Mahashivratri 2024: Why is Belpatra offered to Lord Shiva? Know the rules of offering on Shivlinga

Today Mahashivratri is being celebrated with great pomp and show across the country. The holy festival of Mahashivratri is dedicated to the worship of Lord Bholenath, the giver of ultimate success. Shiva devotees worship Lord Bholenath on this day and seek his blessings. To please Lord Bholenath, we offer things like milk, curd, honey, ghee, hemp, datura, flowers, fruits belpatra, etc. But the great importance of offering Belpatra has been mentioned in the scriptures. According to Shivpuran, by offering one lakh Bel leaves on Shivalinga, a person achieves all his desired things. Let us know the glory of the Bel tree and the rules for offering it.

glory of the Bilva tree

According to Shivpuran, Bilvavriksha is the form of Lord Shiva. The gods have also praised this tree in the form of Shiva. All the holy places of pilgrimage that are famous in the three worlds reside in the core part of Bilva. The virtuous person who worships the immortal Mahadevji in the form of Linga in the core of Bilva, definitely attains Shivapada. According to Shivpuran, all the holy places of pilgrimage famous in the three worlds reside in the core part of Bilva. The person who worships the immortal Mahadev in the form of Linga at the root of Bilva, definitely attains Shivapada. One who irrigates his head with water near the root of Bilva gets the fruits of bathing in all the holy places and the same being is considered pure on this earth. The person who worships the core part of Bilva with scent, flowers, etc., attains Shivlok, and his happiness and prosperity increase in this world also.

The one who keeps a lamp lit respectfully near the root of Bilva, is filled with spiritual knowledge and merges with Lord Maheshwar. The one who holds the branch of Bilva and removes new Pallavas from it with his hands and offers them on Shivalinga becomes free from all sins. One who serves food to a devotee of Lord Shiva with devotion near the root of the Bilva tree gets multifold virtues. The one who gives food containing kheer and ghee to a Shiva devotee near the root of Bilva never becomes poor. Whoever has the Bilva tree, which is very dear to Lord Shiva, in his house, Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, resided there for generations.

This is why Bel leaves are offered to Lord Shiva

According to the Puranas, when the poison named Kalakoot came out during the churning of the ocean, all the gods and animals started getting worried due to its effect. There was an uproar in the entire universe. The gods and demons prayed to Lord Shiva to protect the entire creation. Then Bholenath placed this poison on his palm and drank it. To protect himself from the effects of poison, he kept it in his throat. Due to which Lord Shiva's throat turned blue, Mahadevji came to be known as 'Neelkanth'. But Bholenath's brain got heated by the intense flame of poison. At such a time, the Gods started pouring water on Lord Shiva to reduce the heat in his brain and also offered Belpatra leaves due to their cool nature. Therefore, Lord Ashutosh showers his blessings on the devotee who worships with Belpatra and water. It is also believed that offering Belpatra to Lord Shiva removes poverty and makes the person fortunate.

Keep these things in mind while offering Belpatra

Only Belpatra with three leaves joined together should be offered to Lord Shiva.

While offering Belpatra to Lord Shiva, it should be kept in mind that its leaves should not be cut or torn anywhere or there should not be any holes in it.

Bel Patra is never considered stale. The Bel Patra offered to Lord Shiva can be washed again and offered again.

Always offer Belpatra to Lord Shiva by touching it upside down i.e. the smooth surface side of the Belpatra.

Always offer Belpatra with the help of ring finger, thumb, and middle finger and offer it to Lord Shiva by holding the middle leaf.

Never offer just Bilva leaves to Lord Shiva, definitely offer a stream of water along with Bilva leaves.

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