Maha Shivaratri is known in Odisha as Jagara, the vigil. Devotees fast through the day and keep awake in Shiva temples, each with a small lamp burning before them. Late at night a great lamp, the Mahadipa, is carried up the outside of the temple tower and set on its summit; only when it has been seen do people break their fast. The largest gathering is at the Lingaraj temple in Bhubaneswar.
The story
Bhubaneswar, the city of the Lord of the three worlds, is called Ekamra Kshetra, and once had several hundred Shiva temples round the Bindusagar tank. Lingaraj, raised in the eleventh century, is Harihara, half Shiva and half Vishnu, and is offered both bel and tulsi.
The night is told as the night of Shiva's wedding to Parvati and of the pillar of light.
ଓଁ ନମଃ ଶିବାୟ
Om, salutations to Shiva
Chanted through the vigil
How the night is kept
- UpabasaA fast from morning, often without water.
- JagaraThe vigil in the temple, with a lamp kept burning by each devotee.
- MahadipaThe lamp raised to the top of the spire towards midnight.
- Bela patraBel leaves and milk are offered to the linga.
Why this date
Maha Shivaratri is the Chaturdashi of the dark fortnight, in the month Odisha's calendar calls Phalguna, on the day that tithi covers midnight.
Maha Shivaratri in other years
| Year | Date | Day |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Sunday | |
| 2027 | Saturday | |
| 2028 | Wednesday | |
| 2029 | Sunday | |
| 2030 | Saturday | |
| 2031 | Thursday |
More Odia festivals
22 MarchDola Purnimaଦୋଳ ପୂର୍ଣ୍ଣିମା
13 FebruaryRatha Saptamiରଥ ସପ୍ତମୀ
11 FebruarySaraswati Pujaସରସ୍ୱତୀ ପୂଜା
14 AprilPana Sankrantiପଣା ସଂକ୍ରାନ୍ତି
15 JanuaryMakar Sankrantiମକର ସଂକ୍ରାନ୍ତି
15 AprilRama Navamiରାମ ନବମୀ
Where to see Maha Shivaratri
In Odisha
- Lingaraj Temple, BhubaneswarOdishaThe Mahadipa is raised on the fifty-five-metre spire before a crowd of lakhs.
- Dhabaleswar, CuttackOdishaA Shiva temple on an island in the Mahanadi, reached by a hanging bridge.
- Kapilash Temple, DhenkanalOdishaA hill shrine reached by more than thirteen hundred steps.
- Gupteswar Cave, KoraputOdishaA natural linga in a limestone cave in the forest.
Across India
- VaranasiUttar PradeshKashi Vishwanath and the wedding procession.
- DeogharJharkhandBaidyanath Dham, the Jyotirlinga nearest to Odisha.
- SrisailamAndhra PradeshThe Jyotirlinga of the south, in the Nallamala forest.