On today’s eve of Maha Shivaratri, it is a pleasure to put some light on the rituals associated with it. Offering cow milk on Shivalingam is one of the greatest ritualistic practices on the day of Maha Shivaratri and without it all fasting and observances for the holy day is believed to be useless. Why we offer cow milk on Shivalingam or why is it an ancient belief that offering cow’s milk to Lord Shiva can please him can be few most anxious questions which can make people curious.
We all know that Lord Shiva is repository of all cosmic forces and along with that He is also symbol of purity and truth. The quote “Satyam Shivam Sundaram” elegantly highlights this fact which mean everything which is true (satyam) symbolizes Lord Shiva (shivam) and every symbol associated with Lord Shiva is beautiful (sundaram). Similarly, cow’s milk is also one of the purest forms of consumable liquid known to human. Therefore, a deity symbolizing purity must be worshipped with pure offerings which include milk as one.
That was quite a logical interpretation, though; the importance of offering cow’s milk to Lord Shiva is having spiritual relevance as well. Any Puja or devotion is one of the most preferred ways to meditate for balance of mind and attain purity and peace of mind. It is having a lot to do with meditations and vibrations, rather positive vibrations. Pouring of milk on shivalingam, also known as Dugdha Abhishek, results in accumulation of flow of positive energy towards the lingam. So when a devotee offers milk to Shivalingam, there is a flow of positive energy in his body originating from the lingam.
Cow’s milk is a very good conductor of positive energy. Specially, milk from Indian cows, preferably Desi Gir cows, when poured on Shivalingam with recitation of mantras “Om Namah Shivay” creates a great aura of positive energy and heals the mind and soul. It arouses a positive inner consciousness which strengthens the spiritual power and ability to foster positive thoughts and belief in mind.
According to Vedas, by offering milk to Shivalingam, we also express our gratitude to Lord Shiva for saving the universe from the poisonous effect of Halahal which emerged out of the Samudra Manthan (churning of oceans) by the devas and demons. It is said that during the Samudra Manthan, Lord Shiva consumed the deadly poison and preserved it in this throat, due to which we call him Neelkanth as the poison turned his throat blue (neel).
The toxic amount of halahal was enormous, and even though it had no effect on Bhagwan Shiv, its heat was enormous, so Devtas performed Ganga Abhishek on Mahadev to reduce its effects. Snakes were the only ones who came out to help Bhagwan Shiv’s divine cause, and they drank and swallowed some of the venom in their inner fangs. It is believed that snakes became more toxic from that day forward.
Milk Abhishek performed by Shiv devotees on Shiv Lingam is a symbolic reflection of the abhishek performed during Samudra Manthan, and devotees share their gratitude in the same way as devtas did after the manthan. We all know that there is a Supreme power which I controlling the entire balance of the universe as well as that of our lives. In Sanatan Dharma, Lord Shiva is believed to be the supreme power in divine association with Devi Shakti. Hence, it is important to play our role in balancing our inner self by warding off negative forces and vibrations and receiving positive energy flows. This can help us contribute in the divine purpose of maintaining a balance in the family and society we live in.
As the practice of offering milk on Shivalingam traces back from the ancient Vedic era, it must have some authentic and high-level spiritual significance. We can have our logical interpretations and deductions, but all of them are bound to yield some positive and spiritual derivation. As worship of Lord Shiva through the medium of a shivalingam is helpful for salvation of our soul from negative effects of our surrounding, milk when consumed protects our body and provides multiple benefits for our health. This denotes that cow’s milk is having a great role to play in our spiritual journey as well as a healthy life.
