Pradosha

Pradosha or Pradosham (Sanskrit: प्रदोष, romanized: Pradoṣa) is a bimonthly occasion on the trayodashi (thirteenth day) of every fortnight in the Hindu calendar. It is closely connected with the worship of the Hindu god Shiva.

Etymology

Pradoṣa is a Sanskrit compound word formed from pra (before) and doṣa (darkness), literally meaning the first part of the night or twilight.

Legend

According to the Skanda Purana, King Satyaratha of Vidarbha was slain in battle by enemy forces (the Shalvas), forcing his pregnant queen to flee into the forest. After giving birth to a prince on the banks of a lake, the queen was killed by a crocodile. The orphaned prince was discovered by a Brahmin woman named Uma, who raised the prince—naming him Dharmagupta—alongside her own son, Shuchivrata, sustaining them through bhiksha (alms). When Uma met Sage Shandilya, he revealed that the prince's adversity stemmed from his karma. In his previous birth, his father had interrupted his pradosha worship of Shiva to order an execution and dined without completing the ritual. To restore their fortune, Shandilya instructed them in the observance of the pradosha vrata (fasting vow), remarking that doing so blesses the observer with wealth, grain, family, and luck. Through the merit of this vow, Dharmagupta eventually married Anshumati, a Gandharva princess, and regained his kingdom with her father's army. Shuchivrata's observance of the Soma Pradosha (falling on a Monday) is detailed in the same text, through which he was freed from poverty, acquired great learning and wealth, and attained Shiva's abode.

In the Skanda Purana (and the Shiva Purana), the efficacy of the Saturday Pradosha (Shani Pradosha) is illustrated through King Chandrasena of Ujjain, an ardent devotee of Shiva who ruled near the Mahakaleshwar shrine. He received a celestial gem named Chintamani from the Gana Manibhadra. Coveting the gem, neighboring rulers attacked Ujjain on a Saturday on a trayodashi, called the Shani Pradosha. During the siege, a young cowherd boy named Shrikar and a priest named Vridhi prayed to Shiva near the Kshipra River. Shrikar had observed the king's devotion and began his own worship using a stone lingam. When his mother disrupted his worship and threw the stone away, Shiva manifested to protect his devotee, transforming the humble stone into a magnificent gem-studded temple. Following this miracle, Hanuman appeared, blessed Shrikar, and declared the specific merit of worshiping Shiva on a Saturday Pradosha. Subsequently, Shiva established himself in the city as a svayambhu (self-manifested) lingam to defeat the invaders.

Observances

Processional images of Shiva and Parvati seated on Nandi

Worship is traditionally observed during more than a two hour window, spanning approximately 72 minutes (3 ghatis) before and after sunset. The fasting vow performed during this period is called the pradosha vrata. The worship is conducted during sandhya kala (evening twilight). The vrata involves fasting followed by a vigil. Practitioners bathe an hour before sunset, draw a sacred mandala, and wear rudraksha (sacred beads) and vibhuti (sacred ash).

Nandi, the bull-mount of Shiva, is worshipped across Shiva temples in South India. The festival idol of Shiva with his consort Parvati in a seated pose on Nandi is taken in procession in the temple complex. Other observances include worshipping the images of Shiva, Parvati, Ganesha, Kartikeya, and Nandi with an abhisheka (ritual bath), sandalwood paste, bael (wood apple) leaves, lotus, datura, fragrance, deepas (lamps), and naivedya (food offerings). Following the formal worship and invocation of Shiva, the story of pradosha is recited.

Types

Pradosha is often categorized based on the day of the week it falls on, with specific traditional benefits attributed to each day:

• Ravi Pradosha (Sunday): Observed for peace, longevity, and health.
• Soma Pradosha (Monday): Observed to fulfill desires and attain a positive state of mind.
• Bhauma Pradosha (Tuesday): Observed for relief from debts and physical ailments.
• Saumya Pradosha (Wednesday): Observed for acquiring knowledge and education.
• Guru Pradosha (Thursday): Observed for blessings from ancestors and spiritual growth.
• Bhrugu Pradosha (Friday): Observed for the eradication of negativity and to achieve success.
• Shani Pradosha (Saturday): The most highly revered Pradosha, emphasized in the Skanda Purana for bestowing immense spiritual and material benefits, and for regaining lost wealth.

Maha Pradosha is the Pradosha which falls before or on Maha Shivaratri in the Hindu month of Magha.

External links

• Speaking tree blog