Puri: The Srimandira, the famous Lord Jagannath temple in Puri of Odisha, will be closed to devotees for four hours this evening for the Paitalagi ritual. Devotees will not be allowed to have darshan of the deities during this time.According to the temple administration, the Paitalagi ritual will be performed for the deities on Monday, Baisakha Krushna Chaturthi, in the evening.The public darshan will be closed from around 6 pm to 10 pm, after the second Bhogamandapa.During Paita Lagi, Lord Jagannath and his sibling deities, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra, are adorned with a special thread called “paita” made from three-colored silk cloth. This thread helps hold the sandalwood paste applied to their bodies.The ritual is performed by Daitapati servitors. The temple administration provides the Patara servitors with three-colored basungapatas to fasten the paita. The servitors take these basungapatas, sit in the Jagamohan of the Sri Lakshmi Temple, and fasten the paita. After the ritual, the paita is provided to the Deulakaran.As this is a secret ritual, normal darshan is closed during Paita Lagi, and devotees cannot have darshan of the temple for four hours today.
