On the occasion of the first Monday of the holy month of Shravan (Sawan), large numbers of devotees thronged Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, to participate in the sacred ’84 Mahadev Yatra’. July 14 marked the first Monday (Somwar) of this year’s Shravan month.
Each Shravan Monday holds special spiritual significance for devotees and is considered auspicious for the worship of Lord Shiva, while Tuesdays (Mangalwar) are devoted to Goddess Parvati, Shiva’s divine consort.
Devotees observe fasts, chant Shiva mantras, sing devotional bhajans, and perform Rudrabhishek – the ceremonial bathing of the Shiva Lingam with water, milk, honey, curd etc.
When Lord Shiva vanquished the demon named Dushan in Ujjain, drops of the demon’s blood fell at 84 different spots. At each of these locations, Lord Shiva is believed to have manifested in 84 distinct forms. These places later became known as the 84 Mahadev temples.
According to the Skanda Purana, after wandering through 84 lakh life forms (yonis), a soul is born as a human. It is believed that to be freed from the sins of past lives, one must undertake the pilgrimage (yatra) of the 84 Mahadev temples.
It is said that performing this sacred pilgrimage grants liberation (moksha) to the devotee and frees them from the cycle of 84 lakh life forms.
Earlier on Friday, devotees also gathered at Ujjain’s revered Mahakaleshwar Temple to mark the beginning of Sawan. The sacred Bhasma Aarti – a ceremonial offering of sacred ash – was performed at the Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga Temple, one of the twelve Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva, on the first day of the month.
This year, Sawan began on July 11 and will conclude on August 9.
(With inputs from ANI)