Neela Chakra of Jagannath Temple

The holiest iconic symbol of Jagannath Sanskruti is Neela Chakra of Jagannath Temple. The metal wheel which is placed at the top of the Jagannath temple is called Neela Chakra or Blue wheel.

This Wheel is also called the most powerful weapon of the Lord Vishnu which is worshipped inside the Lord Jagannath temple as the name of Sudarshan Chakra.

The Shape & size of “Sudarshan’ is not in the shape of a wheel. It is the shape of a small wood Pillar which is placed inside the temple on the left side of the Lord Jagannath.

Why the Chakra is called Blue wheel or Neela Chakra of Jagannath Temple?

This Chakra is called Neela Chakra due to the appearance of the whole chakra. The color of the Chakra is also changed as per the ray of the Sun.

During sunrise, the chakra looks like a white color (Swetha color) and then the color became light blue and it turns to deep blue during the mid-day. The color of Neela Chakra looks like a shade of Purple on the sun-set which is very attractive and beautiful.

5 mysterious facts about Neela Chakra of Jagannath Temple

1. The flag (Pattita Pavana) at the top of the Neela Chakra of the Jagannath temple always floating in the opposite direction of the wind. So it is believed that there is a cosmic force that is more powerful than the rules of current science. Science has no answer about it.
2. The birds, Areloplane, and other flying things never fly over the Neela Chakra. It is still a mystery and people believe that some natural forces obstructed the flying objects to fly over the Neela Chakra of the Temple and it became a natural no flying zone.
3. The devotee always sees the Neela Chakra from the front side in every direction. The engineering of Neela Chakra is also a mystery. You can show the Neela Chakra from the roof of every building at Puri and it looks that you are shown the chakra from the front side.
4. The Neela Chakra creates a  blue color ray which is observed till thousand kilometers distance. Some scientists of America is also observed that some blue color light came from a distant place and then they have searched it and found that this light is coming from the Neela Chakra of Jagannath Temple.
5. The Neela Chakra has no shadow from any direction at any time and the Chakra is also dust & rust-free. The Chakra is placed at 214ft height but there is no Lighting issue happened on the temple.

History of Neela Chakra of Jagannath Temple

• The first Neela Chakra was destroyed and it was reconstructed many times.
• In 1594 during the period of king Ramchandra Dev (Anka 34) it was reconstructed and installed on the top of the temple by the son of Parichha Bada Jena Mahapatra named Shri Damodar Champatiroy.
• In the year 06-10-1694, the Neela Chakra was fallen in-front of Kanji Ganesh Temple due to a heavy cyclone and the temple is without Neela Chakra for some years.
• Again it was reconstructed in the year 1751. As per Silalipi, Madala Panji, and Abhilekha, the Neela Chakra is again established at the top of the temple on 26-01-1751 with the help of the Son of Parmananda Pattanaik named as Dharum Harichadan.
• Hence the current Neela Chakra is more than 270 years old.

Structure and size of Neela Chakra of Jagannath Temple

The Neela Chakra is made of an alloy of 08 metals (Asta-Dhatu). These metals are Gold, Silver, Copper, Iron, Tin, Lead, Zinc, and mercury.

Size of Neela Chakra

1. The height is —————————–12ft
2. Weight is ———————————1500-2000kg
3. Diameter———————————–7.6ft
4. The thickness of Paridhi——– ——02inch
5. Width of Paridhi————————–09inch
6. The diameter of Central circle——–2.6ft
7. Number of wheel bars——————-08
8. Length of each wheel bar—————1.10ft

Rituals perform for Neela Chakra

• The Neela Chakra rituals are called “Chakra Manohi”.
• Every Ekadasi Mahadeepa is offered to Neela Chakra on the night.
• Every day Garuda Sevak/Dhwaja Bandtha Sevak removes the old flags from the pole and ties the new ones. The hoisted flag on the Neela Chakra is known as Patita Pavana Bana.
• As per ritual, Prasad is not offered to deities of Srimandir without the flag on the Neela Chakra.

Conclusion

The Neela Chakra is the holiest iconic symbol of the Jagannath Sanskruti of Odisha. The engineering of the Chakra is very magnificent and beautiful. There are various mysterious things inbuilt in this Chakra for which it is attracted devotees worldwide. The Neela Chakra was many times broken and reconstructed. The current Neela Chakra is more than 270 years old.

As per Jagannath Sanskruti, the following Mantra is recited during Darshan of Neela Chakra to obtain the positive energy and blessing of Lord Jagannath.

 

|| ଚକ୍ରଂ  ଦୃଷ୍ଟା ହେରେଦୂରାତ୍ ପ୍ରାସାଦୋପରି ସଂସ୍ଥିତମ୍

  ସହସା ମୁଚ୍ୟତେ ପାପାନ୍ନରୋ ଭକ୍ତ୍ୟା ପ୍ରଣମ୍ୟ ତମ୍  ||

“JAY JAGANNATH”