Puri: The sacred Snana Purnima ritual was held with traditional fervour at the Shree Jagannath Temple in Puri today, marking the ceremonial bathing of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra, and Lord Sudarshan on the Snana Mandap.

In the presence of thousands of devotees, the deities were bathed with 108 pots of sacred water mixed with sandalwood paste (chandan), camphor (karpur), saffron (keshar), herbal oils (chua), Terminalia chebula (harida), aromatic flowers, aguru, khus-khus grass (benachera), and other traditional fragrant herbs and perfumes. The ritual was held at the Snana Mandap following ceremonies like Mangal Arati, Abakash Niti, and Bimba Snana.

Each deity received a specific number of water pots: Lord Jagannath was bathed with 35, Lord Balabhadra with 33, Devi Subhadra with 22, and Lord Sudarshan — the symbolic form of Lord Vishnu’s chakra — with 18 pots of water.

The holy idols were brought out of the sanctum sanctorum, the Ratna Bedi, to the Snana Mandap in a traditional Pahandi procession earlier in the day. After the ceremonial bath, the deities are adorned in the Gajanan Besha or Hati Besha, resembling the appearance of Lord Ganesha.

Following the ritualistic bath, it is believed that the deities contract fever. As a result, they are kept away from public view for 15 days in a secluded chamber called Anasara Ghara. During this period, Anasara rituals are performed by the Daita servitors to restore their health. This phase is considered an unfit time for worship, hence termed Anasara, meaning "improper time".