Is Mahashivratri a bank holiday and other such questions are answered here

Mahashivaratri is predominantly a Hindu festival that takes place every year in honour of Lord Shiva. The day is said to mark the day Lord Shiva got married. This day falls right at the end of the winter or just before the arrival of summer, that is usually late February or at the beginning of March. During this festival, prayers are offered to overcome darkness and ignorance in one’s life. In 2020, the auspicious occasion will be celebrated on February 21.

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Is Mahashivaratri a bank holiday?

Yes, Mahashivaratri is a bank holiday. Mahashivaratri is a Hindu festival that honours God Shiva. It is also called as “The Night of Shiva” and is celebrated in a majority of Indian states. Every year, the festival falls on the 14th of the Phalgun month, that also marks the end of the moonless nights. The day correspondences to the months of March and February according to the English calendar. Devotees fast throughout the day and follow several rituals to worship Lord Shiva.

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How is Mahashivaratri celebrated in India?

• The auspicious occasion of Mahashivaratri is celebrated in different ways in different cultures and regions. In the state of Tamil Nadu, the day is spent in the Annamalai temple. Devotees of Lord Shiva partake in a 14-kilometre barefoot walk, known as Girivalam or Giri Pradakshina, around Shiva’s temple located on the top of the hill.
• The town of Mandi hosts the Mandi fair where devotees from all over India come in. It is believed that around 200 Hindu Gods and Goddesses assemble at Mandi on this day.

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• In West Bengal, unmarried women travel to Tarakeswar, a holy place, to offer prayers that are dedicated to seeking an ideal husband.
• Women devotees bathe the Shivaling with milk and offer prayers for the well-being of their sons and husbands. As per the Hindu mythology, Parvati, the wife of Shiva, offered prayers on this day to ward off any evil that may harm her husband. Since then, Mahashivaratri is considered as an auspicious day for women. Devotees decorate the Shivling with garlands and flowers. Fruits and incense sticks are also offered. All these gestures towards Lord Shiva are done in order to protect the world from all that is evil and for the well-being of humanity.

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