Celebrated : Maharashtra
Significance : Birthday of Lord Ganesha
Time : August/September
About Ganesh Chaturthi
The
Hindu festival of Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated to mark the birthday of
Lord Ganesha, the god of fulfillment and prosperity. Ganesha is believed to
bring good luck to any new ventures and is invoked according to Hindu
traditions before beginning any auspicious work. The celebrations of Ganesh
Chaturthi generally last for ten days, however, some even stretch it to
twenty one days. According to Hindu mythological lores, Ganesh is the son of
Lord Shiva and Parvati. The elephant headed god whose vehicle is the rat is
an important part of Hindu tradition and numerous stories are attached with
how he was born.
History of Ganesh Chaturthi
According to legend, Parvati, the Hindu goddess created Ganesha out of
sandalwood that she used to bathe. Making him stand guard on the door, she
went inside to bathe. When Parvati's husband Lord Shiva asked Ganesh to let
him in, Ganesh having never seen the Lord refused to do so. Enraged at this,
Lord Shiva cut off Ganesha's head and went in. When Parvati came to know of
the incident, she begged Shiva to revive her son. At this, Lord Shiva cut
off the head of an elephant and placed it on the head of Ganesha, thus
giving rise to this elephant headed God.
Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated across the country, but especially in the
states of Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Believed to
have been brought into existence by Chhatrapati Shivaji, the great Maratha
ruler, the festival was revived by a few great Indian rulers during India's
freedom struggle to defy the British, who had banned public assemblies.
Ganesh Chaturthi invokes a spirit of oneness into the people and has gained
so much popularity that the preparations begin months in advance.
Ganesh statues, both large and small are installed into each household and
streets with exemplary decorations, lighting and flower work. The artists of
the statues compete with each other to make the best one and in process give
rise to some huge ones, some measuring a mammoth 30 metres. The idols are
worshiped each day and after a fixed period of time, are taken to the beach
and immersed into the sea. Thousands of people accompany these statues along
with drum beats and dancing.
Ganesh Chaturthi Celebrations
A life size clay statue of Lord Ganesha is made months before the day of
Ganesh Chaturthi. On the day of the festival, the idol is placed on high
platforms inside houses and worshiped by people. The puja ceremony precedes
the ritual in which first of all the priest clad in a red dhoti invokes life
into the statue by the chanting of holy mantras. Coconut, rice flour,
jaggery and certain other things are offered to the lord. The rituals
continue for ten days and on the eleventh day the idol of lord Ganesha is
taken in a huge procession through the streets, after which it is immersed
into the sea.
