Uda Parab is an important festival of
Orissa. The literal meaning of ‘uda’ is ‘flying’ and ‘parab’ means ‘festival’. As the name suggests this is a festival of flying. The celebrations are more predominant in the rural areas of
Mayurbhanj and
Keonjhar districts.
On the day of Uda Parab a staff is fixed horizontally on a pole. Some devotees, termed as Bhoktas, are tied on this staff and rotated around. These devotees have to initially go through a ceremonial bath and numerous rituals before tying themselves to the staff. The Bhoktas adorns themselves with garlands and ankle-bells. While rotating around the staff, the Bhoktas throw around green mangoes and flowers from their garlands towards the assembled crowd. This act of flying around is followed by a worship ceremony in the nearby temple. Lord Shiva along with local deities such as Hingula and Mangala are worshipped with full fervor.
