Sivarathri celebrated in Aluva

Aluva

Aluva , is a suburb of the city of Kochi, situated north of the city center and a municipality in Ernakulam district, Kerala, India. Aluva is also a major industrial center of the state....

, a place in Ernakulam

Ernakulam

Ernakulam refers to the downtown area or the western part of the mainland of Kochi city in Kerala, India. The city is the most urban part of Kochi and has lent its name to the Ernakulam district. Ernakulam is called the commercial capital of the state of Kerala and is a main nerve of business in...

 district of Kerala

Kerala

or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....

, south India

South India

South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...

 is called the Aluva Sivarathri festival. The celebration of Sivarathri in Aluva is very famous in Kerala. The month of Kumbham is noted for the Sivarathri festival which falls in February - March.

Aluva Sivarathri is celebrated at the Siva

Shiva

Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...

 temple

Temple

A temple is a structure reserved for religious or spiritual activities, such as prayer and sacrifice, or analogous rites. A templum constituted a sacred precinct as defined by a priest, or augur. It has the same root as the word "template," a plan in preparation of the building that was marked out...

 on the banks of Periyar River

Periyar River

Periyar is the longest river in the state of Kerala, India, with a length of 244 km. The Periyar is known as the lifeline of Kerala; it is one of the few perennial rivers in the region and provides drinking water for several major towns...

 and this place is called the Aluva Manal Puram (land with sand

Sand

Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local rock sources and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland continental settings and non-tropical coastal...

).

Pilgrims

Pilgrims

Pilgrims , or Pilgrim Fathers , is a name commonly applied to early settlers of the Plymouth Colony in present-day Plymouth, Massachusetts, United States...

 offer Bali (sacrifice) to their ancestor

Ancestor

An ancestor is a parent or the parent of an ancestor ....

s in the morning succeeding the holy night.Near the bank of periyar, Aluva Manal Puram, there will be a lots of stalls installed for people for purchasing, shopping, exhibitions, adventure rides for children and adults and lot more. It will remain for two weeks after the offerings of Bali (sacrifice).

this festival is celebrated as a remembrancer for the lord siva