Yesterday we participated in celebrating Lord Shiva, the most worshipped God in the Hindu religion. He is known to be the destroyer of evil and if you praise him on this particular day, your sins are said to be taken away. He is also the father of Ganesh, god of wisdom, prosperity, and good fortune. It is the one day a year where ganja is legal and everyone smokes openly.
After paying tolls to children who were out of school to pass through streets all over the city, we went with our Nepali friends to Pashupatinath, the temple where cremation is performed daily. I have been there before during the day and seen the ritual performed, but there was something very unreal about seeing it all at night with the lights and the rambunctious crowd. It was also nuts to see children of all ages smoking with Yogis. Yogis are the religious Hindu men who roam around smoking ganja and collecting money. People who are having trouble with fertility also look forward to receiving tikka (red paint for forehead) from the loins of the Yogis. We of course passed on that. If you're interested in learning more you can check out this link:
http://www.nepalhomepage.com/society/festivals/shivaratri.html
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