The Shivaratri is one of the most popular Hindu festivals, which is dedicated to worshipping the Lord of Kailash, Lord Shiva, and his power. According to the North Indian Calendar, the Masik Shivratri takes place in the month of Phalgun. On the other hand, according to the South Indian Calendar, in the month of Magh, when the Chaturdashi Tithi appears during the Krishna Paksha it marks the day of Maha Shivratri. In both the cases, it is the convention of the Lunar Month that marks the difference. In the year 2017, Maha Shivratri will be celebrated on the 24th of February throughout the country.
The Legends of Maha Shivratri:
While there are some stories that lead to the origin and celebration of the Maha Shivratri, there are specifically two occasions that are referred to the start of it all. While the first incident refers tothe Holy matrimony of Lord Shiva to Maa Parvati, the second incident comes out of the Samudra Manthan (Churning of the Ocean) between the Gods and the Demons, leading to Lord Shiva becoming the Neelkanth.
The Holy Matrimony of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati:
Lord Shiva’s first marriage was with Goddess Sati, who was the daughter of an earthly king, known as Daksha. Daksha was heavily displeased with the marriage of his daughter Sati to a God; he did not consider as God due to his barbaric appearance. King Daksha insulted Lord Shiva in every way he could and ignored his presence on his very marriage. This angered Goddess Sati. Sati could not bear the insult directed at her husband and jumped into the fire of the Yagna and gave up on her life. This sent Lord Shiva into a fire of tremendous anger that opened his third eye and made him perform the Tandav (a violent dance) with Sati’s Body rested in his arms and finally cut Daksha’s head off.
After the event, he secluded himself to Mount Kailash in the Himalayan range. All the God’s saw his condition and conspired to bring him back with them. This leads them to re-surging Sati and give her a new life in the form of Goddess Parvati. After a few years, when Lord Shiva met Maa Parvati, and they engaged in holy matrimony, the event came to be celebrated as the Maha Shivratri and is done till now.
Lord Shiva becomes The Neelkanth:
Before we get to learning the different facts related to the Maha Shivratri, it is important that we learn about the worshipedLord himself and how he became the Neelkanth. It is known that the Samudra Manthan or the Churning of the Ocean in Hindu Mythology was an event that was the contributed efforts of both the Gods and the Demons. The Samudra Manthan signified the fight between the Gods and the Demons to procure and own the Amrit, derived from the bottom of the ocean, which would make its drinker immortal. Since the Gods no way wanted for the Demons to have such power to their availability, a war broke out.
During the churning of the ocean, in place of the Amrit, Vish came out first, from the mouth of a heavily poisonous snake. The poison from the mouth of the snake was so poisonous that it could eradicate all life on Earth. It is here when all the Gods with the direction of Lord Vishnu to abide by, approached Lord Shiva for help. He agreed to rescue Earth from the devastating snake poison and drank it himself. The toxins in the poison turned his throat to a gleaming blue, and thus he came to be referred as the Neelkanth. Lord Vishnu advised the Gods around Lord Shiva to keep him awake through the night to prevent him from any ill effects of the poison. To do so, different Gods, performed music and dance to please Lord Shiva and to keep him awake.
By the end of the night and the arrival of morning, Lord Shiva was so pleased by the efforts of the Gods that he announced that whoever preaches and worships him truly on the day of Maha Shivratri, he will grant their wishes. It is conceived that from that very day worshippers and devotees started preaching Lord Shiva on every Shivratri, especially on Maha Shivratri, with all their faith and devotion.
What is Maha Shivratri all about?
Maha Shivratri can directly be translated to be the “Great Night of Shiva.” A lot of people are unaware of the event setting origin to the most important festival in the Hindu Mythology, the Maha Shivratri. Maha Shivratri is a festival that worships the holy marriage of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. There are quite a few Shivratri that are held across the year, with Maha Shivratri being the most important and unanimous throughout the country. Maha Shivratri is often preceded by a fast by hundreds and thousands of Hindu Worshippers regardless of gender, though the number of women observing the Vrat (fast) is higher than men. The aim of this day-longvrat is to signify and celebrate their devotion and dedication towards the Lord of Power, Lord Shiva.
The only other country that celebrates the festival with as much boom and devotion as India is Nepal. In both the countries, the celebrations of the day are taken very seriously and are executed on a big scale. Though Shivaratri is a monthly affair, the Maha Shivratri is the biggest and the most celebrated of the occasions.
A celebration of Mahashivratri by different Zodiac Signs:
According to Hindu Mythology, Maha Shivratri plays special significance to each of the signs, but differently for all. This entails the zodiac signs to perform special rituals, distinctive to their signs, along with the observance of the Shivratri vrath. These rituals include-
1. Mesh or Aries-
The Aries must bathe the Shiva Linga with molasses water, infused with red sandalwood.
2. Vrishabh or Taurus-
Taurus should bathe the Shiva Linga with curd in their Abhishek liquid.
3. Mithun or Gemini-
Gemini must worship and bathe Lord Shiva with Sugar Cane juice.
4. Karkat or Cancer-
Cancer must dilute ghee in their avishek water to please Lord Shiva.
Similarly, there are different rituals for all the zodiacs to follow on the day of Maha Shivratri to make it a success.
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