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On the 14th night of the dark half of Magh occurs the festival of Mahashivaratri. This is an important fast for devotees of the god Shiva, who stay awake throughout the night, spending time in prayer. The name of this festival literally means 'the great night of Shiva’.
Over the years man has sought to link mythological tales to the celebration of particular days and times pertinent to each specific deity. The legend concerning this festival is memorable.
It is said that a poor tribal man, who was a great devotee of Shiva, once went into the deep forest to collect firewood. As the shadows lengthened, he lost his way and could not get back home. As the mantle of darkness fell on the jungle, he could hear the growls of tigers and was extremely frightened. In the darkness, he blindly climbed up the nearest tree - which happened to be a Bel tree - and sought safety and shelter in its branch till dawn.
All night he could hear wild animals and had not the courage to leave his refuge. Perched amongst the branches, it was natural that he should doze off, fatigued by the events of the day. In order to stay awake, he plucked one sprig of leaves at a time from the tree and dropped it down, chanting the name of Shiva.
By the time the first rays of dawn lit up the horizon, he had dropped thousands of leaves on a Shiva linga which he had not noticed in the darkness. This unwitting all-night worship pleased Shiva, by whose grace the tiger went away and the tribal was rewarded with divine bliss.
Ever since that day, say the Puranas, the story of the tribal is recited every year on the night of Mahashivaratri. On this particular occasion Shiva is offered special food made from the fruits of the season, root vegetables and coconuts, during ritual worship. Having observed the requirements of the all-night fast, devotees eat the prasad offered to Shiva. |
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