BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha celebrated the Hindu festival of Maha-Shivaratri with various devotional activities on Sunday 15 February 2026.
Maha-Shivaratri is the sacred day in the Hindu calendar that marks the divine manifestation of Shankar Bhagwan in his Shivaling form, his celestial wedding with Mata Parvatiji, and his divine Tandava dance.
Devotees, well-wishers, and members of local Hindu communities gathered in large numbers at BAPS mandirs and centres across the UK and parts of Europe to celebrate the sacred occasion.
The festival was observed with fasting, prayers, chanting of the ‘Aum Namah Shivaya’ mantra, and annakut offerings. Swamis and devotees also bathed the Shivaling with panchamrut (a holy mixture of milk, yoghurt, honey, sugar and ghee) and offered bilva-patra (bael leaves) during which they prayed for the well-being, protection, and success of people across the world.
An ice Shivaling, symbolising the manifestation of Shiva Bhagwan, was also presented at various mandirs, providing a reminder of the sacred pilgrimage town of Amarnath in India where a natural ice Shivaling exists.