Bhubaneswar: Rukuna Rath Yatra of Lord Lingaraj begins today on Ashokastami.The rituals began at the 11th century temple in the morning allowing devotees to have a glimpse of the deities in a ritual called Sahana Mela.

After series of ceremonies, bronze sculptures of the three deities- Chandrasekhar, Rukmini and Basudev installed on the chariot amidst loud beats of gongs, blowing of conchs and chanting of hymns.

Rukuna Rath Yatra of Lord Lingaraj in Bhubaneswar is one of the biggest festival of the city.The Chariot Festival of Lord Lingaraja is celebrated at Bhubaneswar on the day of Ashokastami or Basanti Durga Puja.

The Makar mela fair is held in the month of January. Makar Sankranti is celebrated with great fanfare in mid-January when the Sun enters the orbit of Capricorn. The Sun-god is worshipped with great fervor by the local population.

The devotees who believe that the effect of various heavenly bodies results in success or failure, make sure to celebrate the festival with utmost respect by following the traditional methods of celebration. The explorers always witness a huge crowd at Konark Temple as the celebrations here are major. The astronomical importance of this festival is that worshipping the Sun God on this day would please him and put no harm on the devotee.

Megha Mela fair is held during the months of January and February. Megha Mela is a colorful festival and is held at Khandagiri.

The inaugural evening of the mela featured Odissi performance by the artistes of Gunjan Dance Academy from Cuttack, a Hip Hop dance performance by a team from Rourkela and a musical performance by noted Ollywood singers Dipti Rekha and Omkumar.

The event organized by the State Culture and Tourism department, Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) and Odisha Tourism Development Corporation (OTDC) will conclude on February 21.

The mela takes off every year on the occasion of Magha Saptami, the seventh day of the holy month Magha. Sadhus (sages) from Kashi, Benaras and Ayodhya arrived in the city to attend the mela. Many of these sadhus take a holy dip early on Magha Saptami morning at the Chandrabhaga beach in Konark and then proceed towards Khandagiri to participate in the rituals of the lighting of the holy fire (yajna), conducted at the Khandagiri foothills.

The festival of Maha Shivaratri is held during the months of February and March. Maha Shivaratri falls on the 14th night of Phalgun and is observed by devotees from all over the Indian subcontinent. The believers keep fast and perform Puja throughout the night.

Devotees fast and perform pujas (prayers or offerings) invoking Shiva throughout the night, then throng to witness the priest placing a sacred lamp on top of Lingaraj Mandir.

In view of a large assemblage of devotees at Lingaraj Temple the Commissionerate Police made special traffic and security arrangements to ensure an incident free festival.

Ashokastami -the Car festival of Lord Lingaraj is held at ‘Chaitra’ The protege of Lord Lingaraj is transported on a chariot from the main temple to Rameswar temple. After four days, the idol is returned

Also known as Rath jatra, Ashokastami is celebrated in the month of April. Lord Lingaraj is settled on a chariot and carried to Rameswar temple from the main temple. This jatra is visited by many devotees singing and dancing along the way. The idol of Lord Lingaraj is then returned to its main temple after four days.

To witness the occasion, thousands of people gathered to watch Pulling of Rukuna Rath (Lord Lingaraj’s chariot). Scorching heat of the current days could not make them remaining away from this great festival.

After Mangala Alati and Abakasha Niti were performed, followed by Sahanamela, the three deities Chandrasekhara(representation of Lord Lingaraj), Rukmini and Basudeva were ceremoniously brought to ascent the Chariot. Then, Pulling of Chariot begins at 4 pm today.

The festival of Durga Puja takes place during the months of September and October. Durga Puja represents the victory of good over evil.

Durga puja this year will be relatively wet as the weatherman has predicted light to moderate rain across the state from Wednesday. “Most parts of Odisha will witness light to moderate rain from September 27 to October 1. One or two places in the state may have heavy rain. A cyclonic circulation over the west central Bay of Bengal will cause rain, which may intensify into a low pressure area,” said director of IMD’s Bhubaneswar Centre, Sarat Chandra Sahu.

Lakshmi Puja takes place in the months of September and October. Lakshmi Puja is observed with great devotion in Bhubaneswar.

Most Hindu families decorate their homes and offices with marigold flowers and Ashoka, mango and banana leaves on the day of Lakshmi Puja. It is considered auspicious to keep Mangalik Kalash covered with unpeeled coconut at both side of the main entrance of the home.

For Lakshmi Puja preparations, one should keep a red cloth at the right hand side on a raised platform and install idols of Goddess Lakshmi and Lord Ganesha on it after adorning them with silk clothes and jewellery. After this, one should keep a while cloth at the left hand side on a raised platform for installing Navgraha gods. One should prepare nine slots of Akshata (unbroken rice) for installing Navgraha on the white cloth and prepare sixteen slots of wheat or wheat flour on the red cloth. One should perform Lakshmi Puja with full rituals as described on Lakshmi Puja Vidhi.