The Encyclopedia Americana (1920)/Jagannath

JAGANNATH, or JUGGERNAUT (Sanskrit, Jagannâtha, lord of the world, one of the names of Vishnu), called by the natives Puri, a town and celebrated temple of Hindustan, in the presidency of Bengal, province of Orissa, on the Bay of Bengal, 48 miles south of Kattack. The town derives all its importance from the temple. This, the most celebrated shrine in Hindustan, was completed in the 12th century, at an enormous expense. The worship of Jagannath, the God of the people, aims at a catholicity with every form of Indian devotion and at the incorporation therein of every Indian conception of God. The main street of the city, at the extremity of which the temple stands, consists entirely of religious structures built of stone. The gardens here produce the finest fruits in the province. The temple stands near the shore, in a waste, sandy tract, and appears like a shapeless mass of stone. The idol is a carved block of wood, with a hideous face, painted black, and a distended blood-red mouth, and is magnificently dressed. On festival days the throne of the image is placed on a high tower moving on wheels. Long ropes are attached to the tower, by which the people draw it along. The belief that devotees used to cast themselves headlong in front of this car to be crushed to death probably grew out of the accidental fatalities sometimes occurring. Every year pilgrims flock in crowds to the temple.