Devotees throng Shiva temples on 'Maha Shivarathri' day

Mangalore, February 20: It is that time of the year again when the Hindu festival of 'Maha Shivarathri' is celebrated. A large number of devotees thronged Shiva temples across the coastal district to mark the festival.

'Abhisheka' was peformed to Shiva on the occasion of Shivarathri celebrations at Kadri Sri Manjunatheshwara Temple in Mangalore on Monday. As customary to the Hindu faith 'abhisheka' symbolises the ritual of showing devotion to the deity.

A huge number of devotees made a beeline for Sri Manjunateshwara Temple at Sri Kshetra Dharmasthala.

Maha Shivaratri, is a festival during which devotees give up food and sleep, to engage in prayer and worship of Shiva for spiritual purification. It is an auspicious day as the spiritual practices are performed to please the 'lord'. It is said that Shiva is the deity with a third eye in the middle of the forehead and when he opens that, all evil forces will be destroyed. Hindus believe that it is a rare occasion for the individual soul to be aware of the supreme consciousness.

Maha Shivaratri normally arrives during the month of Margashira, according to the Hindu calendar. Devotees can be seen singing in Shiva's praise and they worship the lord in a customary style. One of the ways the customs are followed is the offering of 'Bilva' leaves to 'lord' as a mark of supreme consciousness.

There is a belief that during this time individual soul unites with the supreme soul. Many devotees observe fasting since morning and also offer 'Ekka' flower to the idol of Shiva. 'Rudrabhishekha' and 'Shivapooja' are offered to the idol. Many devotees purchase the pooja items which are usually sold outside the Temple premises.

A common way of temples marking the festivities is the performance of 'Homas' like 'Maharudra' Homa. Temple committees also offer 'Shata Siyalabhishekha' which involves offering 100 coconuts to Lord Shiva. Temple authorities also perform 'Bilvapathra archane' in which garlands of Bilva leaf are offered to the deity. The Shiva-parvathi idols are decorated in a grand way and people come in large numbers and wait in queues to get a glimpse of the idols. Another common practice by devotees is visting famous shiva temples like 'Shri Kshetra Dharmasthala'. The Shivarathri festival is also considered as a time when all the sins of the devotees are cleansed. For this devotees take a special dip in rivers if the temples are near a river like in Kshetra Dharmasthala. If there is no river then in temples like Kadri Manjunatheswara, pools of water in the temple premises are used to have the pious bath. Above all it is the faith in Lord Shiva which matters the most in such occasions for Hindus.