God of the globe: Idols Of Deities Lord Jagannath To Be Installed In London
London, Nov 5: Idols of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra as well as Sudarshan Chakra, the divine weapon of Lord Vishnu, have been installed in London for the first time as plans to build the first standalone temple are underway. Dedicated to Lord Jagannath in Britain, which will also be the first in Europe.
The three idols have made temporary residence at the Sri Ram Mandir in Southall, Britain’s oldest Hindu temple, while Shree Jagannath Society UK (SJS UK), a charity, scouts for land in London to build a grand temple on the lines of the original Jagannath temple at Puri in the Indian state of Odisha.
The first phase of acquiring 10-30 acres of land, building the sanctum sanctorum and installing the idols is planned to be completed by 2024 at a cost of £4 million (Rs 40 crore). The trust is in the process of raising money and is looking for a large piece of land on the outskirts of London.
“All the three deities are usually present together. There was no place for his worship in Britain. Dr Chetan Shatapati, Trustee, SJS UK said, this is the first time we have installed them in a large temple in the UK following the rituals prescribed by the Puri temple.
The Prana Pratishtha (holy consecration) ritual of the holy deities was performed over three days between November 1 and November 3 in the presence of devotees at the Shri Ram temple. The proceedings were shared live with thousands of people around the world via Zoom. The idols were carved from the trunk of a sacred neem tree in Odisha, containing all the sacred icons associated with Lord Jagannath, as mentioned in the scriptures.
“When we build our temple, we will consecrate new idols for that temple and these idols will remain in Southall. According to Hindu scriptures, Jagannath is believed to be the deity of Kaliyuga – the present age of struggle. They are worshiped in Puri, and are popular in Gujarat, Bengal and other parts of India. We want to popularize the worship of Jagannath in the UK.
In a video message, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik congratulated SJS UK for setting up a residence for Lord Jagannath in London and for the medical supplies provided for COVID-19 patients in rural Odisha during the second wave of the pandemic. Appreciate the trust. Patnaik also thanked SJS UK for its efforts to support rural schools to plant one lakh neem saplings across the state.
