The Ratha Jatra

Hands thrown above
                      In absolute surrender,
A giant sea of men
                      Roar and thunder,
A chant that echoes high,
"Jai Jagannatha, Jagannatha Jai."

They heave and they tug
                       The sturdy ropes with vigour.
They pull the triumphal carriages
                       That seat the Gods with grandeur.
And all the while, sonorously cry,
"Jai Jagannatha, Jagannatha Jai."

Materialises the Taladhwaja
                        In shades of green and red,
Carves the path and leads the way,
                       With all its might, speeds ahead.
Holder of the plough,
                        Fierce yet jovial,
The great Lord Balabhadra, 
                        Blesses the loyal.
It reverberates all through the sky,
"Jai Jagannatha, Jagannatha Jai."
                     
In glides Maa Subhadra,
                        Aesthetic and graceful,
Safe in the red and black Darpadalana
                        As gongs clang and jangle.
With a brother on each side,
                        In a chariot trimmed with gold,
She is pleased with all,
                        Sparing neither young, nor old.
And the earth sings with joy,
"Jai Jagannatha, Jagannatha Jai."

Sweat trickles down the brow, as the day passes.
The crowd stubbornly awaits for a glimpse of sacredness.
Their hearts full of hope, tongues uttering prayers;
Having no identity,
But that of a devotee,
They stand shoulder to shoulder,
In a strange divinity.
A faith that never shall die,
"Jai Jagannatha, Jagannatha Jai."

And then He comes,
                         In His sixteen-wheeled Nandighosh,
The Natha of Jagat,
                         The Lord of the Universe.
Chaos erupts, when His chariot arrives,
                         Regal, in red and yellow.
A chance sighting of those round black eyes
                         Emitting a heavenly glow,
The World all but explodes;
Drums! Conches! Exulting dances!
Resounding through the cosmos,
Their voices fly,
"Jai Jagannatha, Jagannatha Jai."