look news india
Gwalior, 08 March (HS). Mahashivratri festival of marriage of Lord of Gods Mahadev and Mother Parvati was celebrated with great devotion and pomp in the city on Friday. On this occasion the entire city looked Shivamay. During this time, the Shiva temples of the city echoed with the slogan of Har-Har Mahadev. On Shivaratri, devotees were seen everywhere applying sandalwood paste on their forehead and carrying flowers and water in their hands. Lakhs of devotees stood in long queues for hours to have darshan of Lord Shiva. Only devotees were seen at Shiva temples. In Ayodhya, an atmosphere like the consecration of Lord Shri Ram was seen in the temples of the city. On this occasion, Prasad stalls were set up at various places in the city and potatoes, fruits, thandai and kheer etc. were distributed. On this occasion, a procession of Lord Bholenath was taken out from Gupteshwar.
Accountant of Achaleshwar Mahadev Temple, Virendra Sharma said that on the festival of Shivratri, 4 to 5 lakh people have seen Lord Bholenath in the temple. There was such a crowd of devotees at Achaleshwar Mahadev Temple that the color of the entire road changed due to people walking. From Ghoda Chowk to Shiv Temple, only shaved heads of people were visible.
Devotees started arriving on the festival of Mahashivratri even before 12 o'clock on Friday night. From 12 o'clock in the night the number of devotees increased wildly. The route of traffic passing through Shiva temples was changed from 12 o'clock in the night. On the day of Mahashivratri, a huge crowd of devotees was seen at Shiva temples like Shri Achaleshwar Mahadev Temple, Gupteshwar, Koteshwar, Bhuteshwar, Markandeshwar, Hazareshwar etc. It seemed as if all the devotees had come for the wedding procession of Lord Bholenath. In the afternoon, a Shiva procession took place from the Gupteshwar Mahadev temple, in which devotees of Shiva participated in the guise of ghosts and vampires. Shiv procession was welcomed at every place, when Shiv procession reached Achaleshwar temple, Achaleshwar Mahadev and Gupteshwar Mahadev met. The Kanwadis also offered Kanwar to the Lord along with the chanting of 'Om Namah Shivay'. At various places, Shiva devotees danced to the beats of DJ. Overall the entire city looked Shivamay.
Distribution of fruits, kheer and potatoes: On the occasion of Mahashivratri, stalls of prasad were set up in the streets and roads of the city. Fruits, kheer, potatoes, chips, plums, ice cream, sago khichdi and soft drinks were distributed from these stalls. The devotees also looked very happy after receiving the Prasad and took it to their homes also. Prasad was distributed to the people coming out on the streets of the city by stopping them.
Huge sale of milk, curd, flowers and Belpatra: To please Lord Bholenath, devotees offered milk, curd, flowers and Belpatra to the Lord on the day of Mahashivratri. During this period, these items were sold extensively. The milk dairy operators had also arranged small packets of milk for Abhishek.