Guptipara Rathayatra
Rathayatra of Guptipara | |
---|---|
Nabaratna |
Guptipara Rathayatra has been celebrated in
History
The year when the rathayatra started is not clear. According to some sources, the rathayatra is more than 400 years old. According to other sources, the rathayatra started somewhere between 1735 and 1740. According to another source Swami Madhusudanananda of Shree Shree Vrindavan Chandra Jiu Math started the rathayatra in the year 1740.
Chariot
The present ratha or the chariot is a wooden Nabaratna temple[4] having nine shikharas. The framework of the ratha is made of Shorea robusta hardwood.[2] The ratha has a square base measuring 34 feet by 34 feet.[5] It is four storied, having a height of 36 feet.[5] The ratha is fitted with 16 wheels made from Vachellia nilotica hardwood.[2] It has four ropes in the front, each 300 feet long which are used for pulling the ratha forward. There is one more rope at the back which acts as a brake. One of the front ropes is reserved for women.
The present ratha is the same chariot that was being used in the first year of the rathayatra. It is nearly 280 years old.[5] During the entire year the ratha is kept inside a giant metallic cage. Weeks before the festival it is brought out and prepared for the festival. As of 2012, the chariot was in a dilapidated condition.[6] The Guptipara Shree Shree Vrindavan Chandra Jiu Math have been providing patch work to the current structure every year as a stop gap solution. They have approached the district administration and the Archaeological Survey of India for repair.[6]
Procession
The procession starts from Guptipara Shree Shree Vrindavan Chandra Jiu Math and proceeds towards Gundicha house in Gosainganj Barabazar, about 1.5 km away. The distance covered is said to be the second longest among the rathayatras held in India.[7]
Bhandara loot
The mbhandara loot event is held on the day before the mpurnayatra or the ulto rath.
See also
- Mahesh Rathayatra
- Dhamrai Rathayatra
References
- ^ ২৭৬ তম রথযাত্রা পালন গুপ্তিপাড়ায়. Eenadu India (in Bengali). 19 July 2015. Archived from the original on 17 August 2016. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
- ^ a b c d e Sengupta, Ashok; Mandal, Tapas (5 July 2016). রথে জেগে উঠছে গুপ্তিপাড়া, বাংলার বনেদিবাড়ি. Dainik Jugashankha (in Bengali). Kolkata. Archived from the original on 11 August 2016. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
- ^ গুপ্তিপাড়ার রথে বিশেষ ট্রেন চালানো ও স্টেশন আলো দিয়ে সাজানোর আবেদন. Bartaman (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 15 June 2016. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
- ^ রথের মেলায় সেজে উঠল বাংলা. 24 Ghanta (in Bengali). Zee News. 18 July 2015. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
- ^ a b c d e f Sengupta, Ashok (18 July 2015). ভাণ্ডারা লুঠের প্রতীক্ষায় গুপ্তিপাড়া. Anandabazar Patrika (in Bengali). ABP Group. Archived from the original on 17 January 2017. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
- ^ a b Ghosh, Tapas (21 June 2012). মাহেশ, গুপ্তিপাড়া ও চন্দননগরে কড়া নজরদারি. Anandabazar Patrika (in Bengali). ABP Group. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
- ^ a b Datta, Rangan (6 September 2009). "Next weekend you can be at ... Guptipara". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 3 April 2016. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
- ^ a b Ghosh, Binay (1978). Paschimbanger Sanskriti (in Bengali). Vol. III. Prakash Bhavan. p. 272.
- ^ Datta, Rangan (23 June 2023). "Bhandar Loot — a unique folk event celebrated a day before the Ulto Rath". My Kolkata. The Telegraph. Retrieved 26 June 2023.