Maha Shivaratri, the Great/Grand Night of Lord Shiva is being celebrated this Wednesday, the 3rd of March, 2011, in Mauritius and worldwide. This auspicious festival is celebrated in a grand way each year on the Krishna Paksha Trayodashi/Chaturdashi in the month of Phalguna (according to the Hindu Calendar).

That is, Maha Shivratree is observed on the 13th / 14th moon day and night on the moon’s diminishing phase in the month of February/March. In fact, on a small scale, Shivratree is celebrated every month on the Krishna Paksha (dark half of the moon) Trayodashi/Chaturdashi (13th/14th moon day) and this is known as Masik Shivratree. Ultimately, there comes the large-scale celebration of the festival, known as Maha Shivratree.

The History of Mahashivratri

There are several legends and stories which relate to the celebration of this festival. Some people believe that Maha Shivratree marks the wedding ceremony of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. Others believe that, it was on this day that Lord Shiva consumed the pot of poison that emerged during the Samudra Manthan, to protect the world.
While yet others believe that it was on this day that Lord Shiva came out of the Shiva Linga declaring himself as the most powerful since neither Lord Vishnu nor Lord Brahma could measure its length after the challenge set before them in order to settle their argument about who is more powerful.
With this, we wish all believers a very Pious Maha Shivaratri. You might also wish to have a look at some of these past articles related to Mahashivratri