Jai Mata Di: August 2011

Vakratunda Mahakaaya Suryakoti Samaprabha Nirvighnam Kuru Mey Deva Sarva Kaaryeshu Sarvada

Vakratunda - A person with curved mouth/ trunk, meant for Lord Ganeshji as he is with the face of an elephant.

Mahakaaya - Maha means giant or large. Kaaya - figure; a person with a large physique. Meant for Lord Ganesh.

SuryaKoti - Surya means the Sun God, Koti means Crore; so suryakoti means like million suns or bearing the light of millions of suns.

Samaprabha - Prabha means light. Sama means equal to

Nirbighnam - Bighnam means obstacles. Nirbighnam - Nih+Bighnam, means with no obstacles or removed obstacles. Kuru - Please do. Mey - to me. Deva- God/Lord. Sarva- all. Karyesu- in all the actions/works/deeds. Sarbada - Always.

Meaning: The God with the bent trunk and a huge body, who has the magnificence of a Million Suns, Oh Lord I pray to you, to eliminate always the obstacles from all the actions I do perform.

The birthday of Lord Ganesha is celebrated as the auspicious Ganesh Puja each year on the 4th day of the waxing moon period (Sukla pakshya) of the month of Bhadraba or Bhadrapada. Because it is observed on the 4th day, it is also called Ganesh Chaturthi. The date normally falls in either in August or in the month of September.

In 2011 the Ganesh Puja will be held on 1st of September. Worship of Lord Ganesh is commemorated all over India basically by the Hindus. However, in Maharastra it is the largest worship fun fare which continues for long 10 days. Besides India now Ganesh puja is also rejoiced throughout the world by the NRIs. Seldom participation of people from other religion has also been marked.

The Legend of Incarnation of Ganeshji

It is believed that long long ago in the Mytho era Goddess Parvati created Ganesha out of clay and breathed life into him. Letting him stand guard at the door, Goddess Parvati went to have her bath. When Lord Shiva, her husband, returned, the child Ganesha who had never seen him did not allow Shiva to enter. This led to emergence of war between the two and finally an enraged Shiva severed the head of the child. Goddess Parvati returned to find her son dead and was distressed and asked Shiva to revive him. Knowing the fact now, Shiva asked his followers to cut off and fetch the head of an elephant and fixed it on the body of Ganesha, giving birth to an elephant-headed Ganesha.

Meaning of Ganesh - Gana means devas or the Gods. Isha means chief, head. Ganesha =Gana+Isha. Means the chief or head of the Ganas/Devas/Gods. In worship of the Hindu Gods or Goddesses first Lord Ganesha is invited to be worshipped as he is the remover of obstacles.

Environmentalists affirm that the idols of Ganesha, made of Plaster of Paris takes much longer time to dissolve and in the process of dissolution releases toxic elements into the water body. The chemical paints used to decorate these plaster icons themselves contain heavy metals like mercury and cadmium leading to environmental pollution. Hence I would like to request all to worship idols made of clay.

“Ohm, Gang Ganapataye Namo Namah” - This is called the ‘bija’ mantra of Lord Ganesh. Hence devotees are requested to chant this pious mantra to get the divine blessings of the Lord. However one can sing the whole of these to make a melodious tune - Om Ganapataye Namo Namah, Shree Sidhhi Vinaayaka Namo Namah, Asta Vinaayaka Namo Namah, Ganapati Bappa Moreya. Please repeat this in 2 or 3 dhuns and if possible with orchestra in a group, you can feel that after a while a divine atmosphere has been created.