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Tomorrow night is Śivarātri. The constellation calendar is always aligned with the moon and sun. It is interesting that it begins tomorrow with the Śivarātri constellation and continues until the afternoon and evening of the following day. Accordingly, we will have our Śivarātri satsaṅg and abhiṣeka on Thursday. We have made it a prolonged observance because many people wish to come to the āshram and stay. This allows for more prayer to Śiva and to Śrī Devpurījī, from whom we seek blessings. Tomorrow, we will share videos about Śivarātri and about a devotee, illustrating how devotion can manifest and how beautiful it is. They are very nice videos. As usual, we are the hosts and will have many guests, so we shall serve them. It is not that I alone sit in the front while everyone goes behind. Respect is very important; a person must feel welcome. That is extremely important. To those who cannot be here, please send your international blessings for Śivarātri. To all devotees and bhaktas of Śrī Devpurījī and Mahāprabhujī, I send the blessings of Devpurījī on this holy occasion of Mahāśivarātri. I pray to Almighty Sadāśiva Svayambhū—you will remember, yes?—to bless us, forgive all our mistakes and ignorance, and bestow divine grace so we may act and serve accordingly. May our spirituality improve day by day, and may our consciousness merge into the supreme divine consciousness of Sadāśiva. Tomorrow's Śivarātri program will begin at 4:00 or 4:30 PM and last until 9:00 or 9:30 PM. We will have bhajans, some dance, lectures, films, and the abhiṣeka will continue. The observance continues on Thursday afternoon from 9:00 AM for those who could not come in the evening, providing peaceful time for abhiṣeka. On Performing Abhiṣeka In the abhiṣeka, you will use the Mahāmṛtyuñjaya Mantra. What is abhiṣeka? There will be a pot with mixed milk and water. You will fill a neti lotā (a small vessel with a spout) and slowly pour the water over the Śiva Liṅgam through the spout. Mentally or aloud, as you prefer, repeat the mantra. This Mahāmṛtyuñjaya Mantra removes all kleśas (afflictions) and vikṣepas (distractions) from our buddhi (intellect). Śiva is associated with buddhi; when the intellect is purified, it becomes Sadāśivam, it becomes viveka (discernment). Śiva signifies consciousness in its pure state. Śiva means liberation. Śiva is the universal principle. The Śiva Liṅga is the symbol of Svayambhū Śiva, the entire universe. It is a misunderstanding to see it as a gender symbol; that is completely wrong. Śiva is the entire universe. When you perform abhiṣeka, hold the lotā with both hands and chant "Oṃ tryambakaṁ yajāmahe ... " Make your wish—whatever you wish to purify, achieve, be excused for, or anything you desire. This practice grants ātma-śānti, inner peace, which no one else can give; only He and this mantra can. The mantra automatically connects you to that divine source. The feeling with which you do it depends on you. Pray to purify your consciousness, to purify your antaḥkaraṇa (inner instrument). There are also leaves from the bilva tree, sacred to Śiva, but unfortunately, we do not have that tree here. On that day, there is prasāda. You can offer fruits—even carrots—to Śiva. Do not place them directly on the Liṅgam, but beside it. You can bring prasāda, carrots, apples, bananas, sweets, seasonal fruits, or flowers. I suggest we not bring too many flowers; we can take some petals and place them on the Śiva Liṅgam during the abhiṣeka. Perform the abhiṣeka slowly and with real feeling; otherwise, it has no meaning. However, when many people are present, you cannot stand for ten minutes while a long queue waits. As a courtesy to the next person, you may chant the mantra just once: "tryambakaṁ yajāmahe sugandhiṁ ... " Those who wish to perform a longer abhiṣeka should come on Thursday, or arrive a little before 9:00 AM to begin. The water that falls from the Śiva Liṅgam into the collecting pot should later be poured onto trees, not discarded carelessly. Bringing Personal Śiva Liṅgams There is also an option for those who have a Śiva Liṅgam at home: you may bring it and place it on the altar. This area then becomes your Śiva mandir (temple). When it receives abhiṣeka here, your Śiva temple is blessed, having received Śivarātri abhiṣeka. It will carry good vibrations and purification. If many bring their Liṅgams, you should know which one is yours to take home the next day. You may also leave it for just an hour, but it is best to leave it for the whole night. It will be wonderful. Throughout, there will be parallel activities: bhajans, Śivarātri songs, and music. Let us unite in this with Śrī Devpurījī. We are all the dust of Gurudev's feet, and we will ask for his divine blessings. Any questions? Very good, Vandana. Otherwise, this whole podium will be wet. Do not pour water on it. Just leave the items there. When we perform the ceremony for the main temple, everyone participates. It is like when we pray to Mahāprabhujī; if I am performing the āratī, it is accepted by him from all of us. Understand? This is about bhāva—the feeling, the respect. Any more questions? Chetan, do you know something about Śivarātri? Nāgadevatā? We also have him? Yes, the snake deity, Nāgadeva, along with Nandi and the turtle, should all be present. You do not perform abhiṣeka on Nandi; you offer flowers. If you have a stone turtle near the main temple, you can place offerings there too. Gaṇeśa jī must be there, and Pārvatī jī, and Kārttikeya. Then the whole Śiva parivāra (family) is present. However, abhiṣeka is performed only for Śiva jī, in the presence of Kārttikeya (the elder brother of Gaṇeśa jī), Gaṇeśa jī, and Pārvatī. If you do not have an idol of Pārvatī jī, you can use a symbol to represent her. You can even use three stones: this one for Pārvatī, this for Gaṇeśa jī, and this for another. It is not necessary to have the exact form. If you have a proper idol, that is good, but who knows how they appeared in that era? Nowadays, we make nice clothes and apply makeup, and God and Śiva look beautiful. But in that time, there were not so many cosmetics. He had a beard; he was like a wild avadhūta yogī. Times change, and we project our imagination onto how we decorate our God, or it is our organization's tradition. We perform manas kī pūjā (worship in the mind); you can adore or you can neglect. This is about your inner feeling. So Nāg Devatā, the snake, must be there. Sarada, because Vimalapurī brought a Śiva Liṅgam from Assam—a very nice black one—but I do not know if the snake is depicted on it. Even if it is a snake, it is with Śiva, so we do not see its poison; we see its service to Śiva. We will discuss the rest tomorrow. Let us have prayer. --- Recording location: {enclose 20110301_2.mp3}