63. Offerings/Bhogs of Jagannath in the Temple

Offerings/Bhogs of Jagannath in the Temple:

Different types of Bhogs (food materials) are offered to the deities as per the daily rites of the temple from morning till night.

The Bhogs which are offered as Naivedya with 16 Upachars, are also called Dhup.

In the bhoga mandapa area the temple deities are offered food 6 times a day:

1. 8 a.m. Gopala Vallabha Bhoga

2. 10 a.m. Sakala dhup Bhoga or Raja Bhoga

3. 11 a.m. Bhoga Mandapa Bhoga (huge quantities of bhoga offered for mass distribution)

4. 12:30 p.m. Madhyahna Bhoga

5. 8 p.m. Sandhya dhup Bhoga

6. 11:15 p.m. Bada Sringara Bhoga

1. Gopala Vallabha Bhoga at 8 am (early morning breakfast):

This is Jagannatha Swami's first bhoga offering of the day that forms His breakfast. It is held after the daily routine of the deities is completed in the morning. 

Khai (parched rice), ripe banana, grated coconut, curd, butter etc, are offered in this Bhog with 5 Upachars.

2. Sakala dhup Bhoga or Raja Bhoga at 10 am:

The Sakala dhupa Bhoga forms his next offering at about 10 O’ clock in the morning. This generally consists of 13 items.

In this Bhoga, Sada (plain) Khechudi, Kanika (Sweet Khechudi) Saga (cooked green leaves), various sweet meats like Mathapuli, Hansapuli etc. are offered to the deities.

3. Bhoga Mandapa Bhoga at 11 am:

The next repast and the offering consists of Pakhala with dahi and Kanji payas, Abhada (plain rice) Dali (cooked pulses), different types of vegetable curries (Mahura, Besara etc.), Khata (sour dishes), Saga etc which are offered as Bhoga with 5 Upachars.

The offerings are made in the Bhoga mandapa, about 200 feet from the Ratna Vedi. This is called Chatra Bhoga and was introduced by Adi Shankaracharya in the 8th century to help pilgrims share the temple food.

4. Madhyana Bhoga at 12.30 pm:

Rice, dal, sabjis, etc.

5. Sandhya dhup Bhoga at 8 pm:

In the evening, Mangal Arati is done for the deities and it is followed by Sandhya dhup Bhoga at around 8 pm. In this session too, besides cooked rice and vegetables, sweet meats known as Manda etc, are offered as Bhog.

6. Bada Sringara Bhoga at 11.15 pm: 

The last offering to the Lord.

Except Gopala Vallabha Bhoga and Bhoga Mandap Bhoga, all other 4 bhogs are offered near the Ratnabedi inside the frame of Phokaria which is being drawn by the Puja pandas using Muruj. 

The timings of the offerings are not rigid; on any given day, the offering times can vary by half an hour or so. The timings may also shift during festivals and according to season.

Everyday Jagannatha Swami is offered 56 items (chappana bhoga) for His pleasure:

9 Rice preparations

14 Sabjis and curries

9 Milk preparations

11 Sweets

13 Cakes, Pancakes and Patties

The following list gives a hint of the variety of delectable items offered daily - plain rice, ghee rice, ghee sweet rice, dry sweet rice, yogurt rice, plain kitri, sweet kitri, ginger rice and lemon rice.

"Offerings fall into two general categories:

Pakka food- 54 varieties of "boiled" dishes, including dals, soups, stews, rice, kiccharls, and vegetables

Sukka food - 56 varieties of "dry" food, such as cookies, biscuits, sweetmeats, pastries, and confections.

5 kitchens are devoted to pakka dishes and 4 to sukka dishes. 

Thus, till late night different types of Bhogs are offered to Jagannath in the temple.

The glory of Mahaprasad has been described in Padma Puran, Bhagavat Puran etc. Since instant liberation is achieved by taking Mahaprasad, it is also known as "Kaivalya". While eating cooked food is prohibited on sacred days like Ekadasi (11th day of the fortnight), Sankranti etc, there is no restriction in taking Mahaprasad. But one should be pure in body and mind while taking it. No outside food should be taken along with it. It should be taken while sitting on the floor. Care should be taken to see that, when hands are washed after eating, the water does not fall on the feet.