Ganesha - The Journey of a Guest from Chaturthi to Chaturdashi (4th to 14th) - Through Hearts, Culture, Imaginations... and our lives!!
Pudhchya Varshi Lavkar Ya -
"गणपति बप्पा मोरिया, पुढच्या वर्षी लवकर या''
Agle Baras tu Jaldi Aa -
गणपति बप्पा मोरिया, अगले बरस तू जल्दी आ...
‘Ganpati Bappa Morya’ – the chant every devotee chants during the 10-day Ganesh festival across India echoes in our hearts and minds long after. The complete chant that originated in Marathwada goes like this : “गणपति बप्पा मोरया, पुढ़चा वर्षी लॉकर या।” (Ganpati Bappa Morya, Pudhcha Varshi Loukar Ya).
Ganpati – the name used for Lord Ganesha is a Sanskrit word meaning – a combination of Sanskrit words "gana" and "pati". Gana (गण) means a group of people – in this case humans and pati (पति) means lord or master. These are the words that literally translate into the fact that Lord Ganesha is the people's lord or one of the most loved deities from the majestic and powerful family of Shiva and Parvati.
Bappa is a word that says father or lord – a way of respectfully addressing Lord Ganesha who is the father of everyone on Earth.
Morya, has a very interesting story behind it. Legend has it that Morya Gosavi, who lived in the 14th century was a great devotee of Lord Ganesha and a priest of the Hindu Ganpataya sect. Some legends say that Morya asked a wish from Lord Ganesha that his name be associated with the Lord forever. Some say, that Morya is used to denote the never-ending relationship between God and devotees, with Morya being the devotee.
Near the Ganesh Temple in Chinchwad, Maharashtra, Morya Gosavi’s tomb is situated where he took Samadhi. Ever since then, his name is taken with Lord Ganesha.
The second part of this chant – pudhcha varshi loukar ya, is Marathi for come soon again next year. It is a way of welcoming Lord Ganesha once again in the lives of his devotees after the 10-day festival ends.
So how does a religious celebration become such a culturally significant and personal thing for the elderly, the young and children alike? Why is it that Ganapati Bappa leaving is the most painful and tear jerking part of the festivities? What is the origin and cultural significance.
I have always been a Bombay boy when it comes to my Ganesha Celebrations as my mother dearest is from Mumbai and both me and my younger sibling have been born with this celebration etched into our subconscious even before we could apply logic or reasoning to any customs and traditions. For those who like questioning and doubting everything nowadays (thanks to Internet), here's the story of Ganesha in my words and the various interpretations / explanations and beliefs associated with this festival of The People's Lord - Ganesha.
So, here we go... Lord Ganesha the first to be worshiped or प्रथम पूज्य is the position of distinction to the Elder (according to some) or younger son of Lord Shiva and Devi Parvati. According to legend, Once, when Goddess Parvati was to go to take a bath, she took some turmeric paste and created a human form with her own hands, then she breathed life into it (more like our own parents taking us and molding us into who we turn out to be). This boy turned out to be Ganesha who was obedient but a little naive. The instructions to not let anyone enter stuck with the boy who refused entry to Lord Shiva, who had returned after a long penance from the Himalayas. The audacity of a boy stopping him from entering his own home infuriated Shiva and in a fit of rage, Shiva lifted his trident and severed the head of the boy.
Upon returning, Goddess Parvati was shocked and devastated to see the lifeless body of her very own son in front of her sight and got very angry. She demanded Shiva to reverse his act and bring the boy back to life, but the head that was severed simply couldn't be rejoined because the impact of the Trident was so powerful that the head was submerged in the ocean and out of reach. Lord Shiva then implored his bull, Nandi to go find the head of the first creature that was away from his mother as only a child that does not love his mother would be away from her and upon searching, Nandi found an elephant calf whose head he brought back.
Shiva then placed the head of this elephant on the lifeless body of the boy and brought him back to life. Upon the return of the child, Goddess Parvati was pleased yet worried that the physical appearance of the boy shall invite mocking and ridicule from the other gods. Shiva then invited all the gods and asked them to bless Lord Ganesha the first among devas as his way was the wisest, intelligent and calm by showcasing his wisdom when in a competition with his brother Karthikeya they established a challenge of encircling the Earth the fastest. The vehicle (vahana) of Karthikeya was a Celestial Peacock mounting which, the God of War Karthikeya swiftly was on way to winning the competition leaving the underwhelmed Ganesh with his measly mouse (mooshak) but Ganesha casually sauntered over to his parents Shiva and Parvati and circulated around them quoting from the Vedas that "he who embraces and worships their own parents gains the merits of the encircling the world"
Although it is unknown when (or how) Ganesh Chaturthi became to be observed as a festival, but historical records show that it has been publicly celebrated in Pune since the era of Chhatrapati Shivaji, founder of the Maratha Empire). After the start of the British Raj, the Ganesh festival lost state patronage and became a private family celebration in Maharashtra until its revival by Indian freedom fighter and social reformer Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak
Coming back to the traditions, Ganesha Chaturthi (Ganeshotsav) is held during "Bhadrapada Madyahanaa Purvabaddha". If the Chaturthi tithi begins at night on the previous day and gets over by morning on next day then the next day is observed as Vinayaka Chaturthi. In the consecration ceremony, a priest performs a Prana Pratishtha to invite Ganesh like a very special guest विशेष अतिथि. This is followed by the 16-step Shodashopachara ritual] (Sanskrit: Shodash, 16; Upachara, process) during which coconut, jaggery, modaks, durva grass and red hibiscus (Jaswand) flowers are offered to the idol (symbolic for the presence of the deity). The ceremony commences with hymns from the Rigveda, the Ganapati Atharvashirsa, the Upanishads and the Ganesh stotra (prayer) from the Narada Purana are chanted. Like any special guest, daily Thaali is offered to the special guest and daily new and delicious treats are offered to the Prime Deity Ganesha as a mark of respect and reverence.
On the last day of the festival, the custom of Ganesh Visarjan takes place. The concluding day of the 10-day festival is also popularly known as "Anant Chaturdashi". As the word 'visarjan' implies, on this day immersion ('visarjan' means immersion) of Lord Ganapati's idol takes place in a river, sea or water body. On the last day, the devotees come out in processions carrying the idols of their beloved God and perform the immersion ritual symbolic of all good things returning back to nature.
There is an interesting story behind the legend of Ganesh visarjan. It is believed that Lord Ganesha returns to Mount Kailash to join his parents Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati on the last day of the festival. The celebration of Ganesh Chaturthi also denotes the significance of the cycle of birth, life and death. Ganesha, who is also known as the Lord of New Beginnings, is also worshipped as the Remover of Obstacles. It is believed that when the idol of the Ganesha is taken out for immersion, it also takes away with it the various obstacles of the house and these obstacles are destroyed along with the visarjan. Every year, people wait with great anticipation to celebrate the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi.
Even the journey of going back home has rituals associated with it, including the immersion of the idol of Lord Ganesha in water after finishing all the rituals of puja and packing some food for the journey all symbolic of being careful and observant of the needs of the Lord during his journey back home after staying as a revered guest (atithi) at our homes, even after the visarjan there are some rituals followed by ver few like retaining the holy water from the final abhishek of Bappa before the idol immersion and the residual mud being brought back home as a mark of Bappa and the fond memories of the 10 days of stay the Lord chose to live among the mortals.
The practice of sending a packet of food along with Lord known as Bhaatu
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