The story of the idol of Shri Hanuman ji near the south gate of the world famous Shri Jagannath ji temple located in Puri is amazing.

It is said that the waves of the sea located near the temple used to come into the courtyard of the temple at any time, due to which the situation was like disaster almost all the time, which caused a lot of trouble to the devotees coming there.

Once Varuna wanted to see the Lord so he went to the temple and as a result the city got flooded.

The residents wanted that there should be something that could prevent sea water from entering the temple town. Now who could have done this heinous act? It is natural that Lord Jagannath turned to Hanuman ji, who during the time of Lord Rama had easily crossed the ocean to find Mother Sita.

Hanuman ji happily agreed. And everyone felt relieved and happy.
But as days passed Hanuman started feeling sad.

Because of the food that was given to them. It is said that during that time only Khichdi (a dish made of rice and pulses) was offered to Lord Jagannath as bhog. And the same was given to Hanuman also. He got fed up. He had the experience of enjoying delicious food in Ayodhya.

So one day he could not control himself and thought that he would go to Ayodhya for some time and after eating as much variety of food as possible, he would quickly return back to Puri.

So he went to Ayodhya at night to taste delicious dishes. But in his absence the sea entered the city. Everyone was wondering how this happened?

Soon they learned that Hanuman was not in the city for a short period of time and had taken leave without permission.

Lord Jagannath ordered that Hanuman ji be tied with chains. Hanuman ji accepted his mistake and happily agreed to tie the knot. It is said that the name of Lord Rama is engraved on every link.

Therefore, here Hanuman ji is also called Vedi Hanuman or Bedi Hanuman i.e. Hanuman tied with chains. He is also known as Dariya Mahavir.

What about prasadam?

While pleading his case, Hanuman told Lord Jagannath about the reason why he had to flee to Ayodhya at night. Lord Jagannath understood the problem and it is said that from that day it was decided that various types of food would be offered to Lord Jagannath and various dishes would also be offered to Hanuman ji. Hanuman ji was now pleased and decided to stay there.

From that day onwards tidal waves never entered the city, never troubled the residents and Hanuman Ji became the guardian deity of Sri Kshetra.