RATHYATRA FESTIVAL , KOLKATA

Kolkata 14th July

By Tirthankar Das :

Calcutta Rath Yatra festival is the first festivity of the Monsoon season and usually falls in late June or early July. Rathyatra festival of Kolkata, India is dedicated to Jagannath, an avatar of Vishnu. A procession is organized by ISCKON every year that starts from the ISKCON Temple that is at Minto Park.

On this day children decorate their chariot with flowers and they keep clay idols of Jagannath, his brother Balaram and sister Subhadra inside the chariot Rathayatra is celebrated to mark the beginning of the harvest season.

It attracts over a million Hindu pilgrims who join the procession each year.City is celebrating 47th Rathyatra festival this year. Temporary temple are made at Maidan , Park Street, Kolkata where devotees from all around the world come and celebrates along with calcuttans.

Devotees who take part in pulling the chariot are seen singing songs and mantras along with the drum beats.