No Change in King’s Status of Gyanendra Ever at Puri Jagannath Temple

BY: SUN CORRESPONDENT

May 06, JAGANNATHA PURI, ORISSA — Expressing its loyalty to King Gyanendra Bikram Shah and showing adherence to the age-old tradition, the Jagannath Temple administration said it would continue revering Gyanendra as a King even though he loses his throne (monarchy) following the thumping win of the Maoists in the first Constituent Assembly elections at Nepal last month.

“We respect our tradition and have high regards for King Gyanendra. It does not matter whether Gyanendra lost the 239 year-old monarchy. For the Jagannath Temple administration, he will remain as the King for years to come. He will enjoy the same ‘king’s status’, as being conferred on his forefathers in the past during their Puri visits,” said Suresh Chandra Mahapatra, the Chief Administrator of the Jagannath Temple.

"As per the age-old tradition, the royal family members of Nepal will be given special attention when they visit the Jagannath Temple here. The King and his family members can ascend the Ratna Vedi (the altar on which Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra are placed) and offer prayer to the presiding sibling Deities. So we cannot stop this tradition,” Mahapatra said.

Asked whether the temple administration received any clarification from the Royal family in the wake of the downfall of the monarchy, Mahapatra said till now he has not received any messages from Nepal. “But we will be eager to tell them that the royal family in Nepal should not feel any threat to their right of getting a warm and royal welcome at Puri,” Mahapatra told. Asked whether the royal family is slated to visit Jagannath Temple in near future, Mahapatra expressed ignorance.

Notably, Gyanendra alongside the queen had visited Puri temple on March 29, 2003. “As per the tradition, the royal couple were allowed into the temple through the shrine’s southern gate (the temple has four entrance gates). The entire shrine precinct was cleansed (sodha) by holy water before the Nepali King and his queen arrived at the temple. The temple premise was vacated and only a handful of priests remained nearby the couple,” a temple official said.

The Lalmoharia priests here, who specially deal with the Nepal royal family, expressed their gratitude to the Jagannath Temple administration. “We are happy that the King Gyanendra will be provided the same facility, which he was getting in the past during his Jagannath Temple visit,” said Lalmoharia Madhav Mahapatra, a Jagannath Temple priest.