Neem Wood: Jagannatha Deities (6" with Saptabharana) [for $108]
http://www.matchless-gifts.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=30&products_id=720
Please Note: These deities are made on order and require two months to make. It will take at least two months before we ship these deities to you.
Six inch tall hand carved deities of Sri Jagannath, Baladeva, Subhadra and Sudarshana with special Saptabharana (seven protective layers of covering) like the original Puri Jagannath. Made by expertly trained devotees, not by hired craftsmen. (Please read description below and see pictures at bottom for more details.)
Please note that we have very limited stock, as it takes a month to make one set of deities, and these are being made by temple devotees.
What is Saptabharana (Seven Protective Layers)?
Today all Jagannath deities one buys in Puri are made just from wood which is directly painted, without the seven traditional protective layers of coverings. As the wood dries over time the deity will begin to crack in many places, especially along the arm joints, and other vital places. If one waits two or three months, there will eventually be huge gapping crevices all over the deity, and in some cases the deity may split in half.
According to the Puri temple scriptures, when making Jagannath deities one must cover the wood in seven protective layers before the final painting is done. These layers alternate between fine cotton cloth, medicinal herbs (such as sandalwood and neem powder), and finally paint. In between each layer a special stone is used to rub the body of the deities for several days, to smoothen the surface before applying the next layer. This layering process (called Saptabharana) simultaneously makes the deities hard like stone, as well as smooth like marble.
Unfortunately today in Puri not a single craftsman applies Saptabharana to deities below 3 feet in height. The reason is obvious, because it will add a minimum of one months labor for each set of deities made, and raise the costs considerably. As Puri is a tourist town with a flowing population of pilgrims, the craftsmen prefer to make fast and cheap deities which can be sold quickly. Since the cracks only show up after a month, the buyers are unaware of the problem and won't find out until they are back home, far away from Puri. It is for this reason that not even a single store throughout the world is able to sell Jagannath deities online, as the deities will invariably be cracked by the time they reach their customers.
The Jagannath deities we provide to our customers are the only small Jagannath deities in the world that have the original Saptabharana coverings for protection, making them as solid as stone and completely protected from future cracks. These deities are not made by craftsmen, but by devotees who have specifically studied this ancient art so that proper Jagannath deities can be made available throughout the world.
Alternating layers of fine cotton and medicinal herbal pastes are used to cover the deity, making a protective covering as hard as stone.
