशुभ्रांक्षुरूपनक्षत्रेनायके। प्रासादं कारयामासानङ्गभीमेन धीमता॥. Vide Mitra's work vol. II p 110 and 'History of Orissa' by R D. Banerji vol I. p. 248 for the date of Coḍagaṅga's accession taken from his own inscription of śake 1003 (1081 A. D)

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The temple of Jagannātha has an army of attendants They are divided into 36 orders and 97 classes. At the head was the Rājā of Khurdha who called himself the 'sweeper of Jagannātha' (vide Hunter's 'Orissa', vol I p 128).

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As in Banaras, so here also there are five important tīrthas,¹⁵⁸¹ viz. the pool of Mārkaṇḍeya, the Vaṭa tree (identified with Kṛṣṇa), Balarāma, the sea and Indradyumna pool A few words may be said here about each. The story of Mārkaṇḍeya is narrated in Brahmapurāṇa, chapters 52-56 and in Nṛsiṁha-purāṇa 10.21 ff (briefly). In chap. 56. 72-73 Viṣṇu asks Mārkaṇḍeya to build a temple of Śiva to the north of Jagannātha and to construct a sacred pool which thenceforward was to become known as 'Mārkaṇḍeya's pool'. The Brahmapurāṇa provides that the pilgrim should bathe in Mārkaṇḍeya's pool, dip his head thrice, utter a mantra (chap. 57. 3-4), then he should perform *tarpaṇa*, go to the temple of Śiva (called Mārkaṇḍeyeśvara) and worship him with the Mūlamantra¹⁵⁸² viz. 'Om namaḥ Śivāya', then with another mantra called Aghora and a Paurāṇic mantra. The pilgrim should, after a bath in Mārkaṇḍeya's pool and visit to the temple of Śiva, repair to the sacred Vaṭa, circum-ambulate it thrice, worship it with the mantra ¹⁵⁸³ noted below. It may be noted that the Brahmapurāṇa 157 17 expressly states that the Vaṭa is Viṣṇu Himself in that form (nygrodhākṛtikaṃ Viṣṇum praṇipatya). The Vaṭa is also styled Kalpavṛkṣa (Brahma 57. 12, 60. 18). The pilgrim should bow to Garuḍa standing in front of Kṛṣṇa and then worship Kṛṣṇa, Saṅkarṣaṇa and Subhadrā with mantras. The mantras for Saṅkarṣaṇa are verses 22–23 of Brahmapurāṇa chap. 57 and that for Subhadrā is chap. 57. 58 ¹⁵⁸⁴ The mantra to be used in the worship of Kṛṣṇa is either of 12 syllables (oṃ namo bhagavate Vāsudevāya) or of eight syllables (oṃ namo Nārāyaṇāya). Brahmapurāṇa chap. 57 verses 42–51 specify the various rewards of seeing Kṛṣṇa with devotion and wind up by promising mokṣa ¹⁵⁸⁵ A bath in the sea at Purī is always commendable, but particularly on the Full Moon day (Brahma 60. 10). Brahma chap. 62 deals at length with the bath in the sea (the whole of it except one verse being quoted by Tīr. C. pp. 126–128). The Indradyumna pool has been mentioned above (pp. 694–95). The pilgrim has to bathe in the Indradyumna pool, perform *tarpaṇa* for gods, sages and *pitṛs* and offer *piṇḍas* to his ancestors (chap 63. 2–5).

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¹⁵⁸¹ मार्कण्डेयं वटं कृष्णं रौहिणेयं महोदधिम्। इन्द्रद्युम्नसरश्चैव पञ्चतीर्थीविधिः स्मृतः॥ ब्रह्म 60. 11.

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¹⁵⁸² मूलमन्त्रेण संपूज्य मार्कण्डेयस्य चेश्वरम्। अघोरेण च भो विप्रा प्रणिपत्य प्रसादयेत्॥ त्रिलोचन नमस्तेस्तु नमस्ते शशिभूषण। त्राहि मां त्वं विरूपाक्ष महादेव नमोऽस्तु ते॥ ब्रह्म 57. 7-8 = नारदीय (उ) 55 18-19. The ती वि p 88 states,that the अघोरमन्त्र is 'ॐ अघोरेभ्यो घोरेभ्यो घोरतरेभ्यः, सर्वेभ्यः सर्वसर्वेभ्यो नमस्तेऽस्तु रुद्ररूपेभ्यः'.

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¹⁵⁸³ ॐ नमोऽव्यक्तकूपाय महाप्रलयकारिणे। मद्रद्मसोपविष्टाय न्यग्रोधाय नमोस्तु ते॥ अमरस्त्वं सदा कल्पे हरेश्चायतनं वट। न्यग्रोध हर मे पाप कल्पवृक्ष नमोऽस्तु ते॥ ब्रह्म. 57 13–14 = नारदीय (उ.) 55. 24–25 (with slight variations).

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¹⁵⁸⁴ नमस्ते सर्वगे देवि नमस्ते शुभसौरूपदे। त्राहि मां पद्मपत्रांक्षि कात्यायनि नमोस्तु ते॥ ब्रह्म. 57. 58 = नारदीय (उ) 55. 64.

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¹⁵⁸⁵ किं कार्यं बहुभिर्मन्त्रैर्मनोविभ्रमकारकैः। ओं नमो नारायणायेति मन्त्रः सर्वार्थसाधक ॥ ब्रह्म 60 24 = नारदीय (उ) 56. 35, किं चात्र बहुनोक्तेन माहात्म्ये तस्य भो द्विजाः। दृष्ट्वा कृष्णं नरो भक्त्या मोक्षं प्राप्नोति दुर्लभम्॥ ब्रह्म 57. 51 = नारद (उ) 55. 57.

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In the Govindapur stone Inscription of the poet Gaṅgādhara (E. I. vol. II. p. 330) of śake 1059 i e. (1137–38 A. D.) there is a clear reference to Puruṣottama ¹⁵⁸⁶

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¹⁵⁸⁶ गत्वा श्रीपुरुषोत्तमं (भग)वतो हृद्यं प्रतिष्ठाम्पद पारावारतटे पटीयसि लसत्तन्मन्त्रग्रहानेहसि। सर्वस्वं विततार तर्पितपितृस्तोमः करोल्लासितैस्तोयैयं पिहितस्य पर्वणि विधोः साहाय्यमाप क्षणम्॥ verse 12 of E. I II at p. 334.

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The Brahmapurāṇa chap 66 speaks of the Guṇḍicāyātrā for seven days on the bank of the Indradyumna pool in a *maṇḍapa* where reside (temporarily) Kṛṣṇa, Saṅkarṣaṇa and Subhadrā. The Tīr. C. which quotes the whole of that chapter (pp. 157–159), calls it Guṇḍikā, while in the drama Caitanyacandrodaya¹⁵⁸⁷ it is styled Guṇḍicā at the very beginning. It appears that Guṇḍicā is the summer house of Jagannātha about two miles from the great Temple. The word is probably derived from *guṇḍi*, which means a thick log of wood in Bengali and Uriya (vide Mitra's 'Antiquities of Orissa', vol. II. pp. 138-139) and has reference to the legend of a log of wood that Indradyumna found floating in the sea.

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¹⁵⁸⁷ सूत्रधारः। भगवतः श्रीपुरुषोत्तमस्य गुण्डिचायात्राया ... गजपतिना प्रतापरुद्रेणादिष्टोस्मि।... सोयं नीलगिरीश्वर- सविभवो यात्रा च सा गुण्डिचा। चैतन्यचन्द्रोदय I. (B I. series) The metre requires that the first two syllables in the name of the Yātrā should be गुण्डि and चा and वा may have been easily confused by the copyists of mss The नारदीय (उ.) chap 61 40 ff quotes the whole of ब्रह्म chap. 66 but reads गुण्डिचा The ब्रह्मपुराण reads 'सप्ताहं सरसस्तीरे तव राजन् भविष्यति। गुडिवा (गुण्डिचा?) नाम यात्रा मे सर्वकामफलप्रदा॥ ये मां तत्रार्चयिष्यन्ति श्रद्धया मण्डपे स्थितम्। सङ्कर्षणं सुभद्रा च विधिवत्सुसमाहिता ॥...न तेषां दुर्लभं किञ्चित् फलं यस्य यदीप्सितम् 166. 8-9 and 12 Some writers such as Nīlāmbaradāsa in his 'Deul-tola' state that Guṇḍicā was the name of Indradyumna's queen (Mahtab's 'History of Orissa' p 161). I owe this last reference to the kindness of Dr Raghavan of Madras University.

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It may be noted that religious suicide at Puruṣottama is referred to in Brahmapurāṇa.¹⁵⁸⁸ 'those who give up their body (life) in Puruṣottama-kṣetra after mounting up the Vaṭa tree or do so between the Vaṭa and the ocean reach without doubt mokṣa. A man abandoning life, either intentionally or unintentionally, either on his way to Puruṣottama or in the cemetery or in the country house (of Jagannātha) or in the streets (of Jagannātha) or even anywhere else there secures mokṣa. Therefore men desiring mokṣa should by all means give up life at that holy place'.

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¹⁵⁸⁸ देहं त्यजन्ति पुरुषास्तत्र ये पुरुषोत्तमे। कल्पवृक्षं समासाद्य मुक्तास्ते नात्र संशयः॥ वटसागरयोर्मध्ये ये त्यजन्ति कलेवरम्। ते दुर्लभं परं मोक्षं प्राप्नुवन्ति न संशयः॥ पथि श्मशाने गृहमण्डपे वा रथ्याप्रदेशेष्वपि यत्र कुत्र। इच्छन्ननिच्छन्नपि तत्र देहं सत्यज्य मोक्षं लभते मनुष्यः॥ तस्मात्सर्वप्रयत्नेन तस्मिन् क्षेत्रे द्विजोत्तमाः। देहत्यागो नरैः कार्यो सम्यङ्ममोक्षाभिकाङ्क्षिभिः॥ ब्रह्म 177. 16, 17, 24, 25 The first three are quoted by ती. चि p 175.

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The Brahmapurāṇa winds up by saying 'it is thrice¹⁵⁸⁹ true that that kṣetra (Puruṣottama) is the greatest and highest tīrtha. A person has not to lie again in the womb after once visiting Puruṣottama which is laved by the waters of the sea or by once attaining the knowledge of *brahma*.

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¹⁵⁸⁹ सत्यं सत्यं पुनः सत्यं क्षेत्रं तत्परमं महत्। पुरुषारव्यं सकृद् दृष्ट्वा सागराम्भ - समाप्लुसम्। ब्रह्मविद्यां सकृज्ज्ञात्वा गर्भवासो न विद्यते। ब्रह्म 70. 3-4 (= नारद, उत्तरार्ध 52. 25-26) quoted in ती. चि p. 56 which reads सागराम्भःसकृन्न्युतम् and remarks 'एतत्क्षेत्रदर्शनस्य, सागराम्भसि मरणस्य, तथा ब्रह्मविद्यायोगस्य च प्रत्येकं गर्भवासाभावः फलमित्यर्थः '

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The great Vaiṣṇava saint, Caitanya, settled permanently at Purī in 1515 A. D. at the age of thirty and spent eighteen years there till 1533 (when he died). He appears to have made a great impression on the Gajapati king Pratāparudradeva, ruler of Orissa (1497-1540 A. D.). In the drama Caitanyacandrodaya of Kavikarṇapūra the king is shown to be so anxious for meeting the saint that he declares that he would die if the gracious glance of the saint did not fall on him.¹⁵⁹⁰ This should be attributed to the inveterate habit of gross exaggeration rampant in most Sanskrit writers, particularly amongst devotees and followers of great saints. Caitanya came to be worshipped along with Viṣṇu as a deity in Purī and Orissa (vide Hunter's 'Orissa' vol. I. p. 109). Kavikarṇapūra in his drama (8th Act) makes Sārvabhauma say that there is no distinction between God Jagannātha and Caitanya, the only difference being that Jagannātha is 'dārubrahma' (Godhead manifested in a wooden image) and Caitanya is 'narabrahma' (Godhead in human form).¹⁵⁹¹ The Caitanyacaritāmṛta (a poem) of Kavikarṇapūra in cantos 14-18 deals with the devotional and ecstatic life of Caitanya at Purī and presents a vivid picture of Ratha and other festivals of Jagannātha in which Caitanya took a prominent part. I agree with Dr. S. K. De that there is no satisfactory evidence to show that Pratāparudra was actually converted into the new faith ('Vaiṣṇava faith and movement in Bengal' p. 67).

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¹⁵⁹⁰ अतःपरं चेत्स न वीक्षते मां न धारयिष्ये बत जीवनं च। चैतन्यचन्द्रोदय 5th Act p. 187.

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¹⁵⁹¹ 'भगवन्, जगन्नाथस्य भवतश्च कृष्णचैतन्यत्वमविशिष्टमेव तथाप्यस्ति कश्चिद्भेदः। असौ दारुब्रह्म भवान् नरब्रह्म।' सार्वभौम in चैतन्यचन्द्रोदय 8th Act p. 167.

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One regrettable feature of the great temple of Jagannātha is the existence of some obscene and lascivious sculptures that disfigure the walls of the temple and the presence of dancing girls with rolling eyes, to which pointed reference is made by all writers, particularly European ones (vide, for example, Indian Antiquary vol. I. p. 322, Hunter's 'Orissa', vol. I pp. 111, 135). The presence of dancing girls is a legacy from the past. The Brahmapurāṇa (chap. 65) in describing the special *snāna* (bath) festival of Jagannātha on the full moon day of Jyeṣṭha mentions, along with the beating of drums and the music of the flute and the lute and the chanting of holy Vedic mantras, handsome veśyās as *chowrie*-bearers in front of the images of Balarāma and Kṛṣṇa.¹⁵⁹²

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¹⁵⁹² मुनीनां वेदशब्देन मन्त्रशब्दैस्तथापरैः। नानास्तोत्ररवैः पुण्यैः सामशब्दोपबृंहितैः। श्यामैर्वैश्याजनैश्चैव कुचभारावनामिभिः। पीतरक्ताम्बराभिश्च माल्यदामावनामिभि ॥... चामरै रत्नदण्डैश्च वीज्येते रामकेशवौ ॥ ब्रह्मपुराण 65 15, 17, 18.

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