Hindu devotees in thousands are thronging the temples of lord Shiva and worshipping him for well being in their lives. The traditional Shivaratri ritual of raising donations by using rope-blocks to stop vehicles could be seen in most side streets of the capital. Kids are often seen stopping drivers and sometime even pedestrians and allowing them to go only after they are given some money.
The Mahashivaratri festival is celebrated every year on the 14th day in the Krishna Paksha of the month of Falgun in the Hindu Calendar.
The most significant practices on this day are offerings of Bael (Bilva) leaves to the Lord Shiva, fasting and all night long vigil.
Meanwhile, there is long queue of devotees in Pashupatinath temple of the capital, stretching to more than a kilometer.
The Pashupati Area Development Trust (PADT) officials said Wednesday that six main queues have been set up leading to Pashupati temple so that the devotees won't have much problem to pay homage to Lord Shiva. And like in previous years, the PADT has decided not to bar devotees from offering homage to lord Pashupatinath during the visit of the King, Prime Minister or other high-level dignitaries. However, PADT officials said that security in and around the temple has been tightened to check any untoward incidents during the festival and avoid embarrassments like that of last year when unidentified groups had pelted stones at the convoy of King Gyanendra while he was returning from the temple on the day.
The PADT said that nearly 350,000 devotees and about 3,000 sadhus is expected to visit Pashupatinath temple this year. nepalnews.com ag Mar 06 07
