Today being Sani Pradosham thousands of people descended on the huge court yard inside the Thanjavur Big Temple ( more tha 1000 year UNESCO WH monument) to witness the puja rituals associated with Sani Pradosham.
In Hinduism Pradosham Kaalam (3 hr bi-monthly perios) is an auspicious one and is split into two. 1.5 hours before and after the sunset, and is observed bi-monthly on the 13th day of every fortnight. The day is said to be the right time for the worship of Lord Shiva and his vahana Nandi (dacred Bull).
When a Pradosham falls on a Saturday, it is called as Sani Pradosham. The belief has been that Planet Saturn, whose bad effects on the humans are quite well known, rules Saturday, and in order to negate his ill effects as per one's horoscope, worshipping offering prayers to Lord Shiva on a Sani Pradosham is believed to reduce the ill-effects to some extent.
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| old image Pradosham at Big temple Thanjavur, tamil.abplive.com |
Above image: Brihadeeshwarar temple (Big temple), Thanjavur . Special abhiseka to Sacred Nandi (Bull) is part of Pradosham. The huge Nadi idol, one of the largest in India, within the enclosure of Mandapam faces the Lord Shiva's shrine. Special abhisheka is done by the Sivacharyas at the allotted time chanting both Sanskrit and Tamil mantras. Milk, Turmeric water , etc will be in use for the abhisheka; once it is over Nandi Bhagavan is richly decorated with flowers of various hues brought by the devotees.
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| Thanjavur Brihadeeshwarar Temple, TN .traveldealsfinder.com |
According to the Hindu mythology, Saturday is the day dedicated to Lord Shani (Planet Saturn). He is often related to karma and troubles based on position in one's horoscope - the birth chart cast by astrologers based on the positions of various planets at the exact time of birth. Every Hindu family is afraid of his adverse on the course of his or her life.
Though it is difficult to avoid his ill effects as the edit of God shall persist, appeasement of Sani Bhagavan is the only recourse available to reduce the intensity of ill effects. People go on a fast on certain days and visit the nearby temple to pray to Sani Bhagavan by lighting oil lamp (using gingelly oil) before his idol. Fasting for Lord Shani on Saturdays is normally in practice. When a Pradosham falls on a Saturday, worshipping both Lord Shiva and Shani on that day will give the devotee self satisfaction and he may see a relief soon.
Sani Pradosham falles into 3 categories : Uthama, Mathima, and Atham.
Uthama Sani Pradosham falls during the Tamil months of Chithirai, Vaigasi, Aippasi, and Karthigai, during the waxing phase of the Moon (Shukla Paksha)
Mathima Sani Pradosham occurs during the Tamil month of Chithirai, Vaigasi, Aippasi, and Karthigai, during the waning phase of the Moon (Krishna Paksha)
All other Sani Pradoshams come under this category Athama Shani Pradosha
Maha Sani Pradosham falls in the Month of Kumbha (Maasi in Tamil) during the months of February–March before Maha Shivaratri.
On the Pradosham days at almost all historical temples devotees visit in thousands to witness the Pradosha Kaala puja rituals - anointing of the lingam with theertham, milk, honey, Annan, etc. At the same time Shiva's Vahana in front of his shrine also underdoes similar rituals including flower decoration, etc.
https://thanjavur.info/thanjavur-big-temple-pradosham-live/#google_vignette
https://www.astroved.com/astropedia/en/festivals/sani-pradosham
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 At Thanjavur Brihadeeshwarar Temple, TN . Brief Review On Pradosham ){kind=link}