5 mysterious things about the Jagannath Temple

India Today

In this episode of the Culture Project, Manish Adhikary speaks about 5 intriguing mysteries of the Jagannath Temple in Puri, from its unique architecture to its timeless traditions.

Transcript

00:00Five mysterious things about the Jodhana temple.

00:03Every day a priest climbs the 215 foot dome to change the flag without a harness.

00:09But here's the twist, the flag flutters against the direction of the wind every single day,

00:14or at least that's what most people believe. Some scientists speculate that shifting wind

00:18currents at high altitudes, the spire of the temple is very tall and so its unique aerodynamics may

00:23cause the flag to flutter oddly. But there's no conclusive study yet. A shadow that never falls.

00:28The temple's massive dome stands tall all over the town and yet its shadow vanishes. No matter where

00:34the sun is, it's as if the builders knew how to trick sunlight before trigonometry had a name.

00:39The kitchen that never fails. The temple cooks for thousands and thousands daily. Seven clay pots are

00:46stacked over fire and the food in the top pot cooks first. Turbo Dynamics just walked out of the room.

00:52Even stranger, no matter how many people show up, apparently 10 or 10,000, the food is never wasted,

00:57it's never shot. The ocean that goes silent. Step near the main gate, you'll hear the Bay of Bengal

01:02roaring in the background. Take one step into the temple courtyard, the sea goes silent. It's like

01:07someone's pressed mute on nature. The chakra that follows you. Look at the Sudarshan chakra on top of

01:12the temple. Now walk around the city. Any direction, any lane, the chakra always faces you. Engineers say

01:18it's a visual illusion. Devotees say it's the eye of God. This is the Jagannath temple and it's been

01:24confounding the world for over a thousand years. I'm Manish Adhikari. Thank you for watching the

01:29the culture project and the culture project.

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