A poor hunter, lost in the forest at night and afraid of wild beasts, climbed a bilva tree to stay safe until morning. To keep awake, he plucked its leaves and dropped them, one by one.
Below him, unseen in the dark, stood a small shrine to Shiva. All night long the falling leaves drifted down onto it, and all night the restless hunter unknowingly kept watch beside it.
By dawn his fear had melted into a strange peace. The story is told each Shivaratri: that even a vigil kept by accident, with a wakeful and humble heart, is dear to the divine.