Sree Kshetra is one of the holiest Vaisnab Tirthas, has ever been the seat of the worship of Vishnu and is accordingly styled 'Dashavatara Kshetra' in the Shastras. Sree Jagannath Deva is the Sovereign of the Purusottam kshetra. The Sankhyayana Brahmana says:—
''आदौ यद्दारु प्लवते सिन्धोः पारे अपुरुषम्।
तदा लभस्व दुर्दूनो तेन याहि परं स्थलम्॥"
As explained by the Sankhyayana Bhasya, the sloka means "from eternity in the remote land the Brahma-in-the-Form-of-Wood Who is not made by anybody, manifests Himself on the shores of the sea. All worshipping Him attain the region of the best Vaisnabas." The account of the DaruBrahma as being wellknown in the Sruti is repeatedly mentioned in the Smritis. The Sreemurtis of Jagannath Deva, Balaram and Suvadra are eternal. The worship of Sree Jagannath Deva appears to have been restored in very early times by Adi Visnusvami from the clutches of pseudo Vaishnabas passing in the name of Buddhists. The Car Festival dates from his time. According to old tradition Utkal was conquered in very early times by king Pandya Vijaya of the Pandya country who on the occasion removed the Sree Bigrahas from Nilachal to a place afterwards named Sundarachal from where they were again brought back to Nilachal on the departure of the conqueror. This event, it is said, was the origin of the Car Festival and it appears to be indicated by the term Pahandi (i.e. Pandya Vijaya) applied to the ceremony when the Sree murtis are brought out of the Temple and placed on the cars.
Adi Vishnu Svami was the son of 'Deveswar' or ‘Deva Svami' the Purohit and mantrin of king Pandya Vijaya. The pseudo Vaishnabas were powerful in Sree Kshetra and regained possession of the Temple and continued their mode of celebration newly adopting the practice of the Car Festival and other ceremonies instituted by Adi Vishnu Svami although they changed the names of the Sree Bigrahas and converted the Temple into a Buddhist-Shrine. Sree Kshetra according to tradition was in later ages visited by Sree Sankaracharyya, Sree Ramanujacharyya, Sree Madhvacharyya and Sree Nimbarkacharyya whose sampradayas established their respective maths at the place.
The World-Teacher Sree Gouranga Deva attended by Prabhu Nityananda arrived at Nilachal in the beginning of the sixteenth century as the Acharyya of the Madhva Gaudiya Sampradaya. He was later on joined there by Sree Advaita Prabhu, Sree Thakur Haridas, Sree Svarup Damodar, Sreepad Gosvamis who were His agents and the general body of His followers. The transcendental activities of Sreeman Mahaprabhu at Nilachal where He resided for the last eighteen years of the period during which He was manifest in the world are described by Sreemad Kaviraj Gosvami in the Sree Chaitanya Charitamrita. To this day all the spots at Sree Kshetra sanctified by His deeds are visited by all devout pilgrims.
Om Vishnupad Sreemad Thakur Bhaktivinode the Pioneer Preacher of suddha Bhakti of the present age performed Hari-bhajan in Sree-Kshetra during many years. The Sree Purusottam Math and the seva of Sree Gour Sundar have been established in the Thakur's Bhajan kuti these six years.
Alalnath is well-known to the readers of Sree Chaitanya Charitamrita. It is situated on the seashore fourteen miles to the south of Puri where stands the beautiful stone-temple of Sree Alalnath, a four-armed Bigraha of Vasudeva. The Sree Bigraha of Alalnath (Alwar-nath) is alleged to have been set up by one of the twelve alwars (alwar is the Tamil equivalent of the associate of the Godhead) and serves as the connecting link between the Tamil lands of the south and the Odhra-Utkal Desha. During the period of anabasara (i.e. commencing from after the day of snanyatra to before Navayaubana) Sreeman Mahaprabha retired to Alalnath from Puri and resided there with some of His devotees. The Sree Brahma Gaudiya math has been established as a branch of the Sree Chaitanya Math close to the Sree Mandir where Sree Chaitanya Deva used to reside during his stay at Alalnath.
Let us hope that the Purusottam Kshetra will again become the centre for the propagation of the doctrine of suddha bhakti taught here through so many years by the supreme Lord Himself and from here spread to the extreme limits of the south by way of Alalnath.