Yesterday was Ganesh Chaturthi. It’s one of the biggest religious festivals of the State of Maharashtra – now celebrated throughout the country. On this day Lord Ganesha is ‘brought home’ with joy and fanfare. The Lord is the epitome of everything that is pious and pure. He is also the God of Supreme Knowledge. He is dukhharta – remover of sorrow, sukhkarta – harbinger of prosperity and joy and vighnaharta – remover of all obstacles in life. Before every auspicious ceremony at home or at work/business fronts , the Lord, fondly addressed as Bappa, is invited and his moorat invoked for his blessings.
‘Brought home’ means placing his idol at home for stipulated number of days. Since I have a very old idol at home, which has been kind of handed down through generations, it is already placed in the mandir permanently and I don’t believe in the immersion process. The only thing is that I need someone who can repaint the murti as its paint has chipped off over time.
Bappa’s homecoming signifies the beginning of the sacred season of His worship. On this sacred day I remember my visit to Bappa’s temple in Mumbai where He is called and worshipped as Siddhi Vinayak. The Siddhi Vinayak Temple is a very powerful and famous place of worship known for fulfilling the devotees’ wishes.
It must have been more than a decade ago. I don’t remember the exact year. I was in Mumbai – the financial capital of India – on training. We were a big group and all of us wanted to have a darshan or visit the Siddhi Vinayak Mandir, which was luckily very close to our transit accommodation.
I remember walking down to the temple with a few others early in the morning. Usually devotees make it a point to walk to the temple bare feet. Even at that early hour the temple had a number of devotees standing in queue for the sacred darshan. We got the flowers, sweets and incense for offering beautifully laid out in a leaf packet.
The priests do not let the worshippers stand long in front of the deity but even a few seconds is good enough. Bappa is omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent. There is a very cute ritual followed in the temple. If the devotee wishes to communicate his/her deepest wish to the Lord that has to be whispered in the ear of his vaahana or the vehicle that carries him – the mushika or the ubiquitous rat.
The all important communicator has an idol of its own near the front gate. The procedure is to whisper the wish in its one ear while shutting the other ear with the cup of the other hand so that the playful and restless carrier retains what you asked for in its mind. Being of the corporate mindset I am curious to figure out the process of communique. How and when and why the vaahana passes on the message to its Rider. Does it add it’s own interpretation to it ? Is there a discussion between the two of them before they reach a conclusion how and when the wish is to be granted ? That’s the human side of me. Worrying as usual about the nitty gritty even after delegating the job to The Know All.
I am still learning not to seek answers to such questions, rather, not to ask these questions at all.
Well, to quench readers’ curiosity the wish did get fulfilled but not immediately though. A few years hence. Because His Divine Machination is beyond our limited comprehension the wish was finally granted at the time I or the time was ripe for it. Not one single moment before or after.
And we need not go into the ‘how’ part of it. What we should be satisfied with is ‘suntaa hai woh‘ . We are heard. (Remember these immortal words of Kabir’s nirguni bhajan sung by the one and only Kumar Gandharva ji??? )
He hears and that is what keeps us going.
Rest is immaterial.
Ganapati Bappa Moreya…
I am participating in Blogchatter’s Half Marathon
In the Bengali customs we don’t have a dedicated Ganesh Pujo and festival and he is worshiped during Durga Pujo when the Goddess visits with her children, or at the beginning of any pujo as the custom goes. It was only after I moved to Southern India that I noticed and began revelling in the festivity of Ganesh Chathruti and over time the Lord has become a constant presence in my life-his playfulness, wisdom, charm make him more of a companion right
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He is a friend…a cute, sweet friend Parikhit. One who you can trust and share your secrets with. That’s how I feel. And you are right about our Ganesh Pujo. But nothing like incorporating the good things in life. Isn’t it?
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Absolutely! I could not agree more. I always carry a small murti of Ganesh with me. Somehow it gives me strength and comfort and you are right, incorporating the good things in life makes it more colourful.
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That’s really good carrying Him with you. He is always there with you. What else is required in life ?
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Incidentally I started celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi much before it became a national craze.
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Do you ever see our BBC programme ‘The Repair Shop’? They would repaint such an historic murti.
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Thank you so much Derrrick 🙏. I will definitely see this program.
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Thank you for this. It’s a festival I was not aware of and really interesting.
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Thank you Liz for taking an interest in the Ganesha Festival
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A belated happy festival! Such a wonderfully benevolent deity. We’re not allowed idols (well, officially), but I love elephants. I’m rather fond of rats too. What a marvellous image they make.
Are you doing a run? How do we sponsor you?
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Thank you so much. It’s not belated because the festival is still on. Yes, the Lord epitomises benevolence and he is very easily pleased. You see, He has a sweet tooth. He loves laddoos and modaks.
The elephant head symbolises elephantine memory and knowledge. The rat, Google says, is an intelligent animal. But I have always thought it’s quite mischievous and destructive.
No I am not doing a run. Thanks for the spontaneous offer of sponsorship. Appreciate it.
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I think it’s wonderful that your idol of Bappa has been handed down for generations. That makes it even more special and sacred, in my opinion.
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Yes, it absolutely does. Thank you very much.
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Beautifully expressed. Faith is perhaps simply trusting that He hears us — even when we don’t understand the how or when. 🙏 Ganapati Bappa Morya!
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Thank you very much Neerja. I am glad we are on the same page
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Beautifully written!
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Thank you very much Bella. How are you doing? After a long time.
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Hi! I am doing good and glad to be back.
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We have the tradition of keeping Bappa at home too. My mother-in-law makes the idol herself, which makes it even more special. 🤍 I never got a chance to learn it from her because we were never together during Ganesh Chaturthi. Hopefully, someday I will. 😊
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I am sure you will, being so artistic yourself. Your mother-in-law making the idol is such a unique tradition. Loved it. Thanks Rajeshwari for giving a glimpse of your family tradition. Bappa be with you.
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Thank you for sharing this sacred event with us, Geeta. I can understand how meaninful it is to pray before the representation of such an important god.
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Thank you very much Mary. Thanks for reading and commenting.
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त्यौहार मुबारक हो आपको
आप और आपका घर परिवार सलामत रहे,गीता दी
आपको अपने बड़े बुजर्गों से सिर्फ मूर्ति ही नहीं,यकीन भी मिला हे
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आपको और आपके परिवार को गणेश चतुर्थी की बहुत बहुत शुभकामनाएं । आपका हर वर्ष मंगलमय और आनंद से भरपूर हो।
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शुक्रिया दीदी
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Tirupati too they don’t allow you more than a few seconds yet it is crowded. We all have faith and it is interesting we can’t provide scientific proof! I have so many Ganesha idols in my alter and I buy new ones if I find if it is cute in the store! He is addictive! Anyhow this year a girl promised a Ganesha that can be painted. I ordered but it didn’t arrive from India. He has to wait for Navaratri then 😃!
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I know. Tirupati darshan is not easy because of the crowd, queue and waiting hours. I too have many Ganesha idols and framed photos. As you say He is addictive and yes all pervasive. Have a great festive season Ganga. God bless.
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Ganesh Chaturthi in West Bengal is not that much celebrated but since I have friends living at different states told me that concept which you wrote that whispering in the ears. That quite entice me.
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You are right. In Bengal there is no concept of Ganesh Pujo. But being brought up in a cosmopolitan city we Probashis follow Navaratri, Ganesh Chaturthi, Hanuman Jayanti, Janmashtami etc.
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Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated with pomp and glory in Mangalore too. The fact that your family worships an idol passed down by generations was really heartwarming to read. We celebrate Gowri Pooja in our home and go to the temples to see Bappa’s idol.
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