Devotees thronged Shiva temples in the City to offer prayers to Lord Shiva and seek his blessings on Maha Shivaratri.

The day is celebrated to mark the attempt by the devotees to wake up Lord Shiva.
According to one of the legends, Lord Shiva drank ‘Haalahala’- a poison which emanated while churning the ‘ocean of milk’. The ill-effect of the Haalahala made him unconscious sending his devotees into a tizzy, who remained awake the whole night praying for his well-being.

In keeping with the age-old tradition, many devotees observed fast throughout the day and broke their fast only after offering worship to the deity in the night. Anticipating a huge turnout, Shiva temples and various associations in the City made elaborate arrangements to celebrate the occasion in a grand way.

Most of the Shiva temples were abuzz with hectic activities from the evening with the temple managements organising Satsanga and programmes such as dance, drama and devotional music-based programmes.

Gavi Gangadhareshwara Devasthana had made special arrangements anticipating huge turnout in the night. Devotees started making a beeline for the temple from the evening and by the night the crowd swelled by huge numbers. The ninth century temple has a special place in the City.

At Netkallappa Circle, former prime minister H D Deve Gowda unveiled a 20-ft tall statue of Lord Shiva on Monday evening.

The event was marked by a number of cultural events like Krishna Leela and devotional songs dedicated to Lord Shiva.

A huge number of people including foreign nationals from some 60 countries, turned up at the Art of Living International Centre.

The event began from morning with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar performing the Rudra Puja.
In the evening, Maha Sudarshan Kriya was conducted by Ravi Shankar. He also performed Maha Rudrabhishekam.