MAHASHIVRATHRI

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MAHASHIVRATHRI

 

The Grand Night of Lord Shiva The festival of 'Mahashivratri' is celebrated as a

mark of respect towards Lord Shiva each year. THE festival of Mahashivratri,

which literally means the night of Lord Shiva, is universally celebrated by

Hindus each year. Lord Shiva forms a part of the Hindu holy Trimurti (trinity of

Gods), wherein Brahma is the creator, Vishnu the sustainer and Shiva is the

destroyer. On this day, people from various parts of the country gather at

temples of Lord Shiva and sing bhajans (holy songs), offer prayers and recite

shlokas in the honor of Lord Shiva. Occurrence: Mahashivratri is celebrated on

the thrathshi or the thirteenth day of the waning moon in the month of Phagun,

which is some time in February or March according to the English calendar (14-15

days before Holi, the Hindu festival of color). Legends behind the festival:

There are several stories about the origins of this festival. Dance of creation

and destruction: A common belief is that on this night, Lord Shiva is said to

have performed the Tandava Nritya or the dance of primordial creation,

preservation and destruction. Lord Shiva is said to have been an excellent

dancer. In fact, even today some of the Indian classical dancers pray to the

Lord, before they begin their performance. Love, Compassion and Mercy: One of

the most popular stories behind the origins of this festival is about a hunter

who had gone to the forest to hunt for his family. Just around dusk, after an

unsuccessful and tiring day in the jungle, he noticed a pair of deer. And just

when he was about to kill them, one of the deer spoke to him and begged for

mercy. It said that they had been searching for food throughout the day to feed

their young ones. They promised that after they gave the food to their young

ones, they would return back to the hunter. The hunter took mercy and agreed to

wait for them. As it was nearing nightfall, fearing predators, the hunter

climbed a tree nearby. In order to keep awake all night, he started plucking

leaves from the tree and kept throwing them onto the ground. But he didn't

realize that underneath the tree was a Shivlingam (the phallic iconic

representation of Shiva), on which the leaves were falling. In fact, the

Shivlingam is the center of reverence and worship in all Shaivite (Shiva

temples.) The next day, just when the hunter was about to return home feeling

cheated, the deer appeared with their offspring. They apologized for being late,

and told the hunter that he could kill all of them, as after the death of the

parents, the young ones would not be able to feed or protect themselves from

other predators. Hearing this, the hunter took mercy on the deer family, and he

let them go. Unknowingly, the hunter had offered his prayers to Lord Shiva by

not only showering Him with leaves (while praying Hindus always offer flowers

and leaves to the idol of the Gods), but also fasting for a day and letting the

deer family go. By offering his prayers to Lord Shiva the hunter had gained the

virtues of Lord Shiva of mercy, compassion and love. Thus, it is said that

fasting and offering prayers to Lord Shiva on the Mahashivratri day brings an

individual closer to the Lord. Worshipping the all powerful Lord in the night:

Another story traces the origin of the festival to the fact that Lord Shiva

saved the entire human race and the universe from destruction by swallowing

poison. It is believed that the Gods and the demons were churning the Ocean

(Sagarmanthan) to obtain amrit (nectar) to stay immortal. In the process they

came across many unusual substances, including the deadly poison. As soon as

they touched the poison, it exploded into poisonous fumes that threatened to

destroy the entire universe. When the destruction of the universe seemed

inevitable, the Gods ran for assistance to Brahma and Vishnu, but neither was

able to help. At last they ran to Lord Shiva, who swallowed the poison without

spilling a single drop. That also explains why Lord Shiva's throat is blue in

colour for which he is also called Neel Kanth (the one who has a blue throat) or

Vishaapaharana Murthy. Thus the festival is celebrated in honor of the Lord.