The festival of 'Mahashivratri' is celebrated as a mark of respect towards Lord Shiva each year.

The festival of Mahashivratri, which literally means the night of Lord Shiva, is universally celebrated by Hindus each year. Lord Shiva forms a part of the Hindu holy Trimurti (trinity of Gods), wherein Brahma is the creator, Vishnu the sustainer and Shiva is the destroyer.

On this day, people from various parts of the country gather at temples of Lord Shiva and sing bhajans (holy songs), offer prayers and recite shlokas in the honor of Lord Shiva.

Occurrence
Mahashivratri is celebrated on the thrathshi or the thirteenth day of the waning moon in the month of Phagun, which is some time in February or March according to the English calendar (14-15 days before Holi, the Hindu festival of color). This year it happens to be on 12^th March.

Legends behind the festival
There are several stories about the origins of this festival.

Dance of creation and destruction
A common belief is that on this night, Lord Shiva is said to have performed the Tandava Nritya or the dance of primordial creation, preservation and destruction. Lord Shiva is said to have been an excellent dancer. In fact, even today some of the Indian classical dancers pray to the Lord, before they begin their performance.

Love, Compassion and Mercy
One of the most popular stories behind the origins of this festival is about a hunter who had gone to the forest to hunt for his family. Just around dusk, after an unsuccessful and tiring day in the jungle, he noticed a pair of deer. And just when he was about to kill them, one of the deer spoke to him and begged for mercy. It said that they had been searching for food throughout the day to feed their young ones. They promised that after they gave the food to their young ones, they would return back to the hunter.

The hunter took mercy and agreed to wait for them. As it was nearing nightfall, fearing predators, the hunter climbed a tree nearby. In order to keep awake all night, he started plucking leaves from the tree and kept throwing them onto the ground. But he didn't realize that underneath the tree was a Shivlingam (the phallic iconic representation of Shiva), on which the leaves were falling. In fact, the Shivlingam is the center of reverence and worship in all Shaivite (Shiva temples.)

The next day, just when the hunter was about to return home feeling cheated, the deer appeared with their offspring. They apologized for being late, and told the hunter that he could kill all of them, as after the death of the parents, the young ones would not be able to feed or protect themselves from other predators. Hearing this, the hunter took mercy on the deer family, and he let them go.

Unknowingly, the hunter had offered his prayers to Lord Shiva by not only showering Him with leaves (while praying Hindus always offer flowers and leaves to the idol of the Gods), but also fasting for a day and letting the deer family go. By offering his prayers to Lord Shiva the hunter had gained the virtues of Lord Shiva of mercy, compassion and love. Thus, it is said that fasting and offering prayers to Lord Shiva on the Mahashivratri day brings an individual closer to the Lord.

Worshipping the all powerful Lord in the night
Another story traces the origin of the festival to the fact that Lord Shiva saved the entire human race and the universe from destruction by swallowing poison. It is believed that the Gods and the demons were churning the Ocean (Sagarmanthan) to obtain amrit (nectar) to stay immortal. In the process they came across many unusual substances, including the deadly poison. As soon as they touched the poison, it exploded into poisonous fumes that threatened to destroy the entire universe. When the destruction of the universe seemed inevitable, the Gods ran for assistance to Brahma and Vishnu, but neither was able to help. At last they ran to Lord Shiva, who swallowed the poison without spilling a single drop. That also explains why Lord Shiva's throat is blue in colour for which he is also called Neel Kanth (the one who has a blue throat) or Vishaapaharana Murthy.

Thus the festival is celebrated in honor of the Lord.

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