Time & skyThe 14th night of the waning moon in Phalguna
Maha Shivaratri
The great night of Shiva, kept awake in prayer.
Try it at home
Chant Om Namah Shivaya or the Mahamrityunjaya mantra in the evening. Keeping a full night vigil and fast is optional; rest and eat if you need to.
Optional, as always. Adapt it to your family, region and health.
The wisdom
The yearly night of Shiva, in late winter, kept with fasting, chanting and offerings to the Shiva lingam through the four watches of the night. A smaller Masik Shivaratri falls every month.
Staying awake in prayer is a vow of attention: a night spent turning inward instead of sleeping.
What the evidence says
Evidence: TraditionalThe value rests on lived tradition and reasoning, not on tests.There is no research on Shivaratri itself. Missing a night's sleep affects mood and attention the next day, and fasting carries the usual cautions. Its spiritual meaning is a matter of faith.
How we rate evidenceSignificance
What it means to the people who keep it. Faith-based meaning is described as belief, not as proven fact.
Traditions hold it as the night Shiva performed the cosmic dance, or the night of his marriage to Parvati. Temples stay open all night.