The
Ganesha festival is celebrated on the fourth day of the month of
Bhadrapad in the Hindu calendar. According to the Gregorian calendar,
this falls between the months of August and September. Clay idols
of Lord Ganesha are lovingly brought home and worshipped with great
devotion. He is propitiated with great reverence particularly in
the state of Maharashtra. It was Lokmanya Tilak who realized that
community celebration of religious festivals would bring people
together. He introduced the tradition of celebrating the Ganesha
festival in Maharashtra on such a grand scale.
Lord Ganesha is the son of Lord Shiva.
He is considered the most auspicious God to worship at the commencement
of any occasion. He is considered to be the remover of all obstacles
and hindrances that may arise in any work undertaken. Therefore,
it is a well-known custom to pay obeisance to him before one undertakes
any task. That is the reason one finds Lord Ganesha’s image
adorning most wedding invitations.
Lord Ganesha is considered to be a most benevolent God and one of the most popular. He has the head of an elephant, an animal of great stamina and intelligence. Thus, he is the Lord of great strength and intellect. He is also considered the master of all academic subjects as well as all the arts and crafts. He is usually depicted with four hands: one holds a modak, another a lotus flower, a third an axe and the fourth, a trishul.
Lord Ganesha is considered to be a most benevolent God and one of the most popular. He has the head of an elephant, an animal of great stamina and intelligence. Thus, he is the Lord of great strength and intellect. He is also considered the master of all academic subjects as well as all the arts and crafts. He is usually depicted with four hands: one holds a modak, another a lotus flower, a third an axe and the fourth, a trishul.
There is the great shloka:
Vakratunda mahakaya suryakoti samaprabha.
Nirvighnama kurumedeva shubhakaryeshu sarvada
Vakratunda mahakaya suryakoti samaprabha.
Nirvighnama kurumedeva shubhakaryeshu sarvada
When translated into English, it reads
as:
“O mighty God with a trunk, your brilliance is like that of a thousand suns; free my path of all obstacles in all auspicious works that I undertake.”
“O mighty God with a trunk, your brilliance is like that of a thousand suns; free my path of all obstacles in all auspicious works that I undertake.”
Ganesh Chaturthi being a community
affair, one will find people going from door-to-door to collect
money for the Ganesha festivities. This money goes towards the making
of the idol, the maintenance of the pandal and the expenses of the
priest and the daily puja. The people gather around chanting Sanskrit
shlokas when the idol is installed. Arti is done twice a day after
that. A special sweet is made every day. Some people observe a fast
on the first day, but it is not hard to keep. Til and gur (jaggery),
is allowed to be taken in the form of gajak, revri or til ke laddoo
and they can drink tea, coffee and water through the day. The people
offer prasad of modaks or pedas, a red flower like the hibiscus,
a bundle of at least three sheaves of grass, kumkum, haldi and rice.
Ganesh puja can also be done at home.
The area where the idol is going to be placed will be thoroughly
cleaned. The floor will be decorated with rangoli and a garland
of red flowers will be placed around the neck of the idol. The head
of the family will perform the puja after bathing and wearing clean
clothes. All members of the family do the arti in turn.
The festivities come to an end on
Anand Chaudas, when both the community idols and the idols from
people’s homes are taken to the sea or nearest river or lake
for visarjan or immersion. Household idols can be immersed after
one and a half, seven or ten days after installation. In Mumbai,
massive processions are taken out with people dancing on the streets
shouting ‘Ganpati Bappa Maurya, Pudchya Varsha Luvkarya!.
