While the annual Jagannath Rath Yatra is underway- the inner treasury of 12th century Puri Jagannath temple’s ‘Ratna Bhandar’ was opened on Sunday. While the legend said that serpents inside ‘Bhandar’ are protecting jewels from intruders, none were found when the gates were opened after 46 years. The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has not yet started any repair work or inventorisation of the items found.
A team of 11 officials from the state government entered the ‘Ratna Bhandar’ by breaking the lock. The committee is led by Dibyasingha Deb, the current titular ‘King of Puri’. The members of this committee have been selected by the Odisha government.
Along with this committee a huge team of snake charmers, snake rescuers and Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF)- was deployed to assure the safe opening of the treasury. The group of people that went in, keeping with the tradition, wore ‘langots’ and elaborate rituals were performed before entering. Goddess Laxmi and Lord Shiva were worshiped. Another task force was present there to manage the crowd of devotees who had gathered to witness the event.
On July 14, 2024 the Chief Minister’s office took to X and said, “On the wish of Lord Jagannath, the Odia community, with the identity of ‘Odia Asmita’, has started making efforts to move forward. On your wish, the four gates of the Jagannath temples were earlier opened. Today, on your wish, the Ratna Bhandar was opened after 46 years for a greater purpose.”
When was the treasury opened first?
The ‘Ratna Bhandar’ was first opened in 1905 by the British administration for inspection. Later they made a record of the items/jewels in 1926. After which it was opened in 1978 by the then Odisha Governor Bhagabat Dayal Sharma. The whole process of making the record took 70 days. In 2018 the BJD government had decided to inventorize the treasures, but they failed to do so as the keys of the locked ‘Bhandar’ were lost.
What is inside the ‘Ratna Bhandar’?
The items/jewels stored at the treasury can be classified into three categories- the articles ‘Bhitar Bhandar’- which are never used, then there are articles which are used only for ceremonial purposes and then for daily use the articles are kept in ‘Bahar Bhandar’. There are speculations that ‘Bhitar Bhandar’ can contain 180 types of ornaments including 74 pure gold ornaments weighing more than 1.2 kg. The treasury has ornaments that have been collected over the years and offered by the devotees of Lord Jagannath Puri.
A team of 11 officials from the state government entered the ‘Ratna Bhandar’ by breaking the lock. The committee is led by Dibyasingha Deb, the current titular ‘King of Puri’. The members of this committee have been selected by the Odisha government.
Along with this committee a huge team of snake charmers, snake rescuers and Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF)- was deployed to assure the safe opening of the treasury. The group of people that went in, keeping with the tradition, wore ‘langots’ and elaborate rituals were performed before entering. Goddess Laxmi and Lord Shiva were worshiped. Another task force was present there to manage the crowd of devotees who had gathered to witness the event.
On July 14, 2024 the Chief Minister’s office took to X and said, “On the wish of Lord Jagannath, the Odia community, with the identity of ‘Odia Asmita’, has started making efforts to move forward. On your wish, the four gates of the Jagannath temples were earlier opened. Today, on your wish, the Ratna Bhandar was opened after 46 years for a greater purpose.”
When was the treasury opened first?
The ‘Ratna Bhandar’ was first opened in 1905 by the British administration for inspection. Later they made a record of the items/jewels in 1926. After which it was opened in 1978 by the then Odisha Governor Bhagabat Dayal Sharma. The whole process of making the record took 70 days. In 2018 the BJD government had decided to inventorize the treasures, but they failed to do so as the keys of the locked ‘Bhandar’ were lost.
What is inside the ‘Ratna Bhandar’?
The items/jewels stored at the treasury can be classified into three categories- the articles ‘Bhitar Bhandar’- which are never used, then there are articles which are used only for ceremonial purposes and then for daily use the articles are kept in ‘Bahar Bhandar’. There are speculations that ‘Bhitar Bhandar’ can contain 180 types of ornaments including 74 pure gold ornaments weighing more than 1.2 kg. The treasury has ornaments that have been collected over the years and offered by the devotees of Lord Jagannath Puri.
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