The Secret God in the Forest
by Anuradha Kumar and illustrated by Piyush Verma
Today (July 12) is the day of the Puri Jagannath Rath Yatra. “The Secret God in the Forest” by Anuradha Kumar and illustrated by Piyush Verma. Published by Tulika as part of their “Our Myths” series. This is a story from the vibrant state of Odisha.
It is the day of the annual Ratha Jatra in the Jagannatha Temple at the seaside town of Puri. The town wears a festive look for this grand celebration with drums beating, cymbals clashing and trumpets blowing. A little girl called Pria wonders why the idols of Jagannatha, Subhadra and Balabhadra are so unlike any of the other gods that she has seen so far. Her grandmother tells her that it is said that Jagannatha looked like this when he lived deep in the forest. This leads to a story being narrated where Jagannatha is the secret god in the forest.
This story is from long long ago and takes place in the forests of Odisha. The tribe called Sabaras or Saora or Sora lived in the hilly forests of Odisha. They worshipped a god called Nilamadhaba. His huge stone idol stood deep in the forest in a secret grove. No one knew the location of the idol except the Sabaras. He had a big square face, large eyes that saw everything and short, stubby arms that stretched outwards. He rose like a pillar and the trees. Sometimes when the light was just right, he looked blue just like the surrounding hills.
How did this secret God end up becoming so popular? How did Nilamadhaba transform into Jagannatha? What events took place to lead the Jagannatha temple being built in Puri? Is the stone idol of Nilamadhaba still there deep in the forest? Well the story addresses all of these.
One thing not explained is how there came to be the three idols from one. I hope there is a sequel to this. Or we are expected to read up more on this. Whatever it is, we loved the topic that has been chosen in this book. It is good to know more about these lesser known aspects. My seven year old enjoyed the story. The book is apt for children aged 6+. Thank you Vidya Mani of Funky Rainbow for recommending this beautiful book!
Where to buy from?
The publishers Tulika books here.
An independent indie bookstore, Funky Rainbow, from where I buy many of my books.
An interesting aside. Sudarsan Pattnaik, an internationally acclaimed sand artist has created the biggest 3D sand art chariot of God Jagannath at Puri Beach in Odisha on the pious occasion of Rath Yatra.
