In the royal families of Odisha, the prince and princess are called ‘Jenamani’ and ‘Jemamani’ respectively. History says that Chodaganga Deva was a Shiva-worshipper, converted to a Vishnu-worshipper by the Vedanta acharya, Ramanuja.Īccording to some scholars, the word Gosani is derived from the Odia word ‘Gosamani’, which means ‘aristocratic lady’, the wife of the owner or the paternal grandmother (Gosein maa in Odia). Going by the description found in Madala Panji-the Shree Jagannath Temple journal of daily events, the first king of the Ganga dynasty Chodaganga Deva, the king who initiated the building of the current Shree Jagannath Temple was an expert tantric and through his powers and expertise had reined in all Gosanis of Odisha. Locals believe the Gosanis to be the Saktis of Lord Shiva, who is also known as Bhootnath and is the lord of spirits, evil powers, and ghosts. It is for pacifying these terrifying Saktis that clay idols (Gosanis) are worshipped annually during Durga Puja. It is believed that the Gosanis are the associated Saktis of the supreme Goddess Durga during her war with Mahisa-asura. Now coming to the concept of the Gosani, the meaning of the word has several meanings and is locked in mystery. Moreover, the Naga images represent the Jaga-Akhada culture of Puri. In medieval days they played a great role by resisting Muslim aggression in Puri. The sadhus of this Naga sect besides being Shiva worshippers also practise wrestling and in the olden days were instrumental in defeating Buddhists. These large male images symbolise heroism and valour.Īccording to some scholars, ‘Nagas’ are one of the Saiva sects set up by Adi Sankaracharya. Like Gosanis, gigantic images of Naga are also made and worshipped during Gosani Jatra. The crown, ornaments, attributes and the halo are made of sola and jari.Īnother speciality of Gosani images is that the artist after applying colour to the images draw a ‘Devi Yantra’ on the chest of the image and cover it with new clothes around the body of the Goddess. The decoration of these images is also indigenous in nature with sola (Indian cork) and jari work. While yellow colour is applied to the Goddess, blue/green is applied to the demon. Gosani images are coloured by primary colours and built in typical Odishan style.
In most cases, the Mahisa-asura in Gosani images is depicted in theriomorphic (head is of a buffalo while the body is of a human being). In many Gosani images only sons accompany the mother to battle. In Gosanis, the maternal form of Goddess Durga is downplayed and so she is not usually linked to her children Ganesha, Kartikeya, Lakshmi and Saraswati. Some of the Gosanis are eight-handed unlike the common image of Goddess Durga which has ten hands. The eyes of the Gosani and the buffalo demon locked in combat. The buffalo demon looks up at her while she looks down at him, pulling his hair with her hands, strangulating him with a serpent and piercing him with her trident, while kicking him in the chest. Gosanis look earthy, robust and muscular, fierce with their gaze at the buffalo demon-Mahisha-asura. The peculiarity here is huge clay idols of Mahisha-asura-mardini-Goddess Durga as the killer of the buffalo-demon are worshipped as Gosanis every year in the month of Asvina (October). This Jatra is unique to Puri and is an indigenous cultural trait of the holy city, not found elsewhere. Unlike other places, ‘Durga Puja’ one of the important colourful festivals of the Shakti pantheon is observed here as the ‘Gosani Jatra’. Though there is no denial of it being a strong seat of Vaisnavism, it is the melting pot of several other cults like Saiva, Sakti, Ganapatya and Saura to form the cosmopolitan Jagannatha cult. Bhubaneswar: Puri, the abode of Lord Jagannatha, otherwise known as the ‘Sri Kshetra’ or ‘Purushottama Kshetra’ is a place of several rituals, colourful jatras (festivals) and living traditions.
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