Bhasm Aarti At Mahakaleshwar, Ujjain: Procedures And Aartis By Naga Sadhus

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At the strike of 4 am every day, at Mahakaleshwar Jyotirling Temple at Ujjain, a unique ritual namely Bhasm Aarti begins, to see which, devotees gather in a long serpentine queue every day. People from all over India book around a month in advance to witness this extremely popular event, wait patiently in the queue right from 3 am in the morning. This occasion is once in a lifetime, as people of all levels and stratas, throng to see the Shivling covered by a thick veil of Bhasm, a sight for the gods, indeed. This is not an ordinary Bhasma that you get to see on ordinary days, it is the Chita Bhasm, that is the ash from the first funeral pyre cremated at night which is used for Bhasm Aarti.

Long ago, the Chita bhasm of Aghoras or Yogis who were already cremated were offered to Mahakaleshwar. Now it is prepared out of burnt cow dung. The entire procedure takes about 45 minutes to conclude. Special pujas as requested by devotees are performed only after the Bhasm Aarti which needs to be mandatorily completed before sunrise.

This used to be the case all these years, but now they have replaced the Chita Bhasm with powdered cowdung. Among the 12 Jyotirlingas, Mahakaleshwar at Ujjain is the only one which offers Bhasm Aarti to Lord Shiva and it is the only jyotirlinga that faces southwards. Here in this temple, devotees are not allowed to cross the threshold of the sanctum, which is why they get to see the entire occasion through a screen projection installed inside.

As The Procedure Begins

With Abhishek begins the procedure, with a ritual bath given to the Shivling, then curd, honey, sandal paste, smeared on it and milk and water poured over it. Bel leaves are arranged on the Lingam artistically for worship as well as for decorative purposes. There are umpteen procedures which you have to patiently wait and watch before the Bhasm Aarti begins. Applying various puja ingredients on the Shivling, it assumes the form of a divine face that is enveloped with garlands.

After the bathing and decorating procedure concludes, in the next stage, the very first Aarti of the day is performed, which is exactly when the Shivling is lightly covered with a thin veil. Then the scenario changes at once, when the priest swirls the ash filled bag on the Shivling and the entire sanctum is covered with a thick screen of the grey ash. This procedure just takes a minute to conclude. After this, everything comes back to normal as the diyas, bell chimes, and chanting by devotees take over and go on with uninterrupted enthusiasm. You are left numbed, and speechless at the marvel that you just witnessed.

The Six Aartis:

Mahakal's Aarti is performed 6 times, and Bhasm Aarti is the most important of them all and it occurs at 4 am every day. Firstly, it is Bhasm Aarti that is conducted. For the second aarti, Shiva is shown in the form of a head. For the Third aarti, Shivling assumes the form of Hanuman. Fourth Aarti displays the Sheshnag avatar of Lord Shiva. Fifth Aarti shows Lord Shiva in the form of a bridegroom and the sixth Aarti is the Shayan Aarti where shiva is shown in his original form. Only men can see the Lingam when the ashes aarti is being done. Devotees should be present in the temple at around 3 am as the queue gets longer and longer as time passes. In order to participate in the Aarti, men should be clad in dhotis and women in sarees.

Since Lord Shiva resides in cremation grounds, he would be naturally pleased with Bhasm Aarti, as per the belief. Women are not allowed to even view this Aarti, let alone perform it. Only 10 Naga sadhus are called to conduct this ritual and only those who have booked this Aarti beforehand are allowed to watch it. But they can only offer water to Shivling and nothing else. Bhasm aarti is ideally performed on Somwati Amavasya. Bhasm aarti is unique to this temple and it is not observed anywhere else. It is known to remove sins.

Naga Sadhus And Vibhooti:

The Naga Sadhus wear Vibhooti all over their body as it protects them from many untold perils. Dousing oneself in ashes brings clarity and peace to the body and mind. Sanyasis and Naga Sadhus wear ashes all over as it protects them from extremes of heat or cold. Mosquitoes and bedbugs can never approach a person whose body is covered with ash.

Applying Vibhuti on the forehead destroys all negativities and assures you peace of mind. It activates the chakras where ever it is applied. The Vibhooti which Naga Sadhus apply is known as Bhasmi and even this is used to do Bhasm Aarti to Lord Shiva.

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