Today, 24th Of Falgun 2072, is Maha Shivaratri in Nepal. Just came back from Chhangchhangdi Temple. Got an amazing feelings worshiping lord Shiva at Chhangchhangdi Temple. I would like to brief you in short about Chhangchhangdi which is situated in Syangja, Nepal.
Chhangchhangdi is a village development committee in Syangja District in the Gandaki Zone of central Nepal. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census it had a population of 3212 people living in 568 individual households.
Chhangchhangdi got its name from Magar language. (Changchang = Sound produced by water; di=Water). According to holi book Swasthani, Chhangchhangdi is the place of Chhayan-Kshetra. After Satyawati died, Lord Shiva carried her dead body until it decayed and finished off in the soil. The buttock of Satyawati dropped in famous place Guheswori whereas last part of Satyawati fell in Chhangchhangdi. At that time Lord Shiva became tired and thirsty so he hit the hill with his arrow and drained water to drink it. Still today in Chhangchhangdi-3 there is the waterfall produced by lord Shiva. Every year many Hindu people come to the temple at various occasions especially on Shivaratri, Thulo-Ekadeshi, etc.
So Chhangchhangdi is good place both as religious and tourism point of view. People are foreign workers in Arabian countries, farmers, businessmen, students, doctors, engineers, army men in Nepal, India and United Kingdom, etc. Changchhangdi is a place of cultural diversity. Brahamin, Kshetriya, Magar, Newar, Dalits, etc. all live in great harmony.The rapid development of Chhangchhandi occurred after restoration of democracy in 2046 B.S. But still Chhangchhagdi awaits a lot of development. Every ward has road, communication and electricity facilities. It has health facility, schools, local youth clubs, aama-samuha, etc. The VDC office lies in Dhavung-thati. River Aandhikhola is border between Changchangdi and Swarek VDC. Dahathum VDC lies at Northeast, Walling Municipality lies at west and southwestern area. Siddhartha highway passes through Chhangchhangdi. Chhangchhangdi got highway connection since more than last 40 years. The first active leader of Chhangchhangdi VDC is Shobha Kanta "Kancha" Poudel. He is famous for fighting selflessly for democracy. Recently there are few emerging leaders in Chhangchhandi. By-Agency.
As you know, Nepal is a land of Festivals. Festivals are not merely the annual spectacles for the Nepalese people. Festivals are a living part of their rich cultural heritage for the Nepalese people. Festivals celebrated in Nepal, effectively bind together the Nepalese people. Although the festivals are of diverse cultural backgrounds and beliefs but unite into one nation.
There are more than 100 festivals in Nepal in a year celebrated by Nepalese people. There are more than 50 major festivals in a year celebrated by Nepalese.
Maha Shivaratri (a celebration of Lord Shiva’s birthday) is an annual Hindu festival popular in both India and Nepal. Of all the many festivals in Nepal this is probably my favorite for many reasons. The temple of Chhangchhangdi is the holy temple of Hindus where thousands of devotees come to pay homage to God Shiva. Maha Shivaratri is one of the most auspicious occasions for all Hindus. The primary being that there are not too many tourists around as it’s usually held in the second or third months of the year which is the end of Winter.
With few tourists around you’ll be surrounded by Nepalese and Indian pilgrims alike making it that bit more special. That said it’s also an extremely crowded festival and one that might not be on the Nepalese map in its current form for much longer.
When is Shivaratri 2072? When is Shivaratri 2016?
Shiva Ratri 2072 B.S. or Shivaratri 2016 AD means same. When is Shivaratri festival 2072? When is Shivaratri festival 2016? Here I give you all the Shivaratri 2072 dates or Shivaratri 2016 dates. The Shivaratri 2071 dates or Shivaratri 2015 dates means same. It's not different. This year Shivaratri Festival 2072 falls in 24th of Falgun 2072 (24-11-2072) or you can say Shivaratri Festival 2016 falls in 7th of March 2016.
Dates for
Shivaratri in
Nepal 2013,
2014 &
2015:
- Shivaratri in 2013 was on Sunday 10th of March
- Shivaratri in 2014 was on Friday 28th of February
- Shivaratri in 2015 was on Tuesday 17th of February
Keep in mind that the dates are largely lunar and can change.
History of Shivaratri
Shiva is the god of the yogis who is self-controlled and celibate. However he is also a lover of his spouse (Shakti/Parvati). Lord Shiva is also known as the destroyer of the world. Shiva is often depicted as being blue due to a poison he drank that could have destroyed the universe. Parvathi tightened a noose around his neck so he could not fully swallow it. So it turned blue.
Shivaratri or Maha Shivaratri means the great night of Shiva or the night of Shiva: it is a festival to celebrate the Hindu deity Lord Shiva.
There are several versions of how and why this festival appeared.
How is Shivaratri celebrated in Nepal today?
Unusually for Nepal rumors and chat about Shivaratri start a week beforehand. I say unusually as the normal thing is to wake up and find out that there’s a festival going on that day.
Advanced notices about festivals are not that common place in Nepal.
Shivaratri is different though as it’s one, if not the most important festival in the entire year. During the week before Shivaratri I noticed a few more Sadhu’s or holy men appear on the streets.
Most have made a walking pilgrimage from India and all around Nepal to visit Pashupatinath Temple in Kathmandu Nepal.
DR Gurung
A Learner
(अज्ञान जस्तो ठूलो शत्रु अरु केही छैन।) 🙏🙏
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