On the occasion of Maha Shivaratri on Monday, thousands of devotes visited various temples located in the city. People of all ages looked equally enthusiastic about the auspicious occasion. Chants of ‘Har Har Mahadev’ were heard throughout the day. A big crowd of devotees gathered at the oldest temple of the city known as Tapkeshwar temple. The fabled temple witnessed a long queue of devotees since early morning. They queued up in the serpentine lines to offer prayers to Lord Shiva. A large number of youngsters was seen flocking to the temples throughout the day.
Rahul Kamal, a resident of Patelnagar, said, “I keep the fast every year on the day and reach Tapkeshwar temple to offer my prayer to the Lord. The queue seems to be a long one this time. But we must keep patience and must reach the Lord.”
Those present at the temple said that nearly 9000 devotees had come to the temple to pay their obeisance to Lord Shiva. “ The queue started around Sunday afternoon. The number is swelling with time,” said one of them.
Rekha, a resident from Rajpur Road, said, “We keep standing in the line here since 7 o clock in the morning. It is advancing very slowly. But we do not mind. We all have come to seek blessing from the Lord. It is an occasion too to show our gratitude to the Lord who has given us everything we have.”
Many said that the enthusiastic participation of the youth in the city in the celebration is a noticeable feature of the day. “We are particularly devoted to Lord Shiva. He embodies power and simplicity mingled together,” said a young girl found waiting in the queue of the devotees at a temple patiently. Amita Mehra, a devotee, said, “My family celebrates this day with special devotion. However, we celebrate all other festivals. This is the first time that I am doing fast. I am happy being on fast on this auspicious day,” she said.