JYOTRILINGA

JYOTRILINGA

A Jyotirlinga or Jyotirling or Jyotirlingam is a shrine where Lord Shiva, an aspect of God in Hinduism is worshipped in the form of a Jyotirlingam or "Lingam of light." There are twelve traditional Jyotirlinga shrines in India.
It is believed that Lord Shiva first manifested himself as a Jyotirlinga on the night of the Aridra Nakshatra, thus the special reverence for the Jyotirlinga. There is nothing to distinguish the appearance, but it is believed that a person can see these lingas as columns of fire piercing through the earth after he reaches a higher level of spiritual attainment.

The names and the locations of the 12 Jyotirlingas are mentioned in the Shiva Purana (Śatarudra Saṁhitā,Ch.42/2-4). These shrines are:

1	Somnath		Gujarat	Prabhas  Patan, Saurashtra
2	Mallikārjuna		Andhra Pradesh	Srisailam
3	Mahakaleshwar		Madhya Pradesh	Mahakal, Ujjain
4	Omkareshwar		Madhya Pradesh	Island in the Narmada River, Omkareshwar
5	Kedarnath		Uttarakhand	Kedarnath
6	Bhimashankar		Maharashtra	Bhimashankar
7	Kashi Vishwanath		Uttar Pradesh	Varanasi
8	Trimbakeshwar		Maharashtra	Trimbakeshwar, Near Nashik
9	Vaijyanath		Jharkhand	Vaidyanath
10	Nageshvara		Gujarat	Jageshwar
11	Rameshwar		Tamil Nadu	Rameswaram
12	Grishneshwar		Maharashtra	Near Ellora, Aurangabad district

WHY TO CELEBRATE MAHA SHIVARATRI?

Maha Shivratri, the night of the worship of Shiva, occurs on the 14th night of the new moon during the dark half of the month of Phalguna (Feb / March) when Hindus offer special prayer to the lord of destruction.

Here're three reasons to celebrate Shivratri:

1. The absolute formless God, Sadashiv appeared in the form of "Lingodbhav Moorti" exactly at midnight on Maha Shivratri. That is why all Shiva devotees keep vigil during the night of Shivratri and do "Shivlingam abhishekham" (coronation of the phallic idol) at midnight.

Did You Know?

God in his manifestation as Vishnu made his appearance as Krishna at Gokul at midnight, 180 days after Shivratri, commonly known as Janmashtami. Thus, the circle of one year is divided into two by these two auspicious days of the Hindu Calendar.

2. Lord Shiva was married to Devi Parvati on Shivratri. Remember Shiva minus Parvati is pure 'Nirgun Brahman'. With his illusive power, (Maya, Parvati) He becomes the "Sagun Brahman" for the purpose of the pious devotion of his devotees.

3. It is also believed that on Shivratri, Lord Shiva became 'Neelkantham' or the blue-throated by swallowing the deadly poison that came up during the churning of "Kshir Sagar" or the milky ocean. The poison was so deadly that even a drop in His stomach, which represents the universe, would have annihilated the entire world. Hence, He held it in His neck, which turned blue due to the effect of poison. Shivratri is therefore also a day of thanksgiving to the Lord for protecting us from annihilation.

The 14th shloka of Shivmahimna Stotra says: "O three eyed Lord, when the poison came up through the churning of the ocean by the gods and demons, they were all aghast with fear as if the untimely end of all creation was imminent. In your kindness, you drank all the poison that still makes your throat blue. O Lord, even this blue mark does but increase your glory. What is apparently a blemish becomes an ornament in one intent on ridding the world of fear."

Om Namah Shivaya ! Shivaya Namah Om !