Sri Jagannath Prasad
[ Photo: Sampradaya Sun ]

Sahoo said he had been suffering from abdominal pain since 2013. "I visited several government and private hospitals and spent nearly Rs 2 lakh on medicines. But the stomach pain did not lessen. My father last year offered prayers near Lord Jagannath and kept a wish (manasika) that I will crawl to have the Lord's darshan if I recover," said Sahoo, who started crawling from Hospital Square till Jagannath Temple, covering a distance of 3-km. "Miracle happened and my pain disappeared," he said. Sahoo said despite the mad rush, people voluntarily left space for him to crawl till until he reached Jagannath Temple.

Bichitrananda Khatua, another devotee from Pipili area, said he walked his way to Puri on barefoot. "I too had a manasika last year when my child was suffering from fever. Despite treatments, his fever showed no sign of improvement. I prayed Lord Jagannath and vowed to walk barefoot every year if my son is cured. My son is fit now due to God's grace," said Khatua.

There were many devotees who said they came here every year to make others happy. "Every year, I paint myself like God Hanuman and dance amidst the public. My motive is to make people happy," said Parsuram Bhuyan, a resident of Nayagarh. Bhuyan has been coming to the car festival since 2012. "I am also happy that like me, several other devotees have started donning the garb of Hanuman, drawing attention of people," he said.