Week-long Mandi Mahashivratri festivities begin


Posted on 18th Feb 2015 01:08 pm by mohit kumar

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.

0 Like 0 Dislike
Previous news Next news
Other news

UPSC Preparation Tips: If you want to go to civil service, then prepare like this without coaching, read important tips

UPSC Preparation Tips: Who does not dream to crack the Union Public Service Commission/UPSC exam?

Coronavirus Updates: Corona cases decreasing continuously in the country, 7,591 new cases came in 24 hours; fewer active patients

There is a steady decrease in the cases of Coronavirus in India. This is the third consecutive da

CBSE-ICSE Examination: Center told Supreme Court- will tell in 2 days, will take the exam this year or not; The court said - the strong reason for the decision will have to be given

Whether or not there will be CBSE and ICSE board exams. It can be decided in 2 days. The central

Kushi Advance Booking: booking of Samantha Ruth and Vijay Deverakonda starrer Kushi started, and will be released tomorrow.

Kushi Advance Booking Open Now: South superstars Samantha Ruth Prabhu and Vijay Deverakonda are i

LIC IPO: 4 big things related to LIC, if you intend to invest in the company's IPO, then first know them

The Government of India on Sunday filed a draft of documents (DRHP) with capital markets regulato

IMD Rainfall Alert: Rainfall in these states, heavy rain warning for next 5 days

Weather Forecast, IMD Rainfall Alert, 5 days Rain: Even though it is not raining in many parts of

Ask CBI to probe Karnataka IAS officer's death

Agartala, March 21 (IANS) The IAS association's Tripura branch on Saturday demanded a CBI probe

Web-based tool to monitor atrocities against Dalits, tribals

New Delhi, March 18 (IANS) Claiming that the government has failed to safeguard the interests o

Modi meets Jinping in Bali: Both leaders shake hands during dinner, separate talks expected

The G20 summit began on Tuesday in Bali, Indonesia. Food and Energy Security were discussed in th

CLAT Registration 2023: Today is the last day for CLAT application, see exam date here

CLAT 2023: The Consortium of National Law Universities has extended the registration deadline for

Sign up to write
Sign up now if you have flare of writing..
Login   |   Register
Follow Us
Indyaspeak @ Facebook Indyaspeak @ Twitter Indyaspeak @ Pinterest RSS



Play Free Quiz and Win Cash