The Shravan month holds a really important place in Hinduism. It is also known as the month of Shiva or Shankar. During the whole month, devotees devote themselves to Lord Shiva and go to temples to seek blessings from him.
A lot of the devotees also observe fast during this month and some go on a full vegetarian diet. People also wear Rudraksha during this month.
But what is the significance of this month?
Well the significance of this month comes from the tale of the Samudramanthan. As mentioned in the Puranas, the Samudramanthan episode took place in the month of Shravan.
The Devas and Asuras came together to churn the Amrit from the Kshirsagar. But before the Amrit, many other things came out of the ocean.
Devas and Asuras were dividing those things among themselves. And then came the deadliest poison of the universe, Halahal. Nobody wanted it, neither devas nor asuras. Both of them wanted the other side to take it and were running away from it.
The poison was deadly and started causing havoc in the universe. Then came the lord of lords, Mahadev Shiva. When nobody even dared to go near the poison, Shiva drank it all and stored the poison in His throat. Due to the effect of the poison, His throat turned blue and he came to be known as the Neelkanth.
Shiva’s throat was having tremendous burning sensations due to the poison. Everyone was offering water, milk, butter to Lord Shiva to reduce the effects of poison. Shiva drank all the poison. He did it out of his immense compassion for every life around him. And hence, Shravan month is dedicated to Lord Shiva and holds a significant place in the Hindu calendar.