JAGANNATH TEMPLE
The name Jagannath literally means the Lord of the Universe. The celebrated Temple was constructed by Raja Ananta Varman Chodaganga Dev in 12th century A.D. Portions of the temple were built during his reign. Later ruler Ananga Bhima Deva rebuilt the temple to give a shape in which it stands today. The wooden images of Jagannath Balabhadra and Subhadra were installed in that temple. Around 1558, Orissa was conquered by the Afghan Nawab of Bengal Bakhtiyar Khilji and the temple was about to be attacked by his General ‘Kalapahad’. Subsequently, the independent kingdom of Khurda was established by Ramachandra Dev, who consecrated the temple and reinstalled the deities. Raja Mansingh, a General of the Mughal Emperor Akbar, defeated the Afghans and annexed Orissa in to the Mughal dominion. It remained under the Mughals till 1751 A.D. Till 1760, the temple continued under the Khurda Raja, who was paying tribute to Mughals and thereafter the Marhattas. The Arun Stambha was brought from the site of the Sun Temple of Konark and placed in front of the temple by them. Marhattas took up direct management of the temple till 1803 when Orissa was annexed into the British empire. The British allowed the king of Puri to manage all affairs of the temple. After independence the government of Orissa took over the management of the temple. Some archaeologists theorize that there existed a Buddhist stupa at the site of the present temple, which might have housed the tooth relic of the Buddha before it was transported to its present location in Kandy, Sri Lanka. Around that period Buddhism was assimilated within the Hindu fold, whence Jagannath worship gained popularity. This was in the tenth century, during the reign of the Somavamsi kings of Orissa. The temple of Lord Jagannath towers 214 feet 8 inches (about 65 metres) above Puri town. The temple is actually part of a large complex. It is surrounded by two courtyards, and two tall, concentric walls, making the complex somewhat like a fortress. The outer wall is called Meghanada Prachir while the inner wall is Kurma Prachir.

TOTA GOPINATH TEMPLE
To the northwestern side of Jagannath Temple lies the Yameshwar Tota or the garden of Lord Yameshwara (Shiva). The excuisite natural beauty of the place was such that Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu would remember the divine groves around Vrindavan. He had asked one of his favourite disciples Gadadhar Pandit to remain at this garden and worship Lord Krishna. It is said that Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu had dug out the buried idol from the sand and established it there asking Gadadhar Pandit to render Nitya-Seva (Daily Worship & Service) to Lord Gopinath. He named the enchanting deity as Tota Gopinath. Gadadhar Pandit stayed at Puri as a Kshetra Sannyasi (one who never leaves the place) and worshipped Tota Gopinath regularly. Gaudiya Vaishnavas believe that Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu ended his manifested pastimes in Puri by entering into the knee of the Tota Gopinath. The temple stands in a garden. On the middle altar is Tota Gopinath in a sitting posture of padmasana, accompanied by black deities of Radha and Lalita. On the far left altar are Lord Balarama and his two wives, Revati and Varuni. The idol of Gopinath has a golden streak on his knee. It is said that into this streak Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu entered.

BASUDEV SARVABHAUMA'S HOUSE
This house is about a kilometer to the south of the Simha-dwara (main gate) of the Jagannath Temple beside Sweta Ganga Tank. Sarvabhauma’s house, better known as Gangamata Math, a renowned 'chatushpathi' (seat of learning) of that period is on the left of Sweta Ganga. Temples on the banks of Sweta Ganga tank are said to be much older than Jagannath temple. There are Radha-Krishna deities called Radha-Rasikaraja in this house, about eight hundred years old and worshiped by Sarvabhauma himself. Sarvabhauma's footwear still lies preserved in a room at the intitute. Inside, there are paintings of devotional scenes all over the walls in certain sections. According to legend Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu appeared before the renowned scholar Basudev Sarvabhauma in Sadbhuj (six-armed) form.

GUNDICHA TEMPLE
This temple is located at the end of Badadanda Sahi (the main road) about three kilometers to the northeast of Jagannath Temple. At the time of the Ratha-yatra (Car festival), the deity of Lord Jagannath along with Subhadra and Balabhadra is taken to the Gundicha Temple for one week. After that, the deities are returned to the Jagannath temple. It is said that the wife of Indradyumna, the king who originally established the Jagannath temple according to legend, was known as Gundicha.

RESIDENCE AND SAMADHI OF HARIDAS THAKUR
Haridas Thakur, a realised soul and a disciple of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu did sadhana here. It is said that Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu himself planted a Bakul tree known as ‘Siddha Bakul’ because spiritual practices were done under this tree to become a ‘Siddha’ (who has attained perfection). It is the bhajan-kutir of Haridasa Thakur, the place where he chanted names of the Lord daily. A little away in the same compound is the Sri Haridasa-Sadbhuj Temple. There is a Sadbhuj-murti (six-armed form) of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu on the altar with Nityananda on one side and Advaita Acharya on the other. A statue of Haridasa Thakur is in front, to the side of the main altar. There is also a Deity of Lord Narasimha. The samadhi temple of Haridasa Thakur, is located by the beach in the Swarga Dwara area near the Purusottama Gaudiya Math.

SONAR GOURANGA
The temple of Sonar Gouranga stands a little away from the sea beach at Chakratirtha. The temple complex with its serene atmosphere attracts visitors who visit the deity of Gouranga on their visit to Srikshetra.

GAMBHIRA
Gambhira is located close to Siddha Bakul. There is a sign over the door reading "Shri Shri Radhakanta Math, Gambhira." It is about half a kilometre from Simha-dwara (main gate) of the Jagannath Temple towards Swarga Dwara or the beach. This house was once the residence of Kashi Mishra. One can look through a small barred window into the room called Sri Gambhira. This is the room where Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu lived most of the time during his stay of eighteen years till his disappearance in 1584 A.D. An oil lamp here is never extinguished. One can see Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s original wooden sandals, his quilt, water pot, and bed. On a marble throne, a statue of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is encircled by a cloth, so that just his face is visible.

NARENDRA SAROVAR
This is a large tank where the 21-day long boat festival called Chandana-yatra is commenced on auspicious Akshaya Tritiya day every year during which Lord Jagannath goes for a boat ride. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and his devotees took part in this festival. There is a small temple on an island about a hundred feet into the tank, with deities of Jagannath, Balabhadra, and Subhadra. It is located off Badadanda Sahi or Grand Road not far from the Jagannath Temple.

ATHARNALA BRIDGE
Built in the 13th century, this 88 metre-long bridge is situated at the entrance to the city. Stretched over eighteen arches from which it takes its name ("athara" means eighteen) and built of laterite and sandstone, this site is also very popular among devotees where they extend their respect, with folded hands to the bridge and the Temple. This bridge is symbolic of the emotion of arriving or departing from Jagannath Dham. The present look is a renovation on top of the original bridge. From this bridge, visitors can see the large chakra atop Jagannath temple. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu had a spiritual trance at his first sight of Jagannath temple prompting him running for early 'darshan' of the Lord.