Mahashivratri at the 12 jyotirlingas: what changes
Mahashivratri is the one night of the year that all twelve temples are built around. This page covers what actually changes at the gates, temple by temple, so a trip can be planned around the crowd rather than into it.
When Mahashivratri falls
Mahashivratri follows the lunar calendar. It falls on the fourteenth night of the dark half of Magha or Phalguna, which lands in late February or early March in most years. The date moves from year to year, and the temples announce the day rather than the other way around.
This page does not print a fixed date for the current year until it has been checked against the temple trust notices and the official holiday list. If the whole trip depends on being there on the exact night, confirm the date first.Data check pending
What changes at the temples
Four things cover almost everything a traveller notices on Mahashivratri days.
Temple by temple
Mahashivratri is kept at all twelve, so the last column reads yes everywhere except Kedarnath, which is shut for the winter at that time of year.
| Temple | What changes there | Big for Mahashivratri? |
|---|---|---|
 | A longer free queue than on a normal day, a special aarti list for the night, and paid darshan usually suspended.Free queue. Paid options, if any, are on the booking page. | Yes |
 | A longer free queue than on a normal day, a special aarti list for the night, and paid darshan usually suspended.Free queue. Paid options, if any, are on the booking page. | Yes |
 | The bhasma aarti is the day bottleneck: it needs a booking and a very early start, and the rest of the schedule is arranged around it.Free queue. Paid options, if any, are on the booking page. | Yes |
 | A longer free queue than on a normal day, a special aarti list for the night, and paid darshan usually suspended.Free queue. Paid options, if any, are on the booking page. | Yes |
 | Shut for the winter at this time of year, so there is no darshan at the shrine on the night itself. Plan around the trust opening date for the season instead.Free queue. Paid options, if any, are on the booking page. | No, closed for winter |
 | A longer free queue than on a normal day, a special aarti list for the night, and paid darshan usually suspended.Free queue. Paid options, if any, are on the booking page. | Yes |
 | A longer free queue than on a normal day, a special aarti list for the night, and paid darshan usually suspended.Free queue. Paid options, if any, are on the booking page. | Yes |
 | A longer free queue than on a normal day, a special aarti list for the night, and paid darshan usually suspended.Free queue. Paid options, if any, are on the booking page. | Yes |
 | A longer free queue than on a normal day, a special aarti list for the night, and paid darshan usually suspended.Free queue. Paid options, if any, are on the booking page. | Yes |
 | A longer free queue than on a normal day, a special aarti list for the night, and paid darshan usually suspended.Free queue. Paid options, if any, are on the booking page. | Yes |
 | A longer free queue than on a normal day, a special aarti list for the night, and paid darshan usually suspended.Free queue. Paid options, if any, are on the booking page. | Yes |
 | A longer free queue than on a normal day, a special aarti list for the night, and paid darshan usually suspended.Free queue. Paid options, if any, are on the booking page. | Yes |
The day's own schedule is decided by each temple for that day alone.Data check pending
How to plan around it
Booking order and a couple of judgement calls that decide how the day goes.
The roads into the temple towns and the last hotel check-in are the choke points. A night in town the day before removes the biggest risk from the trip.
Trains and flights out of these towns sell out for the following two days. Buy the pair at once, or plan to leave from a different station or airport.
The aarti list, the darshan hours and whether paid darshan runs are decided by the temple for this day alone. Neither this site nor last year timetable is a safe guide.
When the date is fixed and the goal is darshan rather than the night itself, the quieter temple on the same route gives the same ritual with an easier gate. The changes are the same everywhere: the crush is not.