Ganesha (/ɡəˈneɪʃə/; Sanskrit: गणेश, Gaṇeśa; 
listen (help·info)), also known as Ganapati and Vinayaka, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon. His image is found throughout India, Sri Lanka and Nepal. Hindu sects worship him regardless of affiliations. Devotion to Ganesha is widely diffused and extends to Jains and Buddhists.
listen (help·info)), also known as Ganapati and Vinayaka, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon. His image is found throughout India, Sri Lanka and Nepal. Hindu sects worship him regardless of affiliations. Devotion to Ganesha is widely diffused and extends to Jains and Buddhists.
Although he is known by many attributes, Ganesha's elephant head makes him easy to identify. Ganesha is widely revered as the remover of obstacles, the patron of arts and sciences and the deva of intellect and wisdom. As the god of beginnings, he is honoured at the start of rituals and ceremonies. Ganesha is also invoked as patron of letters and learning during writing sessions. Several texts relate mythological anecdotes associated with his birth and exploits and explain his distinct iconography.
Ganesha emerged as a distinct deity in the 4th and 5th centuries AD, during the Gupta period, although he inherited traits from Vedic and pre-Vedic precursors. He was formally included among the five primary deities of Smartism (a Hindu denomination) in the 9th century. A sect of devotees called the Ganapatya arose, who identified Ganesha as the supreme deity. The principal scriptures dedicated to Ganesha are the Ganesha Purana, the Mudgala Purana, and the Ganapati Atharvashirsa. Brahma Purana and Brahmanda Purana are other two Puranic genre encyclopedic texts that deal with Ganesha.Ganesha has been ascribed many other titles and epithets, including Ganapati (Ganpati) and Vighneshvara.
The name Ganesha is a Sanskrit compound, joining the words gana (gaṇa), meaning a group, multitude, or categorical system and isha (īśa), meaning lord or master. The word gaņa when associated with Ganesha is often taken to refer to the gaņas, a troop of semi-divine beings that form part of the retinue of Shiva, Ganesha's father. The term more generally means a category, class, community, association, or corporation.[ Some commentators interpret the name "Lord of the Gaņas" to mean "Lord of Hosts" or "Lord of created categories", such as the elements. Ganapati (गणपति; gaṇapati), a synonym for Ganesha, is a compound composed of gaṇa, meaning "group", and pati, meaning "ruler" or "lord". Though the earliest mention of the word Ganapati is found in hymn 2.23.1 of the 2nd-millennium BCE Rigveda, it is however uncertain that the Vedic term referred specifically to
Vinayaka (विनायक; vināyaka) is a common name for Ganesha that appears in the Purāṇas and in Buddhist Tantras.[24] This name is reflected in the naming of the eight famous Ganesha temples in Maharashtra known as the Ashtavinayak (Marathi: अष्टविनायक,aṣṭavināyaka).
A prominent name for Ganesha in the Tamil language is Pillai (Tamil: பிள்ளை) or Pillaiyar (பிள்ளையார்). A. K. Narain differentiates these terms by saying that pillai means a "child" while pillaiyar means a "noble child". He adds that the words pallu, pella, and pell in the Dravidian family of languages signify "tooth or tusk", also "elephant tooth or tusk". Anita Raina Thapan notes that the root word pille in the name Pillaiyar might have originally meant "the young of the elephant", because the Pali word pillaka means "a young elephant".
In the Burmese language, Ganesha is known as Maha Peinne (မဟာပိန္နဲ, pronounced: [məhà pèiɴné]), derived from Pali Mahā Wināyaka (မဟာဝိနာယက).The widespread name of Ganesha in Thailand is Phra Phikanet.The earliest images and mention of Ganesha names as a major deity in present-day Indonesia,Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam date from the 7th- and 8th-centuries,and these mirror Indian examples of the 5th century or earlier.
In Sri Lankan Singhala Buddhist areas he is known as Gana deviyo, and revered along with Buddha, Vishnu, Skanda and others.Ganesha is a popular figure in Indian art.[37] Unlike those of some deities, representations of Ganesha show wide variations and distinct patterns changing over time.[38] He may be portrayed standing, dancing, heroically taking action against demons, playing with his family as a boy, sitting down or on an elevated seat, or engaging in a range of contemporary situations.
Ganesha images were prevalent in many parts of India by the 6th century. The 13th century statue pictured is typical of Ganesha statuary from 900–1200, after Ganesha had been well-established as an independent deity with his own sect. This example features some of Ganesha's common iconographic elements. A virtually identical statue has been dated between 973–1200 by Paul Martin-Dubost, and another similar statue is dated c. 12th century by Pratapaditya Pal. Ganesha has the head of an elephant and a big belly. This statue has four arms, which is common in depictions of Ganesha. He holds his own broken tusk in his lower-right hand and holds a delicacy, which he samples with his trunk, in his lower-left hand. The motif of Ganesha turning his trunk sharply to his left to taste a sweet in his lower-left hand is a particularly archaic feature.A more primitive statue in one of the Ellora Caves with this general form has been dated to the 7th century. Details of the other hands are difficult to make out on the statue shown. In the standard configuration, Ganesha typically holds an axe or a goad in one upper arm and a pasha (noose) in the other upper arm. In rare instances, he may be depicted with a human head.
The influence of this old constellation of iconographic elements can still be seen in contemporary representations of Ganesha. In one modern form, the only variation from these old elements is that the lower-right hand does not hold the broken tusk but is turned towards the viewer in a gesture of protection or fearlessness (abhaya mudra). The same combination of four arms and attributes occurs in statues of Ganesha dancing, which is a very popular theme.Every year Raju Laljibhai Dipikar goes out with his wife and three daughters and chooses an elaborate statue of Ganesha, the elephant-headed deity so dear to devout Hindus.
For two days the deity "lives" with the family in their tiny apartment in Mumbai, his presence bringing them joy. And in return for the love the family showers on him he takes away all their problems, Dipikar says.
So it is for tens of millions of other families across western and southern India when they mark the birthday of Ganesha. Idols of the deity are purchased and brought home, where they are worshipped.
After a few days ─ every family has its own tradition ─ the idols, made from plaster of Paris or clay, are carried to a large body of water and ceremonially immersed.
Nowhere is the festival celebrated with more fervour than in Mumbai.
For 10 days every year the pace of India's bustling business capital slows to welcome the deity, known as the one who blesses new beginnings and removes obstacles.
Apart from the small idols installed in people's homes, massive statues are set up in temporary structures.
Flowers and coconuts and incense are offered to the deity as is his favourite sweet treat ─ dumplings called "modaks," made of a crude sugar and coconut.
The last day of the 10-day celebration is the biggest day, with massive crowds singing and dancing as they carry their idols through the streets, to immerse them in the water, an act that symbolises sending the deity back to his mythical home in the snow-capped mountains taking all the worries and problems of his worshippers with him.
Tags:
International