Famous Rathayatras of Bengal, from Devotion, History & Heritage

🏚️ Famous Rathayatras of Bengal, from Devotion, History & Heritage✨ 

1. Mahesh Rath Yatra : 

The 2nd Biggest Rathayatra of World is the Māhēśh Rathayatra of Bengal, having been celebrated since 626 years. In 1396 Dhrubananda Brahmachari, a great Jagannath devotee started this Rathyatra in Mahesh, Srirampur. Sri Chaitanya christened Mahesh as 'Nava Nīlāchala'.

2. Bishnupur Rath Yatra :

The 457-year-old Rathayatra of Bishnupur started under the patronage of the Malla dynasty kings of Bengal. Bishnupurraj Bir Hambir Malla built a stone chariot in 1565 AD. In the 17th century, Raja Bir Singha started the Rathyatra with procession.

3. Mahishadal Rath Yatra :

One of the traditional Rathyatras of Bengal is of Mahishadal in Medinipur. The history of Mahishadal's Rathyatra is 256 y/o. The Queen of Mahishadal Rani Janaki built this chariot in 1766 AD. Referring to the diary of Dewan Anand Ghosh, it is known from the description of the chariot that at that time the four-storied chariot had 17 pinnacles and 34 iron wheels. The cost of making it is shown as 80,000 coins.

4. Guptipara Rath Yatra:

Guptipara has the 282 y/o famous tradition of Rathyatra in Bengal. In 1740, the yatra was started by Madhusudananda. The chariot of Guptipara is called the 'Rath of Vrindavan Jeeu'. The unique feature of the chariot of Guptipara is that on the day of Ulto Rath, the bhandaras are looted here.

5. Nabadwip Rath Yatra : 

Navadwip is one of the oldest Vaishnava pilgrimage site in Bengal. The Devananda Gaudiya Rath of Bengal is famous here. In 1805 Kumar Chaurajit Singha started the Manipur Rath. In the evening, Jagannath's sandhyārati is performed  with Gaudiya nritya singing the verses of Jayadeva.