On the 14th day of the dark half of Magh Mahashivaratri is celebrated.
All day long the devotees observe fast and perform the puja. Lord Shiva,
also known as Mahadeva, is one of the three Gods of Hindu Trinity. Maha
Shiva Rathri is celebrated throughout India with much zeal and vigor. In
West Bengal, Shivaratri is celebrated as a folk festival. Unmarried
girls observe a fast and worship Shiva so that they are blessed with
good husbands. Whole night they stay awake as part of the festival. At
the temple of Tarakeshwar, which is 57 km from Calcutta, bare-footed
pilgrims carry containers of Ganga water to pour over the stone image of
the Lord and decorate the granite phallus with garlands of flowers, as a
mark of their devotion. In Andhra Pradesh the Sri Kalahasteshwara Temple
at Kalahasti and the Bharamarambha Malikarjunaswamy Temple at Srisailam
attracts a lot of pilgrims across the country.
In Jammu and Kashmir, the festival of Shivaratri is celebrated for
fifteen days. In Rajasthan, a special puja marks the auspicious
occasion. A fair is held at Dabeshwarji in Jaipur. There are various
rituals and traditions associated with Shivaratri celebration. The
devotees of Lord Shiva take a dip in the nearby river at dawn and go to
the temples of Lord Shiva to offer their prayers along with Bilva
leaves. They observe fast throughout the day. Shivaratri is considered
to be the auspicious time for the pilgrims to visit the twelve
Jyotirlinga situated in different parts of the country to earn blessings
from Lord Shiva.
