Maha Shivratri 2011

Celebrating Maha Shivratri at the Maheswarnath Mandir, Triolet. Follow-up to previous post, Ganga Talao 2011.
I would also again recommend everyone to go through this highly descriptive post of the pilgrimage by fellow blogger, Yadhav - Journey To The Heart Of Maha Shivaratri In Mauritius

Maha Shivratri, the grand night of Shiva. On this day, the Char Pahar Pooja takes place at 4 different hours of the night & is accompanied by the Abhisheka of the Shivling. This is the culmination of the pilgrimage to Ganga Talao, where the holy water is to be used for the veneration of the Shivling. Before that, pilgrims have to offer morning prayers & pour some of the sacred water they brought back…

 

Reached the temple at around 8am. That’s the ideal time to avoid the long queues.

 

Kanwars carried by Triolet & Trou aux Biches pilgrims were exposed in the yard. I’ll come back to that later on.

 

First, we have to carry out the prayers. I’ve already covered a post on the temple before, so I’m gonna go through it quickly… A tent had been erected to shield off the rain, but there was no need for that as the sun was scorching our backs.

 

What you’re seeing here is people praying one of the two decorative tigers stationed at the entrance…

 

Instead the main temple, the devotees were offering the sacred water to the Shivling.

 

Sunny day, a crowd in colourful clothing, beautiful kanwars & devotional songs over the speakers – an experience to cherish.

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Had to queue up at the Hanuman temple.

 

The Maa Durga temple. The sheer amount of incense sticks used made it impossible to breathe.

 

One thing I’ve noticed is that many people do not know how to pray – they offer water where they shouldn’t (where there isn’t any water outlet), burn camphor needlessly, light up dozens of incense sticks & offer fruits and then leave them there. It’s high time for the temple caretakers (pictured above taking donations) consider putting boards with guidelines on how to pray & what not to do.

 

The reason why there were so many tourists today at the temple was because of the kanwars on display.

 

To say they were beautiful would be an understatement.

 

A kanwarthi.

 

A replica of Mangal Mahadev. Awesome.

 

By the time we finished with the prayers, a massive queue had already been formed.

 

In the parking, refreshments & food were being provided to the devotees. I must point out that all volunteers from all over the island have done a tremendous job selflessly catering for the pilgrims. Keep it up.

 

Briyani (veg obviously) on the left & alouda & ti puri on the right…

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The huge crowd & the queue extending up to entrance as we left the premises.

 

On the other side of the road, trinkets & other religious stuff being sold & also a stand for donations.

 

Further down the road, some less fortunate people were sitting under the sun, waiting for alms. Every year, their numbers just keep increasing. A stark reminder that not everyone has time for god…

 

Related:

• MBC – JT 19h30 (Maheswarnath Temple shown for the first 5 mins)