Ganesh Chaturthi or "Vinayak Chaturthi"
is one of the major traditional festivals celebrated by the Hindu
community. It is observed in the Hindu calendar month of Bhadrapada,
starting on the shukla chaturthi (fourth day of the waxing moon
period). Typically the day falls sometime between August 20 and
September 15. The festival lasts for 10 days, ending on Ananta
Chaturdashi, and is traditionally celebrated as the birthday of Lord
Ganesha.
According to Hindu mythology, Lord Ganesha is the son of Shiva (The
God of Destruction in the Hindu Holy Trinity of
Creator-Preserver-Destroyer) and Parvati (Shiva’s consort). The cutest
and most lovable Indian God, Ganesha or Ganpati has the head of an
elephant on which rests an elegant tiara, four podgy hands joined to a
sizeable belly with each hand holding its own symbolic object - a
trishul or a trident in one, an ankush or goad (made from his very own
broken tooth) in another, a lotus in the third and a rosary (which is
sometimes replaced by modaks, his favourite sweet) in the fourth.
Revered as the deity of auspiciousness and wisdom, Lord Ganesha is
also famous for being a trickster and for his profound sense of humour.
It is believed that Lord Ganesh was born on a fourth day (chaturthi)
of the bright fortnight of the Hindu lunar month of Magh. Since then,
an association between Ganesh and chaturthi has been established. Thus
the festival dedicated to the worship of Lord Ganesha on this
chaturthi day is named as Ganesh Chaturthi.
There is a curiously interesting tale about the birth of Ganesha. It
is believed that once while Parvati was bathing, she created a human
figure from some unguent and balm, gave him life and asked him to
guard the door while she bathed. After a long period of meditation on
Mountain Kailash (Lord Shiva’s abode), Shiva chose that very moment to
drop by to see his better half, but was abruptly stopped by the
man-god Parvati had posted at the door. Outraged by the cheek of this
stranger, Shiva cut off his head only to discover moments later that
he had killed Parvati’s son! For fear of enraging his wife, Shiva
immediately dispatched his ganas (attendants) to get him the head of
the first living creature they could find. Well, the first living
creature happened to be an elephant. As instructed, the head was
chopped off and brought back to Shiva, who placed it on Parvati’s
son’s body, bringing him back to life. This elephant-headed god was
welcomed into the first family of the Hindu heavens and named Ganesha
or Ganapati, which literally means the chief of the ganas, or the
attendants of Shiva. Ganesha is the foremost god of the Hindu
pantheon. This brave guardian of the door to Parvati’s bath is beheld
today as the most auspicious God of new beginnings. He is worshipped
during every festival and before people undertake a journey or embark
upon a new venture. You will also see him carefully guarding entrances
to temples and homes, peeping out of calendars and happily gracing
marriages and other such occasions.
It is not known when and how Ganesh Chaturthi was first celebrated.
But according to the historian Shri Rajwade, the earliest Ganesh
Chaturthi celebrations can be traced back to the times of the reigns
of dynasties as Satavahana, Rashtrakuta and Chalukya. Historical
records reveal that Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations were initiated in
Maharashtra by Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaja, the great Maratha ruler,
to promote culture and nationalism. And it had continued ever since.
There are also references in history to similar celebrations during
Peshwa times. It is believed that Lord Ganapati was the family deity
of the Peshwas. After the end of Peshwa rule, Ganesh Chaturthi
remained a family affair in Maharashtra from the period of 1818 to
1892.
1857 was a landmark year for India and moreso in the context of Indian
freedom. It was the year of Sepoy Mutiny, an armed rebellion against
the ruling British Empire by the Indian soldiers. This was the first
war that India waged to gain back her independence from her white
rulers. Though unsuccesful, this battle marked the beginning of the
Indian struggle for independence. Many orators, leaders and freedom
fighters all over India teamed to put up a united resistance to the
British domination. One of these eminent leaders was Bal Gangadhar
Tilak, an Indian nationalist, social reformer and freedom fighter.
Greatly esteemed by the Indian people, especially of Maharashtra,
Tilak was commonly referred to as "Lokmanya" or "he who is regarded by
the people". It was Tilak, who brought back the tradition of Ganesh
Chaturthi and reshaped the annual Ganesh festival from private family
celebrations into a grand public event.
Lokamanya saw how Lord Ganesha was worshipped by the upper stratum as
well as the rank and file of India. The visionary that he was, Tilak
realized the cultural importance of this deity and popularised Ganesha
Chaturthi as a National Festival "to bridge the gap between the
Brahmins and the non-Brahmins and find an appropriate context in which
to build a new grassroots unity between them" in his nationalistic
strivings against the British in Maharashtra. He knew that India
couldn't fight her rulers until she solved the differences within her
own. Hence, to unite all social classes Tilak chose Ganesha as a
rallying point for Indian protest against British rule because of his
wide appeal as "the god for Everyman".
It was around 1893, during the nascent stages of Indian nationalism,
that Tilak began to organize the Ganesh Utsav as a social and
religious function. He was the first to put in large public images of
Ganesha in pavilions and establish the tradition of their immersion on
the tenth day. The festival facilitated community participation and
involvement in the form of learned discourses, dance dramas, poetry
recital, musical concerts, debates, etc. It served as a meeting place
for common people of all castes and communities, at a time when all
social and political gatherings were forbidden by the British Empire
for fear of conspiracies to be hatched against them. An important
festival during the Peshwa era, Ganesha Chaturthi acquired at this
time a more organized form all over India largely due to Lokmanya's
efforts.
Since then, Ganesh Chaturthi has been celebrated throughout
Maharashtra as also in other states with great community enthusiasm
and participation. With the independence of India in 1947, it was
proclaimed to be a national festival.
Today, Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated in the states of Maharashtra,
Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh and many other parts of
India. The festival is so popular that the preparations begin months
in advance. Days before the actual worship, homes are cleaned and
marquees erected at street corners to house the idols of the Lord.
Elaborate arrangements are made for lighting, decoration, mirrors and
flowers. The artisans who make the idols of Ganesh vie with each other
to make bigger and better sculptures. The sizes of the relatively
larger ones range anywhere from 10 meters to 30 meters in height.
These are installed in marquees and in homes prior to the Puja (worship).
During the festival days, the Lord is worshipped with great devotion
and prayer services are performed daily. The duration of the Lord's
stay varies from place to place; once the worship is complete, the
statues are carried on decorated floats to be immersed in the sea
after one, three, five, seven and ten days. Thousands of processions
converge on the beaches to immerse the holy idols in the sea. This
procession and immersion is accompanied with dancing and the sound of
exciting drum-beats, devotional songs and exploding firecrackers. As
the idol is immersed amidst loud chants of "Ganesh Maharaj Ki Jai!"
(Hail Lord Ganesh), the festival comes to an end with pleas to the
Lord to return the next year with chants of "Ganpati bappa morya,
pudcha varshi laukar ya" (Hail Lord Ganesh, return again soon next
year). Tourists from all over the world come to witness this wonderful
event in the sun kissed beaches of Goa and Mumbai.
While celebrated all over India, Ganesh Chaturthi festivities are most
elaborate in states like Maharashtra, Goa (It is the biggest festival
for Konkani people all over the world), Gujarat, Karnataka and Andhra
Pradesh, and other areas which were former states of the Maratha
Empire. Outside India, it is celebrated in Nepal by the Newars.
In the 21st century, with the world turning fast into a global
village, Ganesh Chaturthi is now celebrated all over the world,
wherever there is a presence of a Hindu community.
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