MAHASHIVRATRI 2022: Shivratri, also addressed as Mahashivratri, is an immensely popular festival in honor of the divinity, Lord ‘Shiva’. The uniqueness of Mahashivratri is that it is a night-long festival with ‘jaagaran’ – a night of waking up to usher in a sense of well-being.
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The Puja or ritual after Mahashivratri is performed according to a particular ‘vidhi’ or practice. Practically the ‘fasting’ or ‘vrat’ is part of the ritual and begins as a prelude to Maha Shivratri on ‘Trayodashi’, which is a day before the festival. It includes eating just once. Fasting detoxifies the body.
To watch, sing and pray all night is a vow to maintain the self-determination that devotees make, and to seek the Lord’s blessing during the celebration.
Devotees religiously worship Shiva according to the fasting guidelines on this auspicious day which command renewed vigor and make them more receptive to grace and derive maximum benefits from the ritual.
During Lent, abstain from rice, wheat and all kinds of legumes.
Make sure that the legumes mentioned above are not consumed raw or cooked along with other food items. The norm of fasting stems from the fact that it is a combination of austerity and watchfulness that produces a certain discipline for the body and mind.
To maintain the fast, one might wake up at daybreak on the Brahma muhurta/mahurat, which is 2 hours before sunrise; take a bath, meditate. And remember that the fast must be observed until the next day between sunrise and before the end of Chaturdashi, as recommended by the Panchang calendar.
The strict form of fasting requires devotees to stay completely away from eating or drinking anything.
Soaked peanuts, fruits, milk, honey, sabudana, and coconut water can be consumed in the milder form of fasting.
Another important rule of fasting is that devotees should stay away from common salt. Rock salt or Sendha Namak can be used instead.
The fast is continued while performing the Maha Shivratri Puja, with shiv linga ‘Abhishekam’ with ghee, honey, raw milk, flowers; along with lighting incense, diyas the ‘vidhi’ as part of the ritual.
Most importantly, fasting isn’t just about not “eating” per se; it is also about abstinence from random, stray, negative thoughts that also affect our mental well-being.
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