Shri Jagatnnatha, the name symbolizes in oriya "jagata ra natha" The Lord of the universe worshipped with his elder brother Lord Balabhadra, sister Subhadra and the mighty Sudarshana chakra (disk). Jagannatha is Black (inscrutability) in color, Lord Balabhadra is white (enlightenment) in color, sister Subhadra is yellow (goodness) in color and lord Sudarshan is red in color, hence representing all the four races of world.However the darkness in color of Jagannatha is a special of its kind,it can be considered either absence of any color or the coalescence of all colors in one. In Sanskrit 'Ja' represents Jagannatha,'Ga' represents Balabhadra, 'Nna' represents Subhadra and 'Tha' represents Sudarsan. So Jagannatha means the union of all four deities of the Jagannatha Temple. Every thing related to Jagnnatha is in grandeour in its proximity. He is known as the Bada Thakura (The Chief among all Gods). His Temple is known as the Bada Deula (The main temple among the temples). The road in front of the temple is known as Bada Danda (Grand Road). The Sea of puri is known as the Mahodadhi (Great Ocean).

We found a lot of theories regarding the origin of Jagannath, below is the belief that most widely followed. After Vishnu saved the world from deluge in his Baraha incarnation,Brahma asked him of the means of salvation of all creatures.Vishnu said, "I am being worshipped as Nilamadhava on the Blue Hill in Purushottama Khetra, Puri.The highest form of salvation could be attained by beholding me there." This was a cause of apprehension to Yama,the God of death,as he could not discharge his duties properly.On Yama's request Vishnu assured him to disappear from the Blue Hill after some days.

The sacred Rohini Kunda was situated to the west of the all bestowing kalpa-vriksa whose branches had spread of Nilamadhava was situated to the west of the Kunda,known to all excepting the Savara who worshiped him and the Gods who came to pay their daily oblations at his altar.In Satyayuga the pious and learned king Indradyumna of the Solar dynasty ruled in Avanti.He was anxious to see Vishnu.A wandering sannyasin informed him that God Himself was being worshipped as Purushottama on the Blue Hill in Odra desh.Indradyumna sent Vidyapati,the brother of his family priest,to Utkala as his emissary.After travelling far and wide, found the Lord manifested as Nilamadhava, and being secretly worshipped by Vishwavasu, the chief of Savara.Vidyapati got married to Lalita, daughter of Viswavasu and got all the information about Neelamadhava. Viswavasu was reluctant to reveal the presence of the Lord but took Vidyapati blind folded to the secret location at the persistence request of his daughter Lalita.Vidyapati had secretly carried some mustard seeds in a cloth bag with a small hole.After returning with his king he could find all the way to the site where the Lord had manifested himself.

In the meanwhile in order to fulfill His pledge given to Yama,Lord Vishnu made the Shrine of Nilamadhava invisible under the sand.When Indradyumna accompanied by Narada set out with a vast army and reached the borders of the Kingdom of Utkala,its King informed him about the disappearance of Nilamadhava.Indradyumna was completely disheartened with the news,but sage Narada assured him that God would reappear in the form of Daru (a log of wood).Thus being consoled Indradyumna visited the Blue Hill and offered a thousand aswamedha sacrifices there.

On the closing day of the aswamedha sacrifice Nilamadhava appeared to Indradyumna in a vision and at his bathing time the attendants came and informed him that a Daru with four branches was flating on the sea.It could be brought to ashore only after Vidyapati and Visvavasu jointly pulled it. King Indradyumna, desirous of constructing idols of Lord sighted the sacred wood according to search made as per the command of the Lord Jagannath to King Indradyumna but wood could not be sized, and form of Lords could not be conceived. But one offered flower, from the head of the deity, Kakatpur Mangala, on advice of sage Narada, was taken and touched on the sacred wood, Daru Brahma. It facilitated the splitting of wood, into three parts for construction of idols Lord Jagannath, Subhadra and Balabhadra according to requirement. .While discussing with Narada about fashioning the log into an image,the king heared a voice from heaven saying, "God Himself will make His own image.The aged carpenter standing with his tools should be maintained about the construction of the image." Things were arranged accordingly and at the end of the allotted time Jagannath,Balabhadra,Subhadra and Sudarsana appeared on the Mahavedi.Being directed by a voice from heaven the king adorned the images with silken cloth and painted them with their respective colours.He also built a temple one thousand cubits high to install the images.

Another story says the origin of Puri temple is associated with the demise of Lord Krishna.After deciding to end his earthly existence he was hiding in a creeper. His dangling feet was mistaken as the ears of deer by Jara, the chief of hunters.After realizing Jara was inconsolable but Krishna explained to him that this was pre-ordained. He advised Jara to inform Pandavas. The heart portion of Krishna's body remained unburnt and set afloat on the sea. This later appeared as log and was brought to shore of Puri by the legendary king Indradyumna.

An old man appeared at the scene and offered to make images of Lord with a condition that he would make the image of lord with a condition that he would work inside a closed chamber for fifteen days and the door should not be opened under any circumstances. However on not hearing any sound from inside after several days the queen of Indradumnya persuaded to open the door.There was no trace of old man and images of deities in unfinished state without feet and hand.

Indradyumna went to heaven to invite Brahma to consecrate the temple.Brahma was listening to music,and the time that intervened amounted to many ages of mortal like.In the meanwhile a king named Gala had taken possession of the temple and was worshiping an image of Madhava in it.at last Brahma came.Indradyumna and Gala were reconciled to each other on the evidence of ancient tortoises who had seen the construction and pious crow kaka Bhusunda.The image of Madhava was shifted to a smaller temple.Brahma consecrated the temple and the images.After leaving the temple in charge of Gala,indradyumna proceeded to Brahmaloka.Indradumnya prayed the Lord to make him childless so that none of his progeny could claim the temple as his or her own.

History opines that the present temple of Lord Jagannath has been built very shortly. The historians of Orissa are all apparently in this conclusion that the present temple of Lord Jagannath at Puri has been built by Anagabhima Deva, the worthy descendant of the king Chodaganga Deva, the founder of Ganga dynasty in Orissa in 12th Century A.D. It does not mean that the temples of all other deities by which the Jagannath temple is surrounded are equally old. Some of them might have been built very recently. But the origial temple of Lord Jagannath repaired as well as reconstructed by the King Jajati Keshari, one of the famous emperors of Keshari dynasty in Orissa perhaps in fourteenth century A.D. Also it can be traced from the hostory that the cult of Lord Jagannath is originally of the 2nd century B.C. when Kharavela was the emperor of Kalinga, another old name of Orissa. The historic Elephant Cave (Hati Ghumpha) inscription of this emperor on the top of Udayagiri (a hill) near to Bhubaneswar indicates regarding the Jinashan which is identified with Lord Jagannath. But the reliable as well as historical matter is available from the 9th century.

There was the influence of Buddhism on the cult of the Savara deity.Buddhism was established in Orissa after Ashok.Who are the three deities,Jagannath,Balabhadra and Subhadra?They can not be Ram,Laxman and Sita because Subhadra is sister and Balabhadra is elder brother.The three deities have a lot of similarity with the Buddhist triad: Buddha,Dharma and Sangha.Jagannath is Buddha,Balabhadra stands for Sangha.Is n't it necessary to have an elderly person to run a Sangha(Monastic order)? Subhadra is the symbol of Dharma.Sauvada is Dharma in Buddhist philosophy and is perceived in the feminine form.Further,there are not three,but four deities-Chaturdha Murti-including Sudarsana Chakra.What does he stand for?Chakra occurs as a symbol in all religions.The wheel in Buddhism is the symbol of religious essence.The ideas which Buddha preached to the five ascetics at Sarnath are treated as central to the establishment of Dharma Chakra.In the Hindu religion,Chakra is the weapon of Vishnu.What is the shape of the Chakra?It is "Akhanda Mandalakaram"-Unbroken like a sphere.It has neither a beginning nor an end.Therefore it is Sanatana Dharma,eternal religion.No one can say when religion began and when it would end.