Question: My question is related to Lord Shiva. He is considered to be the topmost Vaishnava. When a devotee or Vaishnava sannyasi comes, we are eager to take their association but we don’t go to Shiva temples to take his association. Similarly, we observe fasting till noon on appearance and disappearance days of acharyas. But we don’t do such a thing on Shivaratri (the festival marking Lord Shiva drinking poison). Why is this so?
Answer by Romapada Swami: Vaishnavas are not prohibited or discouraged from visiting Lord Shiva’s temples. In fact, Lord Caitanya visited many Shiva temples during His tour of South India, where He chanted Hare Krishna mahamantra and danced in great ecstasy before the Deity. But unfortunately, there are hardly any bona fide temples of Lord Shiva today where worship is performed with the mood and understanding that he is the topmost devotee of Lord Krishna. Therefore, devotees generally do not make it a point to visit such temples, although they don’t specifically avoid them either. The best way to honor Lord Shiva, in any case, is to chant Krishna’s holy names and glories, just as Lord Siva instructed the Pracetas to do, and to dedicate our lives to the worship of Krishna. This would be most pleasing to Lord Shiva, and in this way automatically we will receive his blessings. Even in our temples, therefore, devotees celebrate Shivaratri by chanting in sankirtan and discussing the glories and the great devotion of Lord Shiva as described in Srimad Bhagavatam and offering a feast in his honor.
