Ganesh Chaturthi
On the fourth day of the bright half of Bhadrapad, the festival of Ganesh Chatuthi is celebrated in India. Months ahead, hundreds of thousand sof clay idols of Lord Ganesh are made with great enthusaism and excitement and brought to towns and cities.These are worshipped at community or family festivals lasting between one to ten days according to each group's tradition.
Till renowned patriot Balgangadhar Tilak used its appeal to create a public festival and propagate the struggle for independence, Ganesh Chaturthi was largely a family celebration restricted to homes.
Lord Ganesh is the ever-present deity of India and all events are begun with his worship. He is the remover of obstacles and hence people worship him before they begin any task.
According to one legend, Ganesha was invited to a feast by Indra. when he mounted his vehicle, the mouse, he lost balance and fell. The moon, shining in the night sky, laughed at him.Angered by this insult , Ganesha broke his left tusk and threw it causing a dent on the surface of the moon. He was left with one tusk and hence came to be known as Ekadanta or 'with one tooth'. He then cursed the moon saying that whoever looked at the moon on Ganesh Chaturthi would undergo privations and hence devotees avoid looking at the moon on this day.
According to a Puranic legend sage Narada once came to Kailas, the abode of Lord Shiva, with a rare fruit from the gardens of Nandanvan. Like all children, Karthikeya and Ganesha asked for it. Narada asked both sons of Shiva to race around the universe and offered to give th efruit to the one who returned to Kailas first. While Karthikeya set out on his peacock, Ganesha went around his parents and claimed the fruit saying that his parents were his universe. His devotion to his parents won him the fruit and the blessings of the great sage and his parents.
Ganesh Chatuthi is celebrated all over the country with great enthusiasm. Families celebrate by feasting on sweets, especially the sweet modaks made from flour and stuffed with coconut and sugar.Idols are decorated and displayed in all homes.The Ganesha idols are immersed on the second, fifith or eleventh day, Ananta Chaturdashi, or the day preceding teh full moon day of Bhadrapad.
On the fourth day of the bright half of Bhadrapad, the festival of Ganesh Chatuthi is celebrated in India. Months ahead, hundreds of thousand sof clay idols of Lord Ganesh are made with great enthusaism and excitement and brought to towns and cities.These are worshipped at community or family festivals lasting between one to ten days according to each group's tradition.
Till renowned patriot Balgangadhar Tilak used its appeal to create a public festival and propagate the struggle for independence, Ganesh Chaturthi was largely a family celebration restricted to homes.
Lord Ganesh is the ever-present deity of India and all events are begun with his worship. He is the remover of obstacles and hence people worship him before they begin any task.According to one legend, Ganesha was invited to a feast by Indra. when he mounted his vehicle, the mouse, he lost balance and fell. The moon, shining in the night sky, laughed at him.Angered by this insult , Ganesha broke his left tusk and threw it causing a dent on the surface of the moon. He was left with one tusk and hence came to be known as Ekadanta or 'with one tooth'. He then cursed the moon saying that whoever looked at the moon on Ganesh Chaturthi would undergo privations and hence devotees avoid looking at the moon on this day.
According to a Puranic legend sage Narada once came to Kailas, the abode of Lord Shiva, with a rare fruit from the gardens of Nandanvan. Like all children, Karthikeya and Ganesha asked for it. Narada asked both sons of Shiva to race around the universe and offered to give th efruit to the one who returned to Kailas first. While Karthikeya set out on his peacock, Ganesha went around his parents and claimed the fruit saying that his parents were his universe. His devotion to his parents won him the fruit and the blessings of the great sage and his parents.
Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated all over the country with great enthusiasm. Families celebrate by feasting on sweets, especially the sweet modaks made from flour and stuffed with coconut and sugar.Idols are decorated and displayed in all homes.The Ganesha idols are immersed on the second, fifith or eleventh day, Ananta Chaturdashi, or the day preceding the full moon day of Bhadrapad.
