Lord Ganesha

About Lord Ganesha

||ॐ श्री गणेशाय नम:|| God Ganesh is the most auspicious Hindu god and he is Hinduism’s most popular deity. It’s believed that his mother, Goddess Parvati, carved an idol of a boy out of ubtan or turmeric powder and breathed life into it, unbeknownst to her husband, Lord Shiva. Once Ganesha denied Lord Shiva entry into his abode because Goddess Parvati was bathing inside then Shiva decapitated Ganesha’s head in anger. According to legend, an elephant was the first animal that Lord Brahma later found when he went out to look for one (to replace Vinayagar’s head). He is also called Vighneshwer (god to remove obstacles) or Vinayak ( knowledgeable ). He is worshipped, or at least remembered, in the beginning of any auspicious performance for blessings and auspiciousness.

Sri Ganapati the Elephant God, is not only the Lord of Beginnings and Remover of Obstacles but also a teacher if you pay close attention to the tales of Hindu mythology. It’s said that Ganesh wrote the Mahabharata, as it was recited to him by sage Vyasa (Veda Vyasa). Also known as Ekdant, his anecdotes form an integral part of Hindu mythology and impart great life lessons to his followers. In his hands, he carries a sweet dessert ball laddoo (to reward devotees for spiritual activity) a rope (to carry devotees to the truth), and an axe (to cut devotees’ attachments).

Lord Vinayaka has an elder brother Lord Kartik – the Hindu God of War and Victory. He mostly worshipped together Goddess Lakshmi – the Hindu Goddess of Wealth and Goddess Saraswati – the Hindi Goddess of Knowledge. Logically, Maa Lakshmi and Ganesh have a common quality of bringing in prosperity and wealth. Also, Maa Saraswati and Ganesh have a common trait of being patrons of music and art as well as blessing devotees with knowledge and skills. Hence these three deities are worshipped together as they denote common qualities. Ganapati is also referred to by the name Gajanand, Lambodar, Ekdanta meaning ‘one-toothed’. He is almost always represented with a broken tusk which signifies another physical imperfection in addition to his Elephant Head and his large belly.

One legend says that Vinayagar has two wives, Riddhi and Siddhi, and two sons Shubh and Labh. His image is found throughout India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Nepal. Ganesh Chaturthi, also known as Vinayaka Chaturthi is the Hindu festival that reveres Ganpati Bappa. It is celebrated all over India, but the maximum grandeur is witnessed in Mumbai and across Maharashtra.