Mandi, Feb 18 (IANS) The week-long Mahashivratri celebrations began in this Himachal Pradesh town Wednesday with religious fervour.
The centuries-old festival is celebrated with a difference in this town, popularly known as Chhoti Kashi, as it sees the congregation of over 150 hill "gods and goddesses". The Mahashivratri festivities ended in other northern states Tuesday.
"Over 200 deities have been sent invitation to participate in Mahashivratri. Around 120 of them have arrived and others will join the festivity in a day or two," Deputy Commissioner Sandeep Kadam, chief organiser of the festival, told IANS.
The festivities will continue till Feb 24.
Like the week-long Kullu Dussehra festivities, Mandi's Mahashivratri also sees a congregation, in which there are both divine and temporal aspects.
The tradition of celebrating Mahashivratri began in 1526 when the town was founded during the rule of Ajbar Sen. He "invited" all local deities to mark the founding of the new town.
During the first day of the festival, Lord Madho Rai, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu and the chief deity, leads the procession.
The assembled deities follow him in beautifully decorated palanquins, as per protocol, amid beating of drums and playing of "shehnais" and assemble at the Bhutnath temple here.
Three such processions, locally called "Jaleb", would be taken out on the opening, middle and concluding days of the festival, organisers said.
Mandi, located on the Chandigarh-Manali national highway-21, is dotted with more than 80 temples built in typical hill architecture.
The prominent temples are those of Bhutnath, Triloki Nath, Jagannath, Tarna Devi and Jalpa Devi.
The rulers of Mandi state were devotees of Lord Shiva.
Legend has it that ruler Sen (1499-1534) saw in his dreams a cow offering milk to an idol of Lord Shiva. His dream became a reality.
This prompted the ruler to construct a temple in 1526 - the Bhutnath temple - dedicated to Lord Shiva.
The foundation of Mandi town was laid at the same time, and Sen later shifted his capital here.
Since then, the annual assembly of deities from hundreds of village temples has become a tradition.
After the abolition of princely states, the administration has been inviting the deities.
Hackers use Social Media to plan major attacks
Kolkata, March 7 (IANS) The rapid expansion of social media has enabled hackers to closely cooperate and group with each other to launch measured attacks, an industry expert said here on
Elina Svitolina: Two big upsets at Wimbledon Svitolina, who became a mother in October, defeated No. 1 Swiatek; Pegula also came out
Tuesday (July 11) saw two major upsets at the Wimbledon Open. World number one women's player and top seed Inga Swiatek of Poland is out. At the same time, America's fourth seed Jessica Pegula has
Russia Ukraine War: Russia fired more than 120 missiles on Ukrainian cities, Ukrainian missile fell in Belarus
Ukrainian officials allege that Russia Thursday fired more than 120 missiles at other cities including the capital Kyiv and Kharkiv. These included air- and sea-launched long-range guided cruise
Bigg Boss 17: Munawar Faruqui was left behind even after winning, this losing contestant earned more from Bigg Boss than the winner
Contestants put their heart, mind, and soul into winning Bigg Boss 17. However, in the end, Munawwar Faruqui won and became the winner of this season, but a defeated contestant has gone ahead of him.
Karnataka: BJP MLA bursts lockdown rules, biryani party on birthday
BJP MLA M Jayaram in Turuvekkar in Tumkur district in Karnataka celebrated his birthday with a loud hoisting of the lockdown rules issued in the country to prevent the infection of corona virus. Here
In 24 hours, 63,294 reports came corona positive, no country in the world got so many patients; Home delivery of alcohol will resume
In the last 24 hours, 63 thousand 294 new corona patients have been found in Maharashtra. There were not so many cases reported anywhere in the world on Sunday. Countries like America, France, and
Will America jump into the Israel-Hamas war? Warned to Iran and Hezbollah - US will give a befitting reply if Israel is attacked
One month was completed in the Israel-Hamas war. Military action is being taken continuously by Israeli troops against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. It has been said by America and Israel that this war
Rule Change: Changes are going to happen in these rules from today, know what will be the effect on your pocket?
New Rule From November: On November 1, many big changes are going to happen in the country, which is going to have a direct impact on the pocket of the common man. In such a situation, it is important
Major decisions on loudspeakers in Maharashtra: Now approval is necessary for loudspeakers at religious places; Hanuman Chalisa banned near mosque in Nashik
An important decision has been taken between Maharashtra Navnirman Sena and the ongoing tussle in the government on Ajan and Hanuman Chalisa in Maharashtra. The government has ordered that before
'Sacrament is not attained by taking a dip in Sangam', Sri Sri Ravi Shankar gave a big statement; also said this on Hindu Marriage Act.
Art of Living organized a spiritual confluence in Jind's Sector 7-A on Tuesday. During this, religious leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar gave a message to save crops and breed. Representatives of farmers
