“Om Namaha Shivaya”, this ‘panchakshari mantra’ (five-letter sacred word) echoed the spacious and serene prayer hall at the Vedanta Centre in Springfield Lakes. The occasion was the auspicious day of the worship of Lord Shiva on Shivaratri.
On the evening of February 21, devotees started gathering at the Vedanta Centre by 6:30 pm. The vesper service (arati) to Sri Ramakrishna started soon, and Suresh Radhakrishnan filled the hall with sonorous chants from the Vedas and other scriptures about the glory of Lord Shiva. This created a meditative mood. It was followed by Atul Deshpande’s rendering of hymns on Lord Shiva and devotional songs (bhajans) by Nahendran Subramaniam, Shankar Kotha, Unni Nair and others.
Swami Atmeshananda performed worship of Lord Shiva. There is a famous hymn on Lord Shiva which goes thus:
ātmātvaṃgirijāmati: sahacarā: prāṇā: śarīraṃgṛhaṃ
pūjāteviṣayopabhogaracanānidrāsamādhisthiti: |
saṃcāra: padayo: pradakṣiṇavidhi: stotrāṇisarvāgiro
yadyatkarmakaromitattadakhilaṃśambhotavārādhanam ||
The meaning is “Thou art my Self (Ātmā); my intelligence is Girijā (one born of the Himalayas, i.e., consort of Lord Shiva); my life forces, sense-organs, are Your attendants; my body is Your abode (Temple of the Lord); experiencing the objective world is Your worship; my sleep is the state of samādhi; moving about with two feet is circumambulating You, O Lord; all the words and speeches are hymns about You; whatever action I perform, O Lord Shambu, it is all Your worship alone.”
Lord Shiva is present everywhere and in everything. The hymn reminds us that the worship of the Lord should not be confined to temples or special occasions only. It should become a part of our everyday life.
After the formal worship by the Swami, one by one devotees worshipped the symbol of the Lord Shiva – the lingam with milk, curds, ghee, honey, water, bilva leaves and flowers.
The programme ended with distribution of consecrated food (prasad).