The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1891-01-24
THE HINDoo DE'TtEs.
A Lcscnd OF tho Greas smngo and Car OF
Juggcrnnut.

a Legend or tho Great 1mRgo and Car OK
JugEcrnnut.
Tho city of Juggernaut has about
fifty thousand inhabitants. but rs there
is religious festival held thore once
every month the population constantly
within its borders falls but little short
of one hundred and fifty thousand. On
both sides of the principal street are
almost unbroken lines of Iindoo tenn
Piles, all Of which are Overshadowed by
the great Temple of Juggernaut, which
stands mt the southern extremity of tho
main street. The great temple" rises
to height of nearly three hundred feet,
and is surmounted by brunze-covcred
dome, the point of which reaches one
hundred and sixty feet higher. The
wall which surrounds this gigantic
pagoda is square with sides six hun
dred and fifty feet in length; is eight
cen feet thick at the bottom and nearly
forty feet high Besides the great
pagoda in honor of Juggernaut, the in
closure contains temples and idols
dedicated to dozens of other Hindoo
dcitics.
All of the idols, says the St. Louis
Republic, are monstrous in design and
frightful in appearance. That to
hrlshna (another name for Juggernaut)
is painted blue, and has face hideous
in tho extreme. According to IIindoo
legend krishna was killed by a hunter.
Ills bones were found under a tree, and
brought before King Indradyumna, who
was directed by one of the gods to form
an image of Jaganath (pcrhaps Jugger-
naut; sec John w. Wright's idol
Worshipcrs of India" page 355), and
place Krishna's bones inside. Wis
valiarma, divine architect and
sculptor, undertook to mako the image,
but, being hurried by the King, left off
i'll anger. So Jaganath was left with
out hands or feet. In compensation
Brahma gave the image eyes and n
soul. 1t may be seen By this legend
that it was originally on account of the
sanity bones within it that the imaro
was vcncratcd.
Besides Krishna, or Jugrcrnaut. two
others of the idols are provided with
immense cars or chariots. Tho car of
Juggcrnaut is thought to be the largest
wheeled vehicle that has yet been made
i'll the world. 1t is thirty-four and a.
half feet square ut the basc and FORTY
N- ''ii>' ''-iiiii ASCo LII iclBnCt mounted
on sixteen wheels, each six and a-half
feet in diameter. Once each year, Mt
the great annual March festival. Jug
gernaut, mounted on the apex of his
stately car, is taken to house about
one and a-half miles i'll the country.
where female image is supposed to DO
waiting to become his bride The re-
moval of the chariot from the shrine to .
the country house being proceeding
holy in the extreme, no animals are
used for drawing the chariot, men,
women and children only being per-
mitted to perform such righteous sery-
ices.
On this occasion either five or seven
ropes are attached to the front of the
car, the middle one having been twisted
from hair cut from the heads of female
dcvotees. 1t was n long-cherished be-
lief in Christian countries that MANY
pilgrims sacrificed themselves upon
these gala days by falling prone before
the car and allowing the pondcrous
wheels to pass over their bodies. 1t is
probable that the accounts of these
sclf-sacrifices have been too highly col
orcd, and that the great loss of life
upon such occasions, when thousands
OF frantic devotees are congregated to-
gether, comes more from accident than
from desire to start for Heaven from
directly underneath the wheels of the
holy car.