CaliOM

Thanks for responding. I live in Chico, CA. There used to be a Hindu temple here but it has closed down. There is supposed to be one in Yuba City as well, but i've tried contacting them and haven't heard back. Any recommendations would be appreciated.

Greetings & Namaste! I am a Hindu living in the U.S. doing my best to learn and practice as a solitary Hindu. Unfortunately, the temple that used to be in my city is no longer here. As a result I have been celebrating the major holidays on my own with the utmost devotion and the best that I can. According to my calendar "Ram Navami" is coming up soon. The only information i've found about this holiday is from wikipedia which is a great source but not preferred. I was wondering if some other devotees could share with me how they celebrate this beautiful holiday or possibly provide me with some online resources?

Thank you to everyone for their honest responses. They are much appreciated. First off let me apologize to anyone who I might have offended. I never meant any disrespect towards Lord Shiva or any of his devotees. I know the title, "Is Shiva on drugs?" was direct, but you have to admit it got your attention. With regards to the subject matter my wishes were to address it with legitimate concern and an academic mind. The subject is extremely personal to me as I have had trouble with drugs in the past. Therefore, you can imagine my surprise when I stumbled upon the article in question. Because I am fairly new to Hinduism I want to make sure I am getting my facts straight. From what I can discern it sounds like there are Shaivites who take marijuana on occasion during religious ceremonies/rituals with the understanding that it is a holy plant, sacred to Lord Shiva. However, it would seem that there are others who completely denounce the use of mind-altering substances as a spiritual practice. I believe that both practices have their place in religion. They are certainly not new concepts and have been happening for thousands of years. For myself, I choose to abstain from mind-altering substances given my past and personal beliefs. Thankfully, your responses have only reaffirmed those practices for me in my life, and for that I am grateful. OM NAMAH SHIVAYA!

I am pretty new to Hinduism and doing my best to learn on my own. This can be hard without the help of an enlightened Guru, especially when most of the time I end up turning to the internet for help. For instance, I was trying to learn about Maha Shivaratri as it is coming up soon but I came across an interesting article. The article was posted on About.com in regards to Shivaratri. The article can be found here: http://hinduism.about.com/od/lordshiva/p/shiva.htm The article states that: "Since Shiva is regarded as a mighty destructive power, to numb his negative potentials he is fed with opium and is also termed as 'Bhole Shankar', one who is oblivious of the world." I have never heard this before. Is this true? Does Shiva need to take mind-altering substances in order to maintain his temper? Also, I read that some people take mind altering substances on Shivaratri. Is this true? I would welcome any comments or additional information on this subject. Thanks. OM NAMAH SHIVAYA!