Maha Shivarathri is a very auspicious Vedic festival when Lord Shiva’s birthday is traditionally celebrated. Although Lord Shiva is associated with ‘destroyer,’ we view the God as a transformer because it is through transformation that change happens.
Maha Shivarathri is a very auspicious Vedic festival when Lord Shiva’s birthday is traditionally celebrated. Although Lord Shiva is associated with ‘destroyer,’ we view the God as a transformer because it is through transformation that change happens.
Worship of this high god, Lord Shiva, and praising him in his multiple forms can bring about change in the areas of health, happiness, prosperity and more!
The significance of this ceremony and worship of Lord Shiva will bring blessings to create fortune in life. Abundance of love in relationships, enlightenment, good health and endowments in activities are just some of the many graces that Lord Shiva will give to those that propitiate him.
One way to show veneration towards Lord Shiva is through the bathing ceremony, or abhisheka, using milk, yogurt, honey, sugar and ghee with a fire ceremony (Rudraabhisheka homa, Pasupata mantra, and jyotirlinga), and yagya ritual.
This year to honor Lord Shiva’s birthday, the Vedic Yagya Center is preparing a special Pasupata yagya of remedies. Through the Pasupata mantra (an intricate worship of Lord Shiva) one can gain the fulfillment of their desired benefits. This practice of yagya is preached to Arjuna by Krishna in earlier times. With the 169 mantras in Rudra, we will summarize those specifically desired mantras and anoint Shiva. Even though this is a very powerful format of worship on its own, its powers are amplified during the day of Sivaratri, causing the participant/sponsor to gain results much more quickly. Hence, Pundit Samavedula is recommending these special yagyas on the day of Sivaratri.
This year the VYC is doing a Ekadasha Maha Rudra Pasupata Rudraabhisheka havan, homa and yagya starting at 9:00 in the morning for individuals seeking special benefits of:
Health
Prosperity
Success in Business
Wealth
Spiritual enlightenment
Neutralization of negative influences by unwanted negative focuses
Neutralization and success in legal issues
Removal of serious health obstacles and finding the right therapies
In the evening, the center will be offering prayers to Lord Shiva by propitiating the 5 faces and forms of Shiva that represent the 5 elements of nature with shakti of Prakruti and Purusha.
| S | Forms of Lord Shiva: | Representation with elements of Nature: |
| 1 | SADHYOJATA or MAHADEVA– 1st form of Shiva’s face | Earth element |
| 2 | VAMADEVA – 2nd form of Shiva’s face | Water element |
| 3 | AGHORA – 3rd form of Shiva’s face | Fire element |
| 4 | TATPURUSHA – 4th form of Shiva’s face | Wind element |
| 5 | ESHANA – 5th form of Shiva’s face | Sky or Ether element |
The benefits from sponsoring these five special yagyas are:
- Relationships and finding a suitable spouse
- Protection from evil spirits and enemies
- Good health
- Recuperation from illness and health challenges (neutralization of these issues)
- Spiritual growth
- Financial gain
- Success in business and gaining lost wealth and getting rid of blocks to monetary gain