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Divine Kala
01 March 2011, 02:57 AM
So, what is everyone doing? I will be fasting (partially) and going to my local temple after school and spending the night there in worship.

This will be the first time that I celebrate Maha Shivaraatri as all the other times I've either not known when it was or been too caught up with work to do it.

I'm both super excited and super nervous.

c.smith
01 March 2011, 06:30 AM
Pretty much the same here. Fasting all day and night except water, attending mandir throughout the day for puja, abisheka, japa, etc and hopefully staying from midnight until 6AM. I also plan on making some personal vows if I get a chance to speak with the pandit today and he is able.

This is my favorite time because it is so rich with meaning, especially on a personal level.

Happy Shivratri - May Shiva bestow his blessings upon the HDF members.

Om Namah Sivaya!

NayaSurya
01 March 2011, 08:18 AM
I am full fasting and offering my meals up to Beloved Shiva. There is always singing to Shiva all day...but I think if it gets warm enough I will open the windows as I go to clean the whole meditation room out from corner to corner to prepare for this special time. It's been a while since we saw this beautiful sunshine.

Because my husband is still recovering from double pneumonia, I am going to do the mantras for him too...I do not think it would be healthy for him to fast or stay up.

Believer
01 March 2011, 08:42 AM
I am full fasting and offering my meals up to Beloved Shiva. There is always singing to Shiva all day...but I think if it gets warm enough I will open the windows as I go to clean the whole meditation room out from corner to corner to prepare for this special time. It's been a while since we saw this beautiful sunshine.

Because my husband is still recovering from double pneumonia, I am going to do the mantras for him too...I do not think it would be healthy for him to fast or stay up.
Impressed with your dedication/devotion to Lord Shiva.
May he bestow good health on your husband.

Ganeshprasad
01 March 2011, 09:13 AM
Pranam all

It is good to Fast, the full Fast, as this body grow older it becomes more difficult, i leave it up to his grace, fast as long as i could. Chant the names as much as poss, may he bless us all.

by the way when is the actual day, many i know will celebrate on the 2nd and the 3rd march.

Jai Shree Krishna

Sahasranama
01 March 2011, 10:37 AM
Pranam all

by the way when is the actual day, many i know will celebrate on the 2nd and the 3rd march.


Believer posted this link for ekadashi calculations. Here you can give your location and it will calculate the days of the festivals: http://www.purebhakti.com/resources/vaisnava-calendar-mainmenu-71.html

Where I live (Netherlands) it is on the 3rd of March (Thursday).

Alpha108
01 March 2011, 12:28 PM
I will be fasting and eating nothing. And I do hope to join the live webcast as mentioned below.
OM Shanti,
Alphanso.

Celebrate Shiva Ratri March 3, 2011, from 5:00 PM.
We invite you to sing the Shiva Sahasranam, Rudrastadyayi, with kirtan and continuous homa throughout the night. There will be chanting Shiva's 1000 names and the Rudri at the fire, and chanting 10,000 of Shiva's mantra, and performing kirtan and dancing all night.
Join us in the Temple or watch our live webcast at http://www.shreemaa.org/broadcasts.

sunyata07
01 March 2011, 04:21 PM
Namaste,

Glad to see I'm not the only one looking forward to Shivaratri! I am always encouraged when I read the plans of other members here, and I am in serious awe of many of you in the level of your devotion. I plan to do a proper food fast this year, and basically will be conducting puja at home and holding an all night vigil for the Blessed Lord. May Lord Shiva bless us all and bring us closer to Him.

Om namah Shivaya

Eastern Mind
01 March 2011, 04:45 PM
Vannakkam:

Our temple has pujas at 7, 12, 3, and 6. We will go to the 7PM one, and stay awhile longer after probably until 10 or so..may stay longer yet... as I age, I find it hard to stay up all night. Still it will be an austere time. I'd wish everybody a 'happy' Sivaratri, but I think a 'blissful' Sivaratri would be more appropriate. "Happy' on such an inner occasion seems contradictory.

Aum Namasivaya

kd gupta
01 March 2011, 08:52 PM
I am full fasting and offering my meals up to Beloved Shiva. There is always singing to Shiva all day...but I think if it gets warm enough I will open the windows as I go to clean the whole meditation room out from corner to corner to prepare for this special time. It's been a while since we saw this beautiful sunshine.

Because my husband is still recovering from double pneumonia, I am going to do the mantras for him too...I do not think it would be healthy for him to fast or stay up.
My pranam to you nayasurya , and my pranam to everyone ,who has got such a wife with devoted soul .
aum namah shivay

Yogkriya
02 March 2011, 01:27 AM
All brothers,
Please accept my best wishes for MAHASHIVRATRI dedicated to the Lord of all cosmic manifestation Lord Shiva!!
Hara Hara Hara Mahadev!!

OM NAMAH SHIVAYA!!

anatman
02 March 2011, 01:29 AM
Har har MAhaDeV!!

upsydownyupsy mv ss
02 March 2011, 01:39 AM
Honestly and seriously, I don't even know what this day is all about (other than its a day to love the lord and learn about him, real devotees do that daily), even though, I'm a devotee of Shiva. :(

Can any1 guide me in this matter please? :o

I'm a devotee of Shiva, but still, never have I fasted and always overslept on this day (I'm a bit embarrassed to say this though) :o .

Oh well, all I know is to recite AUM NAMAH SHIVAYA in my heart, the least that I can do.

giridhar
02 March 2011, 04:28 AM
Honestly and seriously, I don't even know what this day is all about (other than its a day to love the lord and learn about him, real devotees do that daily), even though, I'm a devotee of Shiva. :(

Can any1 guide me in this matter please? :o

I'm a devotee of Shiva, but still, never have I fasted and always overslept on this day (I'm a bit embarrassed to say this though) :o .

Oh well, all I know is to recite AUM NAMAH SHIVAYA in my heart, the least that I can do.

dat alone will do everything for you.. be at it with whole hearted surrender : "Oh thou of infinite golden body, let Thy will happen" !!

HAR HAR MAHAADEV !! JAI EK LING !!

JAI KAALI MAA !!!

Divine Kala
02 March 2011, 09:02 AM
I am a little disappointed with my fellow worshippers tonight as I sit the vigil for Lord Shiva. There is only one other devotee here with me, a young man from Punjab who is very sincere in his worship.

I feel a bit like a fraud to be honest. I don't know the prayers and I have no idea what I should be doing but I made the commitant, both to myself and to Lord Shiva and Ma Parvati, that I would spend the night at the temple. If it's not spent entirely in sincere worship, at least I have tried, right? I'm surely doing better than the temple priests! They've gone to bed!

NayaSurya
02 March 2011, 09:14 AM
We who do not have a temple will stay with you. Shivaratri do not begin for me till Thursday according to calendar. So I can be here to keep you company<3


Here is my favorite-


~
Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra

Om Tryambakam Yajamahe
Sugandhim Pushtivardhanam
Urvarukamiva Bandhanan
Mrityor Mukshiya Maamritat



~We Meditate on the Three-eyed reality
Which permeates and nourishes all like a fragrance.
May we be liberated from death for the sake of immortality,
Even as the cucumber is severed from bondage to the creeper.

My favorite version is by Shankar Sahney

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0POEKc5WB0


Hari Om Namah Shivaya!<3

Eastern Mind
02 March 2011, 09:24 AM
I am a little disappointed with my fellow worshippers tonight as I sit the vigil for Lord Shiva. There is only one other devotee here with me, a young man from Punjab who is very sincere in his worship.

I feel a bit like a fraud to be honest. I don't know the prayers and I have no idea what I should be doing but I made the commitant, both to myself and to Lord Shiva and Ma Parvati, that I would spend the night at the temple. If it's not spent entirely in sincere worship, at least I have tried, right? I'm surely doing better than the temple priests! They've gone to bed!

Vannakkam: That happens here too. You are no fraud! Its a wonderful opportunity to embrace your will. But now I am wondering..did you take your laptop, or you have a phone there to post with.

Aum Namasivaya

Divine Kala
02 March 2011, 09:32 AM
I have a phone here with me, EMji and I only hope the battery can hold out until morning! Perhaps I will stay to see Ma Durga woken up? (She has gone to sleep, apparently.)

Shiva, on the other hand, never sleeps and the yoni is Ma Parvati so she does not sleep either. I pray that they are watching over us tonight.

charitra
02 March 2011, 10:20 AM
I am a little disappointed with my fellow worshippers tonight as I sit the vigil for Lord Shiva. There is only one other devotee here with me, a young man from Punjab who is very sincere in his worship. They've gone to bed!

Namaste DK,
millions are keeping a shiva rathri vigil and are fasting and keeping awake allnight in many lands.I just called India.You can explore some 24x7 radio channels for bhajans/kirtans, i think the one below probaly works.
http://wisdomspeak.org/bhajan/

Please also go to raaga.com and look for devotional box on the left side of screen, some tunes are very inspirational. For visuals you can browse some online free indian TV channels; one can witness the colorful shivarathri celebration clips periodically beamed on new only channels. Like TV9 etc. :D Shanti.

PARAM
02 March 2011, 11:03 AM
Upvas, is a great tool of Bhakti on specific days, but is it right to tell others that I am fasting ?

smaranam
02 March 2011, 03:21 PM
Honestly and seriously, I don't even know what this day is all about (other than its a day to love the lord and learn about him, real devotees do that daily), even though, I'm a devotee of Shiva. :(

Can any1 guide me in this matter please? :o

Namaste UpsyDowny,

:)

That's fine. The wedding of Lord Shiva and Uma, (Devi PArvati) took place on this night, hence MahAShivrAtri, and of course has a very high symbolic significance - people who know more about Shiva will tell you. In a prior birth She was Sati, and the Daksha story - how she jumped into the burning pyre, so when she came back as daughter of Himavan (Gauri), she performed austerities and the wedding of Shiva and Uma took place.

http://www.barsanadham.org/festivals-shivratri.html
(Read Shri Swamiji''s Shivratri msg)

There is a story about a hunter and how he attained Shiva's grace on MahAshivrAtri accidentally... he climbed a tree to protect himself from wild animals on ground thus going on an involuntary fast.... i don't quite remember.
Here is the story from Mahabharat:
Spiritual Significance: http://www.mamandram.org/shiva/spiritual-significance-of-mahashivratri.html




I'm a devotee of Shiva, but still, never have I fasted and always overslept on this day (I'm a bit embarrassed to say this though) :o .

You are His baby, so Lord Shiva wants to pamper you :) If you are waking up to this that again is Shiv-PArvati's blessing.

Jai Gopeshwar MahAdev
smaranam

saidevo
02 March 2011, 09:31 PM
Here is a quiz on Shiva:
http://brahmins.makeforum.net/t1217-quiz-on-bholenath

Divine Kala
03 March 2011, 12:02 AM
Saidevo ji, you need to have an account on that forum to be able to view the quiz. Perhaps you could copy and post it here?

As for me, I made it through Maha Shivaratri and out the other end. I must say it was absolutely petrifying driving home so tired afterwards but Shiva and Parvati Ma watched over me and I got home safely. It was a beautiful night but I think I want to see how it is celebrated in India in a Shiva temple with masses of others maintaining the vigil with me.

saidevo
03 March 2011, 01:31 AM
namate Divine Kala.

It seems that the quiz in that form is taken from here:
http://www.proprofs.com/quiz-school/story.php?title=hb-quiz-on-bholenath

Just type a name and then take the quiz. All the best!

Eastern Mind
03 March 2011, 07:10 AM
Saidevo ji, you need to have an account on that forum to be able to view the quiz. Perhaps you could copy and post it here?

As for me, I made it through Maha Shivaratri and out the other end. I must say it was absolutely petrifying driving home so tired afterwards but Shiva and Parvati Ma watched over me and I got home safely. It was a beautiful night but I think I want to see how it is celebrated in India in a Shiva temple with masses of others maintaining the vigil with me.

Vannakkam Divine Kala: Glad you made it home. At our temple, being a Wednesday weekday night, there were only about 100 people at the main puja at 7. Very diverse crowd though, as lovers of Siva come from all walks and areas of India. My wife and i went home around 9, but it seemed 20 or so were staying on until midnight. The energy was scintillating. It had been 29 years since the lingam was installed and consecrated.

Aum Namasivaya

Eastern Mind
03 March 2011, 07:17 AM
namate Divine Kala.

It seems that the quiz in that form is taken from here:
http://www.proprofs.com/quiz-school/story.php?title=hb-quiz-on-bholenath

Just type a name and then take the quiz. All the best!

Vannakkam: I got 70%. I wonder what the other 30% of me is. Just plain wrong?

Aum Namasivaya

Alise
03 March 2011, 09:41 AM
Namaste,

This year I really did try to celebrate Maha Shiva Ratri. Even though, there were 2 celebrations in capital city (30-40 minutes away from home), I talked with my mom & decided that this year I'm not ready. So I decided to celebrate at home.
I did a lot of things I usually don't do. I gave up things I usually do. All day I was getting ready for it (I even wrote ~6 pages on how to do puja with pen & my hand was hurting but I still feel great) & looking back now, I was more devoted during day, when I did a lot just for Lord Shiva. I stayed up only until 1 AM, probably it would be different, if I would have had computer & could just watch streams & so on. But I somehow I know that the most important thing is that I tried & whole day & even now I have fantastic feeling.
As for fasting I did it for about 24 h, started to use water after 10 PM (after I did puja & I did a lot of mistakes, but I still felt devoted & humble then). I broke the fast too fast (because of heavy food), my body felt awful but I felt great. I have 2 celebrations this week too.
Tomorrow I'll be already 17 & I know - next year - next Maha Shiva Ratri, I will be more mature & I will attend celebration & know so much more.

For the first time, it was amazing.

Sorry for writing in such details.

Have a wonderful life,
~Alice

c.smith
03 March 2011, 01:11 PM
I attended Shivratri at my usual mandir and sat for my first Maha Puja at the request of the two priests who have taken me under their wings. Although the rest of the temple members speak gurgarati, they welcomed me with open arms and do their best to accommodate as far as possible. Some things were explained by a few members in english, a few were explained only by gestures or by watching others. I gained a lot of insight into the rituals and how to worship my God - Lord Shiva. I know a few things myself, especially what I've been able to learn from books, simply by doing what comes naturally from the heart, and by the grace of members in this forum. I am eternally grateful to all.

Words can't say enough how much my love and devotion has increased for my Lord. I've had the best Shivratri yet and look forward to another year of worship and the celebration next year.

Om Namah Sivaya!

sunyata07
03 March 2011, 04:01 PM
Namaste,

Glad to hear everyone had a wonderful Shivaratri. I know that I immensely enjoyed mine.

Forgive me, Oh Shiva, my three great sins!
I came pilgrimage to Kashi forgetting that You are omnipresent.
In thinking about You I forgot that You are beyond thought.
In praying to You I forgot that You are beyond words.
- Adi Shankaracharya

Om namah Shivaya

giridhar
09 March 2011, 09:37 PM
Namaste,

This year I really did try to celebrate Maha Shiva Ratri. Even though, there were 2 celebrations in capital city (30-40 minutes away from home), I talked with my mom & decided that this year I'm not ready. So I decided to celebrate at home.
I did a lot of things I usually don't do. I gave up things I usually do. All day I was getting ready for it (I even wrote ~6 pages on how to do puja with pen & my hand was hurting but I still feel great) & looking back now, I was more devoted during day, when I did a lot just for Lord Shiva. I stayed up only until 1 AM, probably it would be different, if I would have had computer & could just watch streams & so on. But I somehow I know that the most important thing is that I tried & whole day & even now I have fantastic feeling.
As for fasting I did it for about 24 h, started to use water after 10 PM (after I did puja & I did a lot of mistakes, but I still felt devoted & humble then). I broke the fast too fast (because of heavy food), my body felt awful but I felt great. I have 2 celebrations this week too.
Tomorrow I'll be already 17 & I know - next year - next Maha Shiva Ratri, I will be more mature & I will attend celebration & know so much more.

For the first time, it was amazing.

Sorry for writing in such details.

Have a wonderful life,
~Alice


Now, that was a wonderful msg !!! Giving up things one does & doing things one does not usually do - sounds superb & genuine !!

THis in itself is a great step taken by you on the path. Never mind, the mistakes in puja & that u cudnt stay awake.. He loves His children making mistakes :) . Spirit is more important.