Maha Sivaratri! Om Namah Sivaya!
On the krishnapaksha chaturdasi of magha masa, we have the best of all the sivaratris. MahA s’ivarAtri.
![[hardwar+siva.jpg]](http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_m1qmi7XNc9E/Sye9aKkOLqI/AAAAAAAAAyg/63mmWOH_Drs/s1600/hardwar%2Bsiva.jpg)
Courtesy : http://ilupeju.blogspot.com/2009/12/big.html
Siva is worshipped with Abhisheka (aBiSEkam). Water, Coconut Water, Milk, Honey, Curds, Fruit Juice and so on. The pedestal is designed such that the water flows neatly away to one side. And it is often collected in a vessel as sacred.
If the Abhisheka is done with water from a white conch shell while chanting of the vedic purusha suktham, it becomes tirtha. Extra abhisheka water is only poured away into a tulsi planet.
s’iva likes bilva patras, bel leaves. Possible that is what abounds in the hilly areas where his devotees live. Our dEvatAs love what we love and what we can find in plenty! They never make it hard for us to worship them.
Only mahasivaratri day, the cold leaves us saying, “siva siva”. Bangloreans insist that summer has started, but technically we are still in the middle of s’is’ira Rtu, which covers both magha and phaluguna masas. (See Nakshatras, Grahas, Varas, Rasis, Masas, Rtus).
Leaves and Flowers of Bilva Tree for worship if the Siva Linga : Photo credit : Satya Sarada Kandula : All Rights Reserved
Kotilingeswara, Kolar : Photo Credit : Satya Sarada Kandula : All Rights Reserved
I am very strongly of the view that there is an astronomical reason for the jAgAram (staying awake all night), on mahAsivarAtri day, and am requesting all those with good cameras to stay up and take pictures for me of the changing night sky.
I think the tripuraantaka and ksheerasagara mathana garala stories can be understood at the astronomical plane also.
I expect 3 luminaries to line up, or for the line up to be visible and to have some connection either to Orion or to Dhanus as the connection to the tripura legend.
Authorship and Copyright Notice : All Rights Reserved : Satya Sarada Kandula
