Another legend explains about the observance of vigil throughout the night on Shivratri and why Lord Shiva is called as Neelakantha. The story recalls the incident of churning the milky ocean by devas and asuras to get the nectar. During the battle, a pot of poison came out of the ocean which was drunk by Lord Shiva on the request of gods to save earth. Due to the strong poison, the color of Lord’s neck changed to blue. Therefore, Lord Shiva is called as Neelkanth, where ‘Neela’ means blue and ‘Kantha’ means neck or throat. As a remedy for this, Lord Shiva was advised to stay awake during the night and hence, to keep him awake, the gods performed various dances and played music. Lord Shiva was pleased with their devotion and blessed them all. Shivratri festival is celebrated annually commemorating this event.
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