Saturday 1st March 2003 marked
the celebration of 'Maha-Shivratri' at the Shri Swaminarayan
Mandir in Neasden. The day began with the sacred installation
of Shiva-Lingas beneath the Mandir dome amidst chanting of Shiva
Mahima Stotram by the pious pundits of the Mandir. Every visiting
devotee offered billi-patra on the Shiva-Lingas and rudrabhiskek
was performed with pouring of sacred water and milk in which
the holy rivers of Ganga, Jamuna, Saraswati, Godavari, Kaveri,
etc. were invoked. The atmosphere rang with the divine Shiva
Panchakshara Stotra.
On this auspicious day, maha-puja
and arati were performed in the Haveli in the evening, in which
over 400 aspirants participated. Throughout the day, devotees
had the opportunity of annakut darshan in which 75 different
varieties of 'falahar' items were offered in the shrine of Shiv-Parvati
& Ghanshyam Maharaj.
The ice Shiva-Lingam on display
at the entrance was a great attraction. Amarnath in India has
natural ice Shiva-Lingam and this was a similar replica..
In total, over 8000 devotees participated
in the Maha-Shivratri festival that was celebrated from 7a.m.
to 9.30p.m. In the special assembly held in the evening, the
significance of Shivratri was explained along with the singing
of bhajans dedicated to Shiva. Every visiting devotee was given
prasad and milk.
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