Vinayaka or Ganesha Chaturthi is the Hindu festival celebrated on the
birthday (rebirth) of Lord Ganesha, the son of Shiva and Parvati. He is
worshiped as the Lord of beginnings and as the Lord of obstacles, the patron of
arts and sciences, and the God of intellect and wisdom. This year Ganesha
Chaturthi falls on Monday, the 9th of
September.
May Lord Ganesh bless you with Devotion, Knowledge and Prosperity.
Ganesha Mantra Chanting
Ganesha Tales:
There is a story behind the symbolic snake, rat and the singular
tusk. During one of the birthdays of Ganesha, His mother, Parvati, cooked for
him twenty-one types of delicious food and a lot of sweet porridge. Ganesha ate
so much that even his big belly could not contain it. Mounting his little
mouse, he embarked on his nightly rounds. His mouse suddenly stumbled upon
seeing a huge snake. To adjust His belly, Ganesha put the snake on as a belt
around his stomach. All of a sudden, he heard laughter emanating form the sky.
He looked up and saw the moon mocking him. Ganesha infuriated, broke
off one of his tusks and hurled it at the moon. Parvati, seeing this,
immediately cursed the moon that whoever looks at it on Ganesh Chaturthi will
be accused of a wrong doing. The symbology behind the mouse and snake and
Ganesha's big belly and its relationship to the moon on his birthday is highly
philosophic. The whole cosmos is known to be the belly of Ganesha. Parvati is
the primordial energy. The seven realms above, seven realms below and seven
oceans, are inside the cosmic belly of Ganesha, held together by the cosmic
energy (kundalini ) symbolized as a huge snake which Ganesha ties around Him.
The mouse is nothing but our ego. Ganesha, using the mouse as a vehicle,
exemplifies the need to control our ego. One who has controlled the ego has
Ganesha consciousness or God-consciousness.
Who is Elder?
Ganesha and His brother Lord Subramanya (Kartikya) once
had a dispute as to who was the elder of the two. The matter was referred to
Lord Shiva for final decision. Shiva decided that whoever would make a tour of
the whole world and come back first to the starting point had the right to be
the elder. Subramanya flew off at once on his vehicle, the peacock, to make a
circuit of the world. But the wise Ganesha went, in loving worshipfulness,
around His divine parents and asked for the prize of His victory.
Lord Shiva said, "Beloved and wise Ganesha! But how
can I give you the prize; you did not go around the world?"
Ganesha replied, "No, but I have gone around my
parents. My parents represent the entire manifested universe!"
Thus the dispute was settled in favour of Lord Ganesha,
who was thereafter acknowledged as the elder of the two brothers. Mother
Parvati also gave Him a fruit as a prize for this victory.
Courtesy: hinduism.about.com, knowmyindia.com
Symbolism of Ganesha:
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