Mahashivratri is one of the most spiritual festivals that occurs in February-March. While most of you might think of Shivratri as a festival celebrated by the wives for the long life of their husbands but there is much more to this festival. On the night of Mahashivratri, the northern hemisphere of the planet is positioned in a way that brings a natural upsurge of energy in a human. The spiritual worshipers meditate all night long and allow the energies to flow upwards by staying awake and keeping their spine vertical. For people who have a family observe Mahashivratri as Shiva’s wedding anniversary.
The ascetics consider Mahashivratri as a day when Shiva became one with Mount Kailash. They refer to Kailash as the Abode of Shiva and do not consider Shiva as God but as a man who was the very first yogi or the first guru to transmit the yogic science to his seven disciples known as Saptarishis. It is said that all the knowledge that Shiva knew is preserved in Mount Kailash in the form of energy and thus the ascetics see Mahashivratri as the night of stillness.
Shiva is known as the destroyer of ego and helps a human to clear his thoughts from the negatives that block him from his potentials. The night awakens an individual to whom he truly is. The devotees stay awake the whole night and worship Shiva by bathing the Shiva Linga with water, milk, and honey. Then apply the vermillion paste on the linga after bathing it and offer fruits, flowers and bel leaves on the Shiv Linga.
Some believe that during this day Lord Shiva saved the world by drinking the poison that emerged during the Samudra Manthan. It is this reason that turned Lord Shiva’s throat blue and hence came to be known as Neelkanth. Out of the 12 different Shivratri celebrated in India, Mahashivratri is considered to be the most auspicious festival of all. The festival is also considered to be an auspicious festival for both married and unmarried woman as they observe a fast and perform Shiva Puja. Women fast and pay to satisfy Goddess Parvati who grants a long and prosperous married life. The woman who are yet to get married pray for a husband like Lord Shiva who is reckoned as the ideal husband.
