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Shivaratri
By
Introduction
The Story of King Chitrabhanu
Spiritual Significance of the Ritual
Lord Shiva's Assuarance
This falls on the 13th (or 14th) day of the
dark half of Phalgun (February-March). The name means "the
night of Shiva". The ceremonies take place chiefly at night.
This is a festival observed in honour of Lord Shiva. Shiva
was married to Parvati on this day.
People observe a strict fast on this day. Some devotees
do not even take a drop of water. They keep vigil all night.
The Shiva Lingam is worshipped throughout the night by
washing it every three hours with milk, curd, honey, rose
water, etc., whilst the chanting of the Mantra Om Namah
Shivaya continues. Offerings of bael leaves are made to the
Lingam. Bael leaves are very sacred as, it is said, Lakshmi
resides in them.
Hymns in praise of Lord Shiva, such as the Shiva Mahimna
Stotra of Pushpadanta or Ravana's Shiva Tandava Stotra are
sung with great fervour and devotion. People repeat the
Panchakshara Mantra, Om Namah Shivaya. He who utters the
Names of Shiva during Shivaratri, with perfect devotion and
concentration, is freed from all sins. He reaches the abode
of Shiva and lives there happily. He is liberated from the
wheel of births and deaths. Many pilgrims flock to the
places where there are Shiva temples.
In the Shanti Parva of the Mahabharata,
Bhishma, whilst resting on the bed of arrows and discoursing
on Dharma, refers to the observance of Maha Shivaratri by
King Chitrabhanu. The story goes as follows.
Once upon a time King Chitrabhanu of the Ikshvaku
dynasty, who ruled over the whole of Jambudvipa, was
observing a fast with his wife, it being the day of Maha
Shivaratri. The sage Ashtavakra came on a visit to the court
of the king.
The sage asked, "O king! why are you observing a fast
today?"
King Chitrabhanu explained why. He had the gift of
remembering the incidents of his previous birth.
The king said to the sage: "In my past birth I was a
hunter in Varanasi. My name was Suswara. My livelihood was
to kill and sell birds and animals. One day I was roaming
the forests in search of animals. I was overtaken by the
darkness of night. Unable to return home, I climbed a tree
for shelter. It happened to be a bael tree. I had shot a
deer that day but I had no time to take it home. I bundled
it up and tied it to a branch on the tree. As I was
tormented by hunger and thirst, I kept awake throughout the
night. I shed profuse tears when I thought of my poor wife
and children who were starving and anxiously awaiting my
return. To pass away the time that night I engaged myself in
plucking the bael leaves and dropping them down onto the
ground.
"The day dawned. I returned home and sold the deer. I
bought some food for myself and for my family. I was about
to break my fast when a stranger came to me, begging for
food. I served him first and then took my food.
"At the time of death, I saw two messengers of Lord
Shiva. They were sent down to conduct my soul to the abode
of Lord Shiva. I learnt then for the first time of the great
merit I had earned by the unconscious worship of Lord Shiva
during the night of Shivaratri. They told me that there was
a Lingam at the bottom of the tree. The leaves I dropped
fell on the Lingam. My tears which I had shed out of pure
sorrow for my family fell onto the Lingam and washed it. And
I had fasted all day and all night. Thus did I unconsciously
worship the Lord.
"I lived in the abode of the Lord and enjoyed divine
bliss for long ages. I am now reborn as Chitrabhanu."
The Scriptures record the following dialogue
between Sastri and Atmanathan, giving the inner meaning of
the above story.
Sastri: It is an allegory. The wild animals that the
hunter fought with are lust, anger, greed, infatuation,
jealousy and hatred. The jungle is the fourfold mind,
consisting of the subconscious mind, the intellect, the ego
and the conscious mind. It is in the mind that these "wild
animals" roam about freely. They must be killed. Our hunter
was pursuing them because he was a Yogi. If you want to be a
real Yogi you have to conquer these evil tendencies. Do you
remember the name of the hunter in the story?
Atmanathan: Yes, he was called Suswara.
Sastri: That's right. It means "melodious". The hunter
had a pleasant melodious voice. If a person practices Yama
and Niyama and is ever conquering his evil tendencies, he
will develop certain external marks of a Yogi. The first
marks are lightness of the body, health, steadiness,
clearness of countenance and a pleasant voice. This stage
has been spoken of in detail in the Swetaswatara Upanishad.
The hunter or the Yogi had for many years practised Yoga and
had reached the first stage. So he is given the name Suswara.
Do you remember where he was born?
Atmanathan: Yes, his birthplace is Varanasi.
Sastri: Now, the Yogis call the Ajna Chakra by the name
Varanasi. This is the point midway between the eyebrows. It
is regarded as the meeting place of the three nerve currents
(Nadis), namely, the Ida, Pingala and the Sushumna. An
aspirant is instructed to concentrate on that point. That
helps him to conquer his desires and evil qualities like
anger and so on. It is there that he gets a vision of the
Divine Light within.
Atmanathan: Very interesting! But how do you explain his
climbing up the bael tree and all the other details of the
worship?
Sastri: Have you ever seen a bael leaf?
Atmanathan: It has three leaves on one stalk.
Sastri: True. The tree represents the spinal column. The
leaves are threefold. They represent the Ida, Pingala and
Sushumna Nadis, which are the regions for the activity of
the moon, the sun and fire respectively, or which may be
thought of as the three eyes of Shiva. The climbing of the
tree is meant to represent the ascension of the Kundalini
Shakti, the serpentine power, from the lowest nerve centre
called the Muladhara to the Ajna Chakra. That is the work of
the Yogi.
Atmanathan: Yes, I have heard of the Kundalini and the
various psychic centres in the body. Please go on further; I
am very interested to know more.
Sastri: Good. The Yogi was in the waking state when he
began his meditation. He bundled up the birds and the
animals he had slain and, tying them on a branch of the
tree, he rested there. That means he had fully conquered his
thoughts and rendered them inactive. He had gone through the
steps of Yama, Niyama, Pratyahara, etc. On the tree he was
practising concentration and meditation. When he felt
sleepy, it means that he was about to lose consciousness and
go into deep sleep. So he determined to keep awake.
Atmanathan: That is now clear to me; you certainly do
explain it very well. But why did he weep for his wife and
children?
Sastri: His wife and children are none other than the
world. One who seeks the Grace of God must become an
embodiment of love. He must have an all-embracing sympathy.
His shedding of tears is symbolical of his universal love.
In Yoga also, one cannot have illumination without Divine
Grace. Without practising universal love, one cannot win
that Grace. One must perceive one's own Self everywhere. The
preliminary stage is to identify one's own mind with the
minds of all created beings. That is fellow-feeling or
sympathy. Then one must rise above the limitations of the
mind and merge it in the Self. That happens only in the
stage of Samadhi, not earlier.
Atmanathan: Why did he pluck and drop the bael leaves?
Sastri: That is mentioned in the story only to show that
he had no extraneous thoughts. He was not even conscious of
what he was doing. All his activity was confined to the
three Nadis. The leaves, I have said before, represent the
three Nadis. He was in fact in the second state, namely, the
dream state, before he passed into the deep sleep state.
Atmanathan: He kept vigil the whole night, it is said.
Sastri: Yes, that means that he passed through the deep
sleep state successfully. The dawning of day symbolises the
entrance into the Fourth state called Turiya or
superconsciousness.
Atmanathan: It is said that he came down and saw the
Lingam. What does that mean?
Sastri: That means that in the Turiya state he saw the
Shiva Lingam or the mark of Shiva in the form of the inner
lights. In other words, he had the vision of the Lord. That
was an indication to him that he would realise the supreme,
eternal abode of Lord Shiva in course of time.
Atmanathan: So it appears from what you say that the
sight of the lights is not the final stage?
Sastri: Oh no! That is only one step, albeit a difficult
one. Now think of how the story continues. He goes home and
feeds a stranger. A stranger is one whom you have not seen
before. The stranger is no other than the hunter himself,
transformed into a new person. The food was the likes and
dislikes which he had killed the previous night. But he did
not consume the whole of it. A little still remained. That
was why he had to be reborn as King Chitrabhanu. Going to
the world of Shiva (Salokya) is not enough to prevent this.
There are other stages besides Salokya. These are Samipya,
Sarupya and finally Sayujya. Have you not heard of Jaya and
Vijaya returning from Vaikunta?
Atmanathan: Yes, I have understood now.
When creation had been completed, Shiva and
Parvati went out to live on the top of Mount Kailas. Parvati
asked, "O venerable Lord! which of the many rituals observed
in Thy honour doth please Thee most?"
The Lord replied, "The 14th night of the new moon, in the
dark fortnight during the month of Phalgun, is my most
favourite day. It is known as Shivaratri. My devotees give
me greater happiness by mere fasting than by ceremonial
baths and offerings of flowers, sweets and incense.
"The devotee observes strict spiritual discipline in the
day and worships Me in four different forms during each of
the four successive three-hour periods of the night. The
offering of a few bael leaves is more precious to Me than
the precious jewels and flowers. My devotee should bathe Me
in milk at the first period, in curd at the second, in
clarified butter at the third, and in honey at the fourth
and last. Next morning, he should feed the Brahmins first
and, after performing the prescribed ceremonies, he can
break his fast. O Parvati! there is no ritual which can
compare with this simple routine in sanctity."
Parvati was deeply impressed by the speech of Loid Shiva.
She repeated it to Her friends who in their turn passed it
on to the ruling princes on earth. Thus was the sanctity of
Shivaratri broadcast all over the world.
The two great natural forces that afflict man are Rajas
(the quality of passionate activity) and Tamas (that of
inertia). The Shivaratri Vrata aims at the perfect control
of these two. The entire day is spent at the Feet of the
Lord. Continuous worship of the Lord necessitates the
devotee's constant presence in the place of worship. Motion
is controlled. Evils like lust, anger, and jealousy, born of
Rajas are ignored and subdued. The devotee observes vigil
throughout the night and thus conquers Tamas also. Constant
vigilance is imposed on the mind. Every three hours a round
of worship of the Shiva Lingam is conducted. Shivaratri is a
perfect Vrata.
The formal worship consists of bathing the Lord. Lord
Shiva is considered to be the Form of Light (which the Shiva
Lingam represents). He is burning with the fire of
austerity. He is therefore best propitiated with cool
bathing. While bathing the Lingam the devotee prays: "O
Lord! I will bathe Thee with water, milk, etc. Do Thou
kindly bathe me with the milk of wisdom. Do Thou kindly wash
me of all my sins, so that the fire of worldliness which is
scorching me may be put out once for all, so that I may be
one with Thee-the One alone without a second."
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