Its Shivratri tomorrow. Do you know the story behind it?
Here’s for you the story of the hunter.
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They say that many years ago, in Varanasi, lived a hunter.
He hunted animals and birds every day. That was his way of life. One day, after
having killed a few animals, he decided to head home. It was late and it grew
dark soon. It was too dark to find his way out. So he decided to spend the
night under a tree. As it became darker, he heard the fierce growls of
dangerous animals around. Scared, he climbed up the tree and sat perched on one
of its branches. Gradually, sleep overcame him and he dozed off. But a growl
beneath the tree shook him off his slumber. He decided to stay up the night by
plucking leaves and throwing them down. He did so the whole night. He also shed
a few tears.
The tree on which he sat was a Bilva/Bael tree. And there
was a Shiva Lingam beneath the tree. The leaves that the hunter had dropped,
had fallen on the Shiva Lingam. His tears had also fallen on the Lord. It was
the night of Shiv Chaturdashi and unknowingly the hunter had offered his
prayers to the Lord. The hunter had also gone without food. It was the perfect
offering the Lord could have.
The next morning, the hunter returned home. His wife had
cooked a sumptuous meal for him. But just as he was about to sit down for food,
a Brahmin turned up. The hunter gave his share of his food to the hungry
Brahmin. Brahmin Bhojan (feeding the Brahmin) was thus, performed.
After a few days the hunter died of an illness. Yama sent
his messengers to carry the hunter to Yamlok. But, the Shivdoot (messengers
from Shiva) had also arrived to take their Shiv bhakt (devotee) to Kailash. This led to a quarrel, followed by a
fight between the two parties. The Yama Sena lost the fight and the hunter was
taken to Kailash.
Yama on hearing this story declared ‘Whoever worships
Shiva/Vishnu, observes Shiv Chaturdashi and dies in Varanasi, can never belong
to me’.
This Vrat Katha/Pachali has to be read on Shivratri by all the
devotees.
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