Maha Shivratri is one of the most auspicious Hindi festivals which is celebrated by devotees across India. The chants of ‘Har Har Mahadev’ is heard throughout the nation on this day.

This year the festival, also called the ‘Great time of lord Shiva’, will be observed on February 18, 2023. It’s celebrated annually in honour of Lord Shiva, who is considered one of the main deities in Hinduism. On this day, devotees pray, fast, take a holi bath in the river Ganga and worship lord shiva. It is believed that fasting on Mahashivratri brings blessings and fulfilment of desires.

While married women observe the fast to maintain the balance of harmony in their marriage, on the other side, unmarried women observe this fast in the hope that they can find a life partner like Lord Shiva.

On Mahashivratri several devotees opt for ‘Nirjala vrat’ where they consume no water or food throughout the day. However, as not many can perform this type of fast, hence a majority of the people keep a fast where they can have fruits, milk, and non-grain items.

Here are the foods that you can have while observing Mahashivratri:
Rose Thandai

On this special occasion, enjoy refreshing and gut-cooling Rose Thandai. It is a Shivaratri’s special drink that is made with rose essence and is garnished with fresh rose petals. You can also add-on roohafza to it for a good flavour. This beverage makes you fuller and cools down your acidity.
Potatoes

Potatoes are one of the best food items consumed during the Maha Shivratri festival. They can keep you full throughout the day. You can consume your favourite aloo tikki, aloo pakora, aloo khichdi and sweet potato chaat as long as they don’t have onion, garlic, and other species in them.
Milk

On this special day, devotees wash the Shiva lingam with milk–because Lord Shiva has been said to love milk, according to religious Hindu texts. So, milk is also consumed widely during the fast on Mahashivratri. You can have milk and milk-based desserts and drinks–like badam doodh, kheer, Sabudana kheer, and makhane ki kheer during the fast.
Sabudana

Sabudana (tapioca pearls) is one of the most commonly used food items during fast. You can make many dishes with it such as Sabudana Khichdi, sago pearls, and peanuts, sabudana pakora, sabudana vada with a pinch of Sendha Namak (Rock Salt), which is used in all food preparations for fast or vrat. These are some popular sabudana dishes consumed by devotees across the world on this occasion.
Fruits, dry fruits

Fruits are a big part of every pujas or fasting. It is also really good for your health. If you get hungry, you can even consume fruit chaats, fruit salads and fruit milkshakes on this day. You can also munch on a wide variety of dry fruits like almonds, walnuts, dates, raisins, and dried apricots.