KATHMANDU, MARCH 1
Mahashivaratri festival was celebrated throughout the country today by worshipping lord Shiva.
Shivaratri is celebrated every year, on Falgun Krishna Chaturdashi, the fourteenth day of the waning moon in the month of Falgun, as per the lunar calendar.
The religious festival is dedicated to the Hindu God Shiva (the Auspicious One or that which does not exist in Sanskrit).
Many people fast on the day and the night is observed with a vigil (jagaran), worshipping Shiva. People also make bonfires at home, on public squares, at temples, chant hymns and take prasad on the occasion.
Many Hindu followers around the world take holy bath and visit Shiva temples and shrines. They offer prayers and worship with devotion.
A large number of devotees from across the world visited Pashupatinath temple, one of the most revered Shiva shrines in the world, today.
All the four doors of the main temple of Pashupatinath were opened from 3:00am today and they will remain open till tomorrow morning.
Pashupatinath Area Development Trust said that more than a million people were expected to visit the temple till tomorrow morning. More than 10,000 security forces and thousands more volunteers were deployed at the temple after the number of visitors increased today. Pashupatinath area has been decorated for the occasion with garlands and colourful electric lights and wall murals.
The scriptures describe Shiva as one of the main deities of Hinduism and he is worshipped as the paramount lord by Hindus.
He is also believed to be the destroyer, who at the right time, will destroy this world after it is completely marred by evil in order to create a more sacred world. He is also a symbol of the great ascetic. Thousands of people live as Sadhu Babas, the ardent follower of Shiva.
Sometimes Shiva is also taken as a symbol of sensuality, a loving husband, a caring father, the kind herdsman of souls, and the wrathful avenger.
President Bidhya Devi Bhandari, following a long tradition of offering puja at the temple, reached the area and offered special worship this evening.
She was received by the Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Prem Bahadur Ale, along with ministry and Pashupati Area Development Trust officials.
A version of this article appears in the print on March 2, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.
