Shravan & the Sacred Energy of Pashupatinath Temple
Today, sees the beginning of the month of Shravan (25th July — 22nd August). In accordance with Vedic traditions, this month is dedicated to Lord Shiva. Lord Shiva helps his devotees to overcome difficulties and obstacles in their lives. Each day of this month is auspicious for worshipping Lord Shiva, and devotees seeking His blessing should recite Shiva mantras with devotion and sincerity.
During my life I have been blessed to visit many powerful Shiva temples throughout India and Nepal. I believe that Nepal is the Spiritual Kingdom of the world, where you have the highest peaks like Mount Everest standing guard, protecting this sacred land. In 1984 I visited Pashupatinath temple in Kathmandu, Nepal. It is situated on the banks of the Bagmati River which is revered by the locals like Mother Ganga.
This site is unique, and once you arrive there you can feel the Divine cosmic energy. It is the oldest temple in Kathmandu. One legend says that Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati stopped at Bagmati on their journey to Kathmandu Valley. Both of them liked the area so much that they decided to spend more time thereby changing themselves into the form of a deer. After some time, people and gods started looking for Lord Shiva. When they found Lord Shiva, he refused to leave the place. Lord Shiva announced that since he has lived in this place in the form of an animal; this place will be called as Pashupatinath; literally meaning Lord of all animals. While walking through the complex of 264 hectares you will see many wild animals roaming freely unharmed.
It is believed that Arjuna prayed to Lord Shiva to grant him the weapon of Pashupati the “Pasupata astra” which is the most destructive, powerful weapon mentioned in Hindu mythology to help him to fight the war in the Mahabharata.
During my first visit I had one of the most amazing spiritual experiences of my life. I was fortunate to meet the Chief priest known as the Mool Bhatta of this temple. He is one of only four priests allowed into the sacro sanctum of the temple where he performs daily puja and prayer to the stone Mukhalinga, which has a silver yoni base bound with the silver serpent. It is one metre high and has faces in four directions. The Chief priest is also the only one permitted to report to the King of Nepal about temple matters.
On this day, the Chief priest asked me where my Janeu was, a sacred white thread worn by Hindu boys . I informed him that as a young Brahmin boy I moved from my village to Delhi, and I missed my opportunity to receive this scared thread, and as a bachelor I would not get another opportunity to perform this sacred ritual. Listening to my story, he took me inside the sacred temple and performed the ritual. He also gave me a special rare prayer to Lord Shiva. After this meeting, we stayed in contact, and I became the spiritual astrological advisor to him and through him I got to advise the King of Nepal of that time.
Before the pandemic, I was fortunate to revisit Pashupatinath temple with friends to receive blessings from Lord Shiva. During the month of Shravan, let us worship and meditate on Lord Shiva.
“Om Pashupati Nathaya Namaha”
