Monday, Feb 19, 2007
Maha Shivratri Celebrated With Great Fervour
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 Lord Shiva
‘Maha Shivratri’ was celebrated across the country on Friday, Feb 16, with great zeal and fervour.
Devotees queued up at Shiv temples since dawn break to offer prayers.
A large number of devotees visited the Shiva temple at Tarakeshwar in West Bengal’s Hooghly District. Men dressed up as Lord Shiv - called ‘Bahurupiyas’ in the local parlance, also thronged the temple, ‘blessing’ people.
"Today is Shivaratri and we have come here to offer water and milk to Lord Shiva. When we see the Bahurupies dressed up as Lord Shiva, it feels great. It's as though the Lord himself has come down to earth to bless His devotees," said Pooja Goswami, a devotee.
A ‘Bahurupy’ dresses up like Lord Shiva, complete with a synthetic snake around the neck and beating the damru (rattling drum) apart from carrying a kamandal (a tiny circular vessel like container with a spout) to carry the holy water.
"This is a way of earning our livelihood. We have been doing this for generations. It's not just for Shivaratri, but throughout the year. The devotees are more during Shivaratri, Shravan and during the Gajan mela. We earn the maximum then," said Kartik Ghosh, a Bahurupy dressed as Shiva.
According to the priest of Tarakeshwar temple it is a sea of humanity on the day of Shivaratri.
"Shivratri is of great significance to Hindus. It's a day for worshipping Lord Shiva. Some believe it's the day Goddess Parvati received the blessing from the Lord for her meditation and the Lord agreed to be her husband, others believe it's the day Lord Shiva married Sati and local legends say it was the day when a hunter, who accidentally offered leaves of Bel tree to Shiva. Women worship Shiva on this day in the hope of getting the perfect husband, while men offer prayers hoping for absolution," said Sandeep Chakravorty, Priest, Tarakeshwar Temple.
The devotees offer prayers and money to the 'live Shivas' who teem in and around Tarakeshwar.
In Ayodhya, there was scramble of devotees in temples. In Tarakeswar temple in the town, the phallic representation of Shiva or 'Shivling', is believed to have been installed during the Hindu epic Ramayana-period.
"The 'Shivling' submerged under water here is from the Lav-Kush (twin sons of God Ram). It is 2.1 million years old. Lav and Kush themselves installed the Shivlinga here," said Janardan Pujari, head priest, Tarkeshwar temple.
Prayers and offerings at the Shiva temple on the Delhi-Gurgaon highway were a sight to relish where hundreds of litres of milk were being offered to the Lord Shiva.
"We make offerings of fruits like bananas, ber, bel and its leaves, milk, flowers and sweets. The fast is for the fulfilment of one's wishes," said Anu Garg, a devotee at a Shiva temple.
This day is dedicated to the Lord Shiva, one of the holy trinity of Hindu faith, the other two being Brahma and Vishnu.
Maha Shivaratri is celebrated on the 13th or 14th day of the dark half of Phalgun. It is widely believed that Shiva married Parvati on this day.
Whether it's for a perfect husband or for the fulfilment of all their wishes, men and women observe daylong fast on the occasion of Maha Shivaratri. The worship rituals are offering the belpatra (a tree with three stemmed leaves). It is believed that Goddess Lakshmi resides in belpatras. (ANI)
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