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| (Anauspicious time to receive blessings from Lord Shiva) |
Whenever
his beloved devotees run into predicaments, Lord Shiva pleased with
their devotion Himself destroys their troubles. Maha Shivratri (The
great night of Shiva) is one of the most auspicious Hindu festivals,
celebrated every year on the thirtieth night in the Krishna Paksha in
February. It’s the night when devotees worship and offer prayers
to Shiva who destroys the darkness of ignorance.
Many
mythological legends shed light on the significance of this
festival. Maha Shivratri connotes the divine marriage of Lord Shiva
and His consort Shakti aka Goddess Parvati. The festival is also
marked to honor Tandava,
the cosmic dance.
One
of the legends says that Shiva rescued the world from a great
annihilation which was caused by a poison emanating from Samudra
Manthan;
the churning of the sea. Shiva drank the poison holding it in his
throat with yogic powers. As a result his neck turned blue and
henceforth he was called Neela
Kantha,
Neela means blue and Kantha means throat.
The
most famous mythological tale is about a hunter. A tired hunter of
Varanasi after killing game birds sat down below a tree to rest in an
evening. He woke up and found it was all dark around him. He didn’t
know that it was the night of Maha Shivratri. He climbed up the tree
and tied the bund of game birdd to a branch. A Lingam stationed under
the tree could not come to his notice. And the tree was Lord Shiva’s
favorite, the Bilva tree. Accidently, he plucked and dropped a few
leaves. Also, dew that formed on his body too trickled along with the
leaves down onto the Lingam. Such an event pleased Lord Shiva. Later
in life, the hunter died calling the death god Yama who decided to
take him to Hell. At the same time, Lord Shiva sent his messengers to
take the hunter to Him. A great fight between the men of Yama and
Shiva ensued leading the defeat of Yama. At the request of Shiva’s
devotee Nandi, Yama surrendered the hunter to Shiva learning that no
devotees should be touched without the divine consent of Lord Shiva.
Maha Shivratri witnesses
huge convergences and congregations at Shiva’s temples wherein
devotees engage in scared rituals pouring water/milk onto the Shiv Ling in order to please Him. When pleased, the Lord blesses them the
fulfillment of all desires.
The
Shiva Purana mentions the rituals and prayers to be performed on this
day. The Ling should be offered milk, honey and water. Vermilion
paste signifying divine virtue should be marked on the Ling followed
by the presentation of fruits, incense sticks, a lamp and betel
leaves.
Anyone
can perform this simple rite and please Lord Shiv who always blesses
His devotees!
