🕉️ The Outcast's Offering: The Legend of the Belpatra in Gokarna
"Bholenath ke dar par dastak" — A knock at the door of the Innocent Lord. 🙏 As Mahashivratri approaches on Sunday, February 15, 2026 , temples around the world will witness the most elaborate acts of worship. But amid the grandeur of offerings, we confront a powerful truth: Does Shiva look at the golden plates of the privileged, or the pure heart of the outcast? 🤔 This profound story from the holy land of Gokarna answers that question, revealing that Shiva’s compassion destroys the barrier of ritual impurity. 🛕 The Contrast at Gokarna The text takes us back to a bustling Mahashivratri . Devotees thronged the temple, offering Panchamrit and heaps of Belpatra , securing their place in the eyes of society and God. Yet, in the shadows, sat a woman known only as a Chandali . She represented the ultimate social exclusion. Shunned not only for her terrible disease—leprosy had ravaged her body—but for her caste, people...