This post is about the holy festival Maha Shivratri celebrated across India.
So there are 12 Shivratris each year. Once a year, in late winter and before the arrival of summer (February/March), a night before the new moon night is observed as “Maha Shivaratri” – “the great night of Shiva”. It essentially is a Hindu festival celebrated annually to honor the deity, Lord Shiva. Some legends say it commemorates the wedding of Shiva and Parvati and others regard it as the day Shiva in his form of Nataraja performs the divine dance of creation, preservation, and destruction, called the Tandava.
During the Vigil Night of Shiva, Mahashivaratri, we are brought to the moment of the interval between destruction and regeneration. It symbolizes the night when we must contemplate on that which watches the growth out of the decay. During Mahashivaratri we have to be alone with our sword, the Shiva out of us. We have to look behind and before, to see what evil needs eradicating from our hearts, and what growth of virtue we need to encourage.
Shiva is the Supreme Lord who creates, protects, and transforms the universe. Shiva has many aspects, benevolent as well as fearsome. In benevolent aspects, he is depicted as an omniscient Yogi who lives an ascetic life on Mount Kailash as well as a householder with his wife Parvati and his three children, Ganesha, Kartikeya, and Ashokasundari. In his fierce aspects, he has often depicted as slaying demons. Shiva is also known as Adiyogi Shiva, regarded as the patron god of yoga, meditation, and the arts.
The iconographical attributes of Shiva are the serpent around his neck, the adorning crescent moon, the holy river Ganga flowing from his matted hair, the third eye on his forehead (the eye that turns everything in front of it into ashes when opened), the trishula or trident as his weapon, and the damaru drum. He is usually worshipped in the an iconic form of lingam (the union of the feminine and the masculine that recreates all of existence).
Unlike most Hindu festivals celebrated during the day, Maha Shivratri is celebrated at night. On this day, people chant prayers, observe fasting and meditate on Shiva, recognize ethics and virtues like honesty, charity, and forgiveness. In India, ardent devotees stay awake throughout this night. Others visit one of the Shiva temples or go on a pilgrimage to the Jyotirlingams. Offerings of fruits, leaves, sweets, and milk are made to Shiva, some perform all-day fasting with Vedic or tantric worship of Shiva, and some perform meditative yoga. In Shiva temples, “Om Namah Shivaya”, the sacred mantra of Shiva, is chanted throughout the day. In Kashmir, Maha Shivaratri is celebrated by the Hindus of Kashmir and is called, “Herath” in Kashmiri, a word derived from the Sanskrit word “Hararatri” the “Night of Hara” (another name for Shiva).
In Nepal, thousands of devotees visit Shiva Shakti Peetham or shrines and perform holy rituals throughout this day. Artists perform classical music and dance during the night. In Mauritius, Hindus go on a pilgrimage to Ganga Talao, a crater lake. In Karachi Pakistan, on Shivratri night, Hindus visit the temple barefoot and perform aarti. They later bathe the Shiva idols in holy water from River Ganges.
In conclusion, this holy day symbolizes eradicating evil from our hearts and growing in good. This day is marked as the day of overcoming darkness and ignorance in the worldly life, a day of self-study, introspection, and contemplation of the Shiva within us. Wishing you and your family a happy Maha Shivratri!
