There are hundreds of interesting facts are associated with Lord Jagannath and his temple. Mahaprasad is one of them.
Mahaprasad is the main offering of rice in the lord jagannath temple. In most temple of India, devotee may take "Prasad" but only here in jagannath puri one will get Mahaprasad. No other temple in India is rice offered as the main prasad to deities. It is said that mahaprasad is cooked by no one but mother lakshmi herself.
The temple kitchen where it used to be prepared is considered to be biggest hotel in the world serving all with out reservation or previous notice. Daily 10,000 may be feed. but in big festival days it may be up to one lakh.
The daily menu includes total 56 items. It is a very hard task for any men to cook all 56 items for so many. Clay pots are placed in a special earthen oven. Five in numbers one on top of another. Yet the one on the top is cooked first, not last.
The test of Mahaprasad has not changed from centuries. No one, even can duplicate the taste out side the temple. Not even the peoples who cook it inside the temple.
When cooks carry the bhog from the kitchen to the temple, it has no Vasana, no fragrance, no sweet aroma. But.. after offering, when they carry it from the temple to the ANAND BAZAR for sale, it smells divinely sweets.
one interesting fact about the kitchen is, if mother lakshmi is displeased with the preparation, a dog will appear mysteriously on the temple grounds. As no dog is allowed to enter the temple, this dog is said to be KUTMA CHANDI, a tantric goddes in charge of purification of food. if the dog seen, all the food must be buried and prepared again.
one believe is that, to seal any promise or vow, two friends holds a pot of mahaprasad together and eat together from same pot. after doing this there friendship became larger than life.
Among the 56 items, my favorite one is by milk preparation :
Mahaprasad is the main offering of rice in the lord jagannath temple. In most temple of India, devotee may take "Prasad" but only here in jagannath puri one will get Mahaprasad. No other temple in India is rice offered as the main prasad to deities. It is said that mahaprasad is cooked by no one but mother lakshmi herself.
The temple kitchen where it used to be prepared is considered to be biggest hotel in the world serving all with out reservation or previous notice. Daily 10,000 may be feed. but in big festival days it may be up to one lakh.
The daily menu includes total 56 items. It is a very hard task for any men to cook all 56 items for so many. Clay pots are placed in a special earthen oven. Five in numbers one on top of another. Yet the one on the top is cooked first, not last.
The test of Mahaprasad has not changed from centuries. No one, even can duplicate the taste out side the temple. Not even the peoples who cook it inside the temple.
When cooks carry the bhog from the kitchen to the temple, it has no Vasana, no fragrance, no sweet aroma. But.. after offering, when they carry it from the temple to the ANAND BAZAR for sale, it smells divinely sweets.
one interesting fact about the kitchen is, if mother lakshmi is displeased with the preparation, a dog will appear mysteriously on the temple grounds. As no dog is allowed to enter the temple, this dog is said to be KUTMA CHANDI, a tantric goddes in charge of purification of food. if the dog seen, all the food must be buried and prepared again.
one believe is that, to seal any promise or vow, two friends holds a pot of mahaprasad together and eat together from same pot. after doing this there friendship became larger than life.
Among the 56 items, my favorite one is by milk preparation :
- KHIRI (khir is originated in jagannath temple kitchen only)
- KHUA
- CHENNA KHAI.
And please do not forget to take Dalma .. The odia special.
one last thing.. while taking the mahaprasad one should chant following Hymn..
Jagannath Tastwa Nividya,
Nasti Sanspasta,
Dusanam Sakruta Vakshana
Matruna papevwo muchyate puman..... (from Brahamnda Puran)
Meaning : May i commit no more sin in past, present, or future.
By eating this mahaprasad offred to lord jagannath.
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