Ganesha Chaturthi is a most important festival of Hindus. It is celebrated every year with lots of courage, devotion and joy by the people of Hindu religion. It is also popular by the name of Vinayaka Chaturthi in India. It is celebrated annually from ancient time all over the India to honour the most important deity of Hindu religion, Lord Ganesha (also known as elephant-headed, Vinayaka, remover of obstacles, God of wisdom and God of beginnings, etc).
According to the Hindu calendar, it falls every year in the month of Bhaadrapada (between August and September). It starts on Shukla chaturthi (means on 4th day of waxing moon period) and ends after 10 days on the Anant Chaturdashi (means on 14th day of waxing moon period).
The festival of Ganesh Chaturthi has many rituals, customs and significance for the people of Hindu religion. People become highly eager when the date of Vinayaka Chaturthi comes closer. In modern time, people bring a clay image of the Lord Ganesha to home or to the public pandals and do worship for ten days. Then statues are immersed by the people at the end of festival to the water source (sea, river, lake, etc).
It is celebrated with big enthusiasm by the people in different states of the country like Maharastra, Telangana, Karnataka, UP including other parts of Western and Southern India. It is a 10 days long festival which ends on Anant Chaturdashi. It is also celebrated in many Terai regions of the Nepal, Burma, Thailand, Canada, United States, Guyana, Mauritius, Fiji, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, etc.
GANESH CHATURTHI 2017
Ganesha Chaturthi or Vinayaka Chaturthi festival 2017 would be celebrated by the Hindu people living in India as well as abroad on 25th of August, at Friday. It falls every year in the Bhaadrapada month on shukla chaturthi (fourth lunar day) and ends on Anant Chaturdashi (fourteenth lunar day).
LEGEND OF GANESH CHATURTHI FESTIVAL
Ganesha Chaturthi is a traditional and cultural festival of the Hindus. It is celebrated to worship, honour and respect the Lord Ganesha. God Ganesha is the lovely son of the Goddess Parvati and God Shiva. The legend of Ganesha Chaturthi festival is Lord Ganesh. In the ancient time, once Lord Shiva had gone for his Samadhi in the mountains of Himalayas.
Goddess Parvati was alone and thought to create a strong son in the absence of Shiva on the Kailash. She had decided and created Lord Ganesha through the sandalwood paste (which she was used of taking bath) and then breathed a life into that statue. She had given a task to her great son, Ganesh. She said to Ganesh that, be here at the door and do not allow anyone to enter the door till I order you. She was taking bath inside under the guard of her son.
Soon, Lord Shiva came from his Samadhi and faced a new boy on the Kailash as he was not aware that Ganesh was his own son. Shiva started going inside and then prevented by the Ganesha to enter to the room. He said that Mata is taking bath and you can enter inside only when she gives me order.
Lord Shiva requested a lot but he did not allowed by son. Soon, all the deities and Goddesses gathered and requested to Ganesha for the same. They told Ganesha that Lord Shiva is your father and allow him as he has right to meet your Mata. But Ganesh denied and said that I respect my father but what I can do, I have given a strict order from my mother to stop everyone to enter the door.
Lord Shiva became very angry, and then other God and Goddess requested him to go from here and let us try once. The followers of Shiva (Ganas, Vishnu, Brahma, Indra, Narada, Saptarishis, etc) started teaching manners to the child. Indra became very angry and attacked on the child with his all power however Ganesha was very much powerful as he was embodiment of the Shakti. Ganesha defeated everyone.
Lord Shiva came again as it was the matter of pride for Shiva. He became angry and cut off the head of Ganesha by his trident. Soon, Mata Parvati came and became very angry by seeing that event. She started weeping by keeping the head and body of Ganesh in her lap. She said that I need my child again on any condition otherwise I would destroy the whole universe.
All the God and Goddess started fearing of the decision of Mata Parvati. They prayed to God Shiva to do something. Shiva said that it is impossible to join the same head but we can add head of other one to the body of Ganesha. He ordered to his followers Ganas, to go for search the head. He said that bring the head of anyone who is founded sleeping, facing to the north direction and just opposite to his/her child.
Ganas started for searching the head in the whole universe by following the same conditions told by Shiva. Finally, they found a sleeping elephant in the north direction opposite to the child. They cut off the head of that elephant and brought to the Kailash. Lord Shiva added that head to the body of Ganesha. In this way Ganesha got his life back. Mata Parvati said that her son looks like an elephant so everyone would make fun of him, nobody would respect him.
Then, Lord Shiva, Vishnu, Brahma, Indra, Ganas and all Goddesses had blessed Ganesha with lots of blessings, power, Ashtra, Shastra, etc. They told that nobody would make fun of Ganesha instead Ganesha would be worshipped by everyone before starting any new work. Ganesha would be given first priority in any puja by everyone. People who would worship Ganesha first of all would really be blessed with wisdom and Lakshmi. Mata Lakshmi said that from this day, Ganesha would sit in my lap and people would worship Ganesha with me to get wisdom and Dhan.
Lord Shiva declared that, this boy would be called Ganesha (Gana+Isha means Lord of Ganas). So, Ganesha is the God of all God. Lord Ganesha is a Vighnakartaa means obstacle-creator for the devils and Vighnahartaa means obstacle-remover for his devotees and Devas to bless them for their hard work.
HISTORY AND ORIGIN OF GANESH CHATURTHI FESTIVAL
The exact date of starting of puja on the Ganesha Chaturthi festival is not known by anyone however, according to the history it has been estimated that Ganesh Chaturthi was getting celebrated as a public event in the Pune during the time of Shivaji (founder of the Maratha Empire) during 1630 to 1680. Since Shivaji’s time, it was started celebrating regularly as Ganesha was Kuladevata of their empire. After end of Peshwas, it remained as a family celebration however revived again in 1893 by the Lokmanya Tilak (an Indian freedom fighter and social reformer).
Ganesha Chaturthi was started celebrating by the Hindu people as an annual domestic festival with a huge preparation. Gradually, it was started celebrating as a national festival to remove the conflicts between Brahmins and non-Brahmins as well as bring unity among people. People in the Maharashtra started celebrating this festival with lots of courage and nationalistic fervour during the British rule in order to get free from the cruel behaviour of Britishers. The ritual of Ganesh Visarjan was established by the Lokmanya Tilak.
Gradually, this festival was started celebrating by the people through community participation instead of family celebration. People of the society and community, get together to celebrate this festival as a community festival and to perform intellectual speech, recite poetry, dance, devotional songs, play, musical concerts, folk dances, recite mantras, aarti and many more activities in the group. People meet together before date and decide everything about celebration as well as how to control over large crowd.
Ganesh Chaturthi, a sacred Hindu festival, is celebrated by the people as a birth day of the Lord Ganesha (a God of God, means supreme God of wisdom and prosperity). The whole Hindu community celebrates together annually with full devotion and dedication. According to the Hindu mythology, it is believed that Ganesh was born on Chaturthi (4th day of bright fortnight) in Magh month. Since then, birth date of Lord Ganesha was started celebrating as Ganesh Chaturthi. Now-a-days, it is celebrated all over the world by the people of Hindu community.
HOW TO CELEBRATE GANESH CHATURTHI
The preparation of the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi starts a month or week before. Highly skilled artists and artisans start making variety of artistic clay models of the Lord Ganesha for the purpose of puja on Ganesh Chaturthi. All through the market become full of statues of Ganesh. The whole market speeds up in its full swing. It looks great everything in the market just like to welcome the big Hindu festival. Statues are also gets decorated using multiple colors to give them a real look.
PREPARATION FOR FESTIVAL
People start preparation for the festival at least a month or week ago. They prepare a most favourite dish of the Lord Ganesha called modak (in Marathi). It is named differently according to different languages like modaka or kadubu in Kannada, kozhakatta or modakkam in Malayalam, modakam or kudumu in Telugu and kozhukattai or modagam in Tamil. Modak is especially prepared for the puja using rice flour or wheat flour by mixing coconut, dry fruits, condiments and jaggery. Some people cook it through steam however some people fry it. Another dish is called karanji, just like modak but differ in shape (semicircular shape). There is a ritual of offering Modak to the Ganesha in 21 numbers.
SIGNIFICANCE OF GANESHA VISARJAN
Ganesh Visarjan is of great importance in the Hinduism. Ganesh idol made up of clay is immersed into the water which gets unformed into the water. It means that everything in this world would be unformed a day (Moksha or liberation). The process of getting formed and unformed goes forever as a never ending cycle (means Chakra). Every year Ganesha come to make us sure about the Supreme Truth of life.
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