Maha Shivaratri falls on the 13th day of Krishana Paksha
of Maagha Maasa (February-March). It is a night of fasting and prayer in
honour of Lord Shiva in His aspect of destroying sins and bad things. The
night is called Shivamaya, i.e. a night to spend with thoughts of Lord Shiva.
As the Lord of the universe He is full of compassion and only punishes out
of Love and for the good of mankind. It is on this great night that Lord
Shiva redeems the world. He swallows poisons and sins to save His devotees.
During this holy night the devotees of Lord Shiva fast, meditate, pray and
sing the glory of the Saviour. Whatever is offered to Lord Shiva with devotion
is pleasing to Him. On this night He showers blessings abudantly.
The Symbol
of Lord Shiva, is the Shiva Lingam, it is a form to represent the formless
and it is worshiped with great splendour during Maha Shivaratri. This Lingam
is the symbol of the one who is All - Pure, All -Perfect, All - Bliss; Lord
Shiva. When contemplated with adoration it becomes a mirror of the soul.
It becomes a cosmic window that opens to allow the devotees to touch the
All - Pure One.
The
Shiva Lingam in the Ashram was found many years ago and named Sachchidanandishwara
by Sri Swamiji. During Maha Shivaratri the devotees themselves can do water
abishekam to this Lingam with water collected from the holy rivers of India.
It is followed by Ekadasha Rudrabishekam (pouring different ingredients
on the sacred Lingam: milk, honey, ghee, curds, coconut water, sugar, flowers
and bay leaves). Beautiful decoration of the Lingam with flowers, vibhuti,
sandalpaste, turmeric, kumkum, rudrakshas, butter etc. crown the abishekas.
Everything has a deep meaning. During the ceremonies you can hear the huge
crowd of devotees chanting the famous Shiva-mantra:
After performing Agni puja, His Holiness brings out
Shivalingams and other forms of deities from the fire pit, which are the
prasadam (gifts) of Lord Agni. These sacred objects provide the basis for
Sri Swamiji's predictions and advice to His devotees for the coming year,
as well as His long term forecasts. 
During the celebrations
special music concerts are rendered by highly reputed musicians. After midnight
Sri Swamiji Himself sings Bhajans in honour of Lord Shiva. In between he
plays Meditation and Healing tunes on His synthesizer and gives discourses
about the attributes of Lord Shiva, His Omnipresence, His Omnipotence and
His Omniscience.