Two weeks before the Ratha yatra ceremony, Sri Jagannath ji, Balabhadra ji and Subhadra ji are brought out of the altar and offered a grand bathing ceremony. The Skanda Purana mentions that King Indradyumna arranged this ceremony when the deities were first installed. After the bathing ceremony (snana-yatra), Lord Jagannatha apparently becomes sick. He is therefore moved to His private apartment, where no one can see Him until the Ratha Yatra. Lord Chaitanya used to participate in the Snana Yatra…

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