Maha Shivratri and New Budding Moon

Tonight is the new moon; the Chinese call the second new moon the Budding Moon. 

Spring has always been my favorite time of year, when I feel most creative and joyful. As we cycle nearer to spring, I can feel my energy growing and swelling like the buds on the trees!

Shiva, Crafts Museum, New Delhi

Tonight is also Maha Shivratri, a Hindu festival which falls each year on the night of the new moon in the Hindu month of Phalgun (in February or March). The Sanskrit word ratri means night, and maha means great, so Maha Shivratri is the night to honor the great Shiva, for his dance of primordial creation, preservation, and destruction.

Many Hindus keep a fast all day, make offerings of flowers and incense, and chant to Shiva. They vigil all night, sing songs, and dance to the rhythm of the drums.

Agenda Today:
1. Mantra
2. Journal queries
3. New moon meditation and prayer
4. Make Thandai

1. Mantra:

Today I will chant the Panchakshara mantra, which means "five letters" in Sanskrit, and refers to the five letters Na, Ma, Si, Va, and Ya:
Om (the primordial sound)
Namah (I honor)
Shivaya (the source of creation)

Hear the chant here.

This is a prayer to Shiva, who is the universal consciousness. Shiva is life potential and the ground out of which everything grows; Shiva is the space from where everything has come, where everything is sustained, and where everything eventually dissolves.

When I meditate on Shiva in this way, rather than as a blue-faced God-being, I get closer to the truth of the Hindu pantheon.

2. Journal queries:
The new moon is the first phase of the moon, a beginning time for growth. At the new moon I regroup, evaluate where I am now, and plant seeds of intention for the next weeks. Since it's almost Lent, I'm also thinking about how I want to prepare for rebirth.

What creative paths am I starting down?
What do I need to clear from my path in order to create something new?
What compassionate action is calling me?
What might I fast from or do without in order to prepare for the joy of rebirth?

List my intentions for the next weeks in these areas-

Self, Friends and Family, Teaching, Artwork, Writing, Home and Garden, Work/Business, and Volunteer work.

3. New moon meditation and prayer:

Shivratri is the darkest night of the month; it's an opportunity to give myself the experience of the vast emptiness that is the source of all creation. 

Tonight I will light a small white candle on my altar. I will center, and feel myself fill with thankfulness for all I have now in my life. And I will ask Shiva to strip away my striving for comfort and safety, so that I can be open to the infinite possibilities. 

4. Make Thandai:
Some Hindus observe a strict fast today, though many go on a diet of fruits and milk. This famous flavored milk is traditionally prepared today, to drink, and as an offering to Shiva. The recipe is here.