Hyderabad, Feb 20: On the occasion of Mahasivarathri festival on Monday, all Shaivaite shrines in the State are reverberating with hymns in praise of Lord Shiva and “Om Namah Shivaya”. Devotees lined up in serpentine queues before the Shiva temples since early morning for darshan of the “Three-Eyed Lord”.

On the occasion, all temples of Lord Shiva in the entire State were tastefully decorated with flowers and illuminated. The famous Shiva temples at Srisailam, Daksharamam, Srikalahasti, Vemulawada, Keesara and so on were thronged by thousands of devotees. Similarly, Sri Kanaka Durga Malleswara Swamy temple atop Indrakeeladri in Vijayawada also attracted a large number of devotees. The ardent devotees made a beeline to the temple of Sri Kethaki Sangameshwara Swamy at Jharasangham in Medak district. Serpentine queues were seen at Keesaragutta, Ujjain and Omkareshwar temples since early morning. 

Devotees in large numbers poured into the Moolasthaneshwara temple in the Potti Sriramulu Nellore district. Temple officials made elaborate arrangements for the influx of devotees. Similarly, the celebrations commenced on a large scale in the Uma Someshwara temple in Bhimavaram of West Godavari district. Devotees in large numbers started pouring into the temple from Sunday night and they patiently waited in serpentine queues. “Palabhishekam” to the presiding deity was performed amidst chanting of Veda mantras this morning. The celebrations will go on for five days. 

Deputy Chief Minister C. Damodar Rajanarasimha visited Shiva Temple at Edupayalu under Papannapet mandal in Medak district and presented “Pattu Vastrams” and offered prayers to Lord Shiva. Minister for Civil Supplies D. Sridhar Babu visited the Kaleswara-Mukthiswara Temple at Kaleswaram and presented “Pattu Vastrams” and offered prayers Lord Shiva. The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam Board member and MLA Cheruku Muthyam Reddy visited the Rajarajeshwara Swamy temple at Vemulawada in Karimnagar district and presented “Pattu Vastrams” to the celestial couple.

Major Industries Minister Dr J. Geetha Reddy participated in the Sivarathri celebrations at Puttaparthy where “Rudrabhisekham” was performed.   

Meanwhile, the devotees pouring into Vemulawada in thousands in the past two days faced severe hardship due to negligence in making adequate arrangements.