Devotees throng temples to mark monsoon festival in Varanasi

Varanasi, Aug 11 : Thousands of devotees thronged temples here on the last Monday of 'Shravan' (monsoon season) of the Hindu religious calendar.

Long queues of devotees could be seen outside the temples as devotees waited their turn to offer prayers to Lord Shiva.

Monsoon season is associated with Lord Shiva and it is believed that praying to him during the period would help bring luck and prosperity to the devotees.

"Today is the last Monday of the Shravan month and it holds great significance praying to lord Shiva," said Virendra Kumar Pathak, a devotee.

The devotees also believe that offering prayers to Shiva would help them attain salvation.

"People come in large numbers to pray to him. It is believed that if one prays to lord Shiva during monsoons it will help in attaining salvation," said Vishwanath Bhadoria, another devotee.

Apart from worshipping the Shivlingam (symbol of Lord Shiva), the decorations too attract a lot of attention.

ANI