"Story Behind Lord Jagannath Adorning Hati Besha: Many centuries ago, a scholar called Ganpati Bhatta visited the King's court in Puri. The king invited him to witness the Snana Purnima but he denied stating that he will only worship Ganesha. The king didn't want to upset the scholar. To his astonishment, he was unable to see Jagannath; in the place of Jagannath, it was Ganesha. Even Balabhadra had taken the form of Ganesha. He realized that Jagannath and Balabhadra in their compassion had taken note of his wishes and taken the form of Ganesha. He also realized that the differences between Ganesha, Balabhadra and Jagannath were all artificial and not divine. Since that day, during the bathing ceremony of Jagannath, priests place the mask of an elephant on the two brothers. This is the Hati-Besha."
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