On Wednesday 13 February, Y4 participated in an RE role play lesson, led by Mrs Mulhall (who, interestingly, is an RE specialist and spent taught in India). The children role played the aarti ritual. They were greeted by Mrs Carré and Mrs Mulhall who helped each child. To remind the children that they were role-playing, children were invited to wear a headscarf and took their shoes off, outside the hall, just as you would if you were to enter a Hindu Temple. Mahashivratri is a Hindu festival dedicated to Lord Shiva – one of the deities of the Hindu Trinity. Hindus will celebrate Mahashivaratri across the world next month on March 4.
While most Hindu festivals are celebrated during the day, Mahashivratri is celebrated during the night and day that come just before the new moon. Each new moon is dedicated to Shiva, but Mahashivratri is especially important because it is the night when he danced the ‘Tandav’, his cosmic dance. Tradition says that Shiva, like his symbol the new moon, appeared in order to save the world from darkness and ignorance, before the world entered complete darkness.