Shivaratri HOLYNIGHT dedicated to Shiva

A large number of naked and quasi-nude sadhus smoking pipes filled with ganja, bhang and dhaturo (marijuana, cannabis etc) are seen on either side of the road leading to the holy temple of Lord Pashupatinath, as it is allowed to be consumed on this day, which is otherwise prohibited by laws.

Ram Sharan Sedhai

Shiva Ratri, the night consecrated to Lord Shiva, occurs on the fourteenth day of the waxing moon in February  or in early March occasionally, like this year for instance. Also known as Moha-, Kala- or Sukha Ratri, the day commemorating the appearance of Lord Shiva in this Himalayan kingdom of Nepal takes place Tuesday, March 12th this year.

It is said that Shiva, the Great God appeared in the bank of the Holy Bagmati River centuries ago and the Temple of Lord Pashupatinath was erected there to secure the holy site.

On this day, Lord Shiva and Shiva Linga, one of his manifestations is worshipped with great veneration. Therefore, for devout Hindus Shiva Ratri is the holiest of the holy festivals, as the Great God, Mahadev, is worshipped in many manifestations. Being the lord of the gods, Shiva is capable of bestowing unlimited prosperity to his worshippers in this world and a blissful life in the next.

Besides its religious importance, it is believed that Lord Shiva, the god of creation, who used to be cold to the living beings, becomes affectionate from this day onwards. As a result, bare plants and trees have new shoots, heralding the coming of spring.

Followers of Hinduism take early morning baths and observe a fast and visit the temples of Lord Shiva in their vicinities and perform pujas, offering oblations and reciting hymns in the appreciation of the Lord right from the morning a day before Shiva Ratri. They light tapers and oil-fed lamps at the temples and stay awake that night.

Tens of thousands of staunch Hindu pilgrims throng the Temple of Lord Pashupatinath, which is considered to be the holiest of all Shiva temples, on the day of Shiva Ratri in Kathmandu. Lord Pashupatinath is one of the forms of Lord Shiva as the preserver of animals.

A large number of naked and quasi-nude sadhus smoking pipes filled with ganja, bhang and dhaturo (marijuana, cannabis etc) are seen on either side of the road leading to the holy temple of Lord Pashupatinath, as it is allowed to be consumed on this day, which is otherwise prohibited by laws. Since ganja or hashish and other narcotic drugs are favourites of Lord Shiva, his followers prefer smoking them at least once a year on this day. Youths also gather around those sadhus in the hope of getting an opportunity of taking a puff of the narcotic drugs.

Not only Nepalis from across the country but also a large number of pilgrims from India come to Nepal on this occasion. The government makes special arrangements in the temple of Pashupatinath and its adjoining areas for the visiting religious tourists every year.

Hindus and especially the Shivites, stream to the Pashupatinath temple on this day and perform a lengthy pujas to please Lord Shiva. As Shiva is the God of Creation or reproduction, worshipping of Shiva Linga, phallus representing one of the manifestations of Lord Shiva, holds special significance on this occasion.

Linga Puran, a religious scripture has it that those who take holy bath one day before Shiva Ratri and perform complex pujas and observe fast staying awake the night and circumambulate the phallus of Lord Shiva and sprinkle the Linga with holy waters on Shiva Ratri, their desires would be fulfilled and would ensure heavenly abode after their death.

Therefore, wherever there is a temple of Lord Shiva, there is a Shiva Linga and an image of a bull, the mount of Lord Shiva. Generally, Shiva Lingas are found based upon a Yoni, the female genital of reproduction, which represents Parvati, his consort. So Shiva Linga is an inseparable part of Shiva temple. However, they may be different in size and style depending upon the availability of suitable stone to carve the phallus.

Legends have it that even those who happen to observe a fast without any religious purpose or unknowingly on this day would also be destined to acquire prosperity in this world and secure their abode in paradise following their demise. It speaks of the immense significance of the festival.

The origin of worshipping of Shiva Linga is very interesting. According to Linga Puran, one day a group of deities including Brahma and Vishnu, two of Shiva’s manifestations and other prominent gods went to see Shiva in Kailash. To their amazement, they found Shiva engaged in lovemaking with his consort and far from being disconcerted, the Great God went on gratifying his sensual desires.

Upon this some of the gods broke into peals of laughter while some grew indignant and cursed Shiva. Later Shiva came to himself from the shameful act and asked his guards who those visitors were and what happened then. His guards told him the naked truth.

Angry Shiva roared, "You evil spirits (addressing to those gods) consider it my double self. Yes, I am the Linga myself and I ordain that men shall offer to it henceforth their sacrifices and worship. Those who pay respects to me under the symbol of Linga shall obtain all the objects of their desires and a place in Kailash, paradise without a fail."

It is believed that it has prompted the followers of Hinduism to worship the Shiva Linga on this occasion in anticipation of fulfilling their desires in this world and securing a place in Kailash after their death.

In the pretext of pleasing the Great God, especially youths resort to mixing the powder of such drugs in sweetmeats and they also take them in their crude form, for the sake of merrymaking. Nowadays, even sweetmeat shops prepare special varieties of sweets to meet the demand on the day of Shiva Ratri.

Likewise, the believers in Hinduism make fires in their localities asking pieces of firewood from people of their neighbourhood, in the name of making fire to keep the Great God warm. In many places, people thus make fire and roast maize, potato, sweet potato and other things and eat them during the night, to keep themselves remain awake.

Unlike other festivals, Shiva Ratri has a touristic importance as well. It gives a chance to foreigners especially the Hindus, who come from India to see the beauty of this Himalayan kingdom and speak of it to their fellow countrymen, which in turn helps in bringing more visitors to the country.

War Against Discrimination

Every month during menstruation, females had to stay outdoors, in a tiny separate airless building known as a chaupadi goth. This was also the same place where they gave births to their children. We asked them what happens if you do not go and stay outdoors during their menstruation days, they said that the God’s would be very angry with them

Dr Rajshree Jha

Today as we celebrate woman’s day throughout the world,  there are many women who do not think there is any cause for celebration. Recently, Accham has come in focus for the deadliest attack by Maoist rebels on government security forces, killing more than a hundred security personnels. This is the most audacious attack since the start of the Maoist people’s war six years ago. But for the women living there, they have been fighting all their lives, the war against discrimination.

Last year in February, GTZ Reproductive Health Project organised a medical camp for the women of Accham, in the 15 bed Mangalsen District Hospital. The camp was held for ten days, along with a workshop for the health workers. No other medical camp was held previously in that region, so women even walked 4 days all the way from Surkhet to get a check up, more than 1,700 women received clinical services. The women were very happy that the medical team comprised of women physicians, and did not seem to mind the long waiting hours in the queues. Those 10 days gave my colleagues and me a rare insight into the lives of women in Accham. Looking from outside, one cannot think how lucky these women are to live in a beautiful place like Accham, all surrounded by so much of natural beauty. During our daily walks above the hills from the hospital, flowering rhododendrons covered the trails and the snow-capped mountains were just breath taking. But as time passed by, we discovered their miserable lives. Every month during menstruation, females had to stay outdoors, in a tiny separate airless building known as a chaupadi goth. This was also the same place where they gave births to their children. We asked them what happens if you do not go and stay outdoors during their menstruation days, they said that the God’s would be very angry with them. They feared that if they did not follow this ritual, natural calamities would occur, they would have barren fields and livestock and attacks by wild animals. So they were scared to break away from traditions. If one was a girl, then she would have to help her mother to do all the household chores, look after the cattle and fetch water, only very few privileged girls could attend school.

After giving birth in a chaupadi goth most of the women had to do heavy physical work, probably that explains the high number of "prolapsed uterus "cases we encountered at the camp (weakening of the pelvic floor muscles, leading to laxicity and descent of the uterus from its normal position), along with short birth intervals, some predisposing factors for this condition. Some were suffering from this condition for more than 15 years, causing problems like difficulty in walking, and ability to do normal daily work and marital disharmony. Women who could not produce babies were not welcomed at social functions, lot of infertile women tended to blame themselves for not being able to produce children, for men it was easy they would take another wife. One female narrated to us her story, her husband had gone to Mumbai to earn some money, and after eight years he came back, looking very weak and sick. She nursed him for about 2 months and he died, he left her with more than just a memory, he left her with the HIV virus. She became a social outcast, once people found out that she was infected with the virus. She told us maybe it is because I was nasty to one family last year, the head of the household also had come back with full blown AIDS, "I told his family members that they should not care for him as he is a sinner, and within seven months my own husband came back infected with HIV." We told her that she did not get infected with HIV because she cursed that family, it was through her husband that she contracted the disease. A heavy price to pay for a spouse infidelity. When will a time come when we will have a gender balance? May be as individuals we cannot do anything about" the peoples war" but we can certainly do something about the war against discrimination of women. So let’s not just celebrate women’s day today for the sake of celebrating. In order to revolutionise our society, we should change our attitudes, be more gender sensitive, and stop this discrimination of women. The above story of Accham is just the tip of the iceberg, everyday, every second a woman, throughout the globe faces discrimination because of her gender. All of us can make a difference, lets start today itself, then we have a real reason to celebrate women’s day.

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