Pradosha Vrata

The Pradosha worship is to be done in the evening twilight or sandhya Kala on the Trayodashi of both lunar fortnights, Shukla paksha and Krishna Paksha , and on the 13th day of each lunar fortnight. It is the worship of Lord Shiva for victory and success in all undertakings, and the fulfilment of all your heart’s cherished desires. In some regions, the day is dedicated to Nataraja form of Lord Shiva.Fasting on this day is observed for success, peace and fulfillment of desires. It is said that mere darshan of any form of Lord Shiva removes ignorance.Pradosha means sunset time of Trayodashi.
The Performance of the vrata :
There are two methods of fasting on this day, some observe fasting throughtout the day, and some observe fasting from sunrise to sunset and after doing the Shiva pooja in th eevening the fast is broken. A bath is taken one hour before sunset and Lord Shiva, Goddess Parvathi, Lord Ganesha, Lord Muruga and Nandhi are worshipped. After the initial prayers, Lord Shiva is worshipped in the form of kalasha. The Kalasha filled with water is covered with darbha grass and a lotus is drawn on the kalasha.
Another form of worship is doing pooja for the Shivalingam. The shivalingam is anointed with water and bilva leaves are offered. After the pooja is over the pradosha vrata katha or chapters from shiva puranam are read and the Maha Mrityunjaya Mantram is recited 108 times. And the Lingaastakam bhajan should be sung after worshiping shivalingam.


A devotee observing Pradosha vrata must perform pooja to Lord Shiva four times in four praharas for the whole day starting from sunset to that day to sunrise in the next day.The prahara times are as follows :

1. Sunset to 9 PM. - First Prahara
2. 9PM. to 12 Midnight - Second Prahara
3. 12 Midnight - 3 AM. - Third Prahara
4. 3 Am. to sunrise - Fourth Prahara

In the end the sacred kalasha water is partaken of, the sacred ash is applied to the forehead, and the water which was used to bathe the Lord, is drunk. A gift of a pot, a cloth and an image of the Lord is given to a Brahmin to conclude the worship.
Pradhosha Purana:
Once Dhevas and Asuras using the serpent Vasuki and the hill Mandhara were trying to get Amrutham (nector) from the Kseerabthi (milk ocean). Then the terrible poison Halahalam came up. All got frightened and pleaded to Lord Shiva for rescue. Being the peak of mercy Lord Shiva ate that poison. Then as per His order they resumed their effort to get Amrutham. They got it on Dhwadhasi (twelfth moon day). Without praying and thanking the God, by whom they got Amrutham, Devas started dancing and celebrating their victory. On thrayodhasi (thirteenth moon day) they realised their sin of not praying the God and pleaded for forgiveness. The pleased graceful Lord Shiva forgave them and danced between the horns of the Nandhi (holy bull). That time is called Pradhosham. Whoever prays Lord Shiva in that time, Lord Shiva fulfills their wishes and give them mukthi.
Pradosha katha :
Long ago there lived a widow Brahmin woman who along with her son after taking permission from the Rishis would go for begging food the whole day and return back in the evening. Whatever she received , she would utilize it and also do shiva pradosha vrat. One day she met the prince of Vidharbha state, Dharma Gupta, whose father was killed by the enemies and the pronce was thrown from the state. The brahmin woman brought him to her house and looked after the prince. One day the prince and the son of the brahmin saw the gandarva princess, Ashumati, in the forest . The prince started talking to Ashumati and went along with them. The brahmin son returned home alone. The Parents of Ashumati, got her married to the prince Dharma Gupta and defeated the enemies and got back the kingdom and crowned him as the king of Vidharbha. Dharma Gupta rememberred the son of brahmin and made him his Minister. All this was happened only because of the prodasha vrata. From that time the prodasha vrata became famous and the asupiciousness of this vrata is the fulfillment of all desires.
During Prodhosha time anointing (Abhishekam) the Shiva deity with the following is considered fruitful.

• Milk gives long life
• Ghee gives Moksha state
• Curd gives good children
• Honey gives melodious voice
• Rice powder frees from debts
• Sugar cane juice gives good health
• Panjamrutham gives wealth
• Lemon removes fear of death
• Sugar removes enmity
• Tender coconut gives enjoyment
• Cooked Rice(Annam) gives mejestic life
• Sandal gives Lakshmi's grace

Sani Pradosha katha :

Once Indra lost his kingdom and found that only if he consumed the Divine Nectar he could rule. So there was a tug of war between the devas and asuras to obtain this nectar. The Devas and Asuras got together to churn the ocean, using Mandramalai & Vaasuki, the snake. As they continued to churn the ocean, Vaasuki the snake began to tire and started spewing its poison. Siva came and consumed all the poison. Thus Siva became blue up to his throat and is also known by the name "Neelakandan" ( neela-blue colour, kandam-throat).Goddess Parvati rushed and held his neck so that the poison would not spread to the whole of his body. Shiva then became drowsy and selected a village called Surutapalli (near Chennai), where he is seen sleeping on the lap of Parvathi. This is the only temple that houses Lord Shiva in a sleeping position.Narada, meanwhile, passed on the message and down came the Devas, Brahma, Vishnu and the Saptarishis, to have darshan. They were promptly stopped by Nandi who asked them all to come after some time, as Shiva was resting. All of them waited. Shiva, when he woke up, was filled with extreme happiness and danced ("Ananda Thandavam"). This day, when the Devas, Brahma, Vishnu, Narada and Saptarishis had Shiva darshan was a Krishnapaksha Trayodasi (Stiravaram, Saturday). This is the Mahapradosham day. Pradhosham, generally, is a significant occasion observed with great piety at all Shiva temples. It is believed that all the Devas & Gods are assembled in the Shiva temples during Pradosham time. Further, the first pradosham was on a Saturday & hence "Sani Pradosham" is even more auspicious.

Check this link to read about Sani Pradosham :
http://www.dinamalar.com/Topnewsdetail.asp?News_id=1281

A very important point to be remembered in this connection is that during this auspicious period all the hosts of celestial beings and gods come down from the heavens and attend the worship in their subtle forms. This adds immensely to the sanctity of the worship.This Vrata is highly lauded by the scriptures and is of very great sanctity and importance to worshippers of Lord Shiva. The mere sight of the Deity in a temple during this period will destroy all sins and bestow bountiful blessings and Grace upon the fortunate beholder. Even a single bael leaf offered to the Lord at this unique, auspicious moment equals a hundred Mahapujas. It is usual to have special additional lights in the shrine during the Pradosha. To light even a single wick at this juncture is highly meritorious and productive of untold benefits, spiritual as well as material. Most fortunate and blessed is the person who performs the Pradosha Vrata, for upon him Lord Shiva showers His choicest Grace and blessings in a very short time.


(Thanks a lot to my friends , Vidyo & Sasi for providing the details)
Source : wikipedia , http://www.ammas.com/ar/home.cfm?r=va&bid=0&topicid=941&tid=166775 , http://www.dinamalar.com/