Maha Shivaratri

Maha Shivratri or Maha Sivaratri or Shivaratri or Sivaratri (Night of Shiva) is a Hindu festival celebrated every year on the 13th night/14th day in the Krishna Paksha of the month Maagha (as per Shalivahana) or Phalguna (as per Vikrama) 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. In North India and Nepal many people consume bhang lassi, which they believe is lord Shiva's favorite drink.
 

Lord Shiva
Observed by	Hindus in general and Shaivites in particular
Type	Hindu
Observances	Fasting, worship of Lingam

Jyotirlingas

Jyotirlinga symbolises the shrine of Lord Shiv. There are twelve of them " DWADASA JYOTIRLINGAS" at twelve places that are sacred to the Hindus. It is believed that all these twelve Jyotirlingas are "Swayambhus" meaning that they sprung up by themselves at these places and temples were built upon them.

The twelve Jyotirlingas are:-

1. Somnath (Kathiawar, Gujarat) 7. Rameshwaram (Tamil Nadu)
2. Shri-Shailya-Mallikarjuna (Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh) 8. Nageshwar/Naganath (Dwarka, Gujarat)
3. Mahakaleshwar (Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh) 9. Grishneshwar (Ellora, Maharashtra)
4. Omkareshwar/Omkarnath (Madhya Pradesh) 10. Kashi Vishwanath (Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh)
5. Parali Vaijanath/Vaidyanath (Deoghar, Jharkhand) 11. Kedarnath (Uttarakhand)
6. Bhimashanker (near Pune, Maharashtra) 12. Trimbakeshwar (Nasik, Maharashtra)

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maha_Shivaratri



 

 visit: http://www.madurgapuja.com