Vighneshwara Ganesha
Lord Ganesha is invoked with this popular shloka:
वक्रतुण्ड महाकाय सूर्यकोटि समप्रभ ।
निर्विघ्नं कुरु मे देव सर्वकार्येषु सर्वदा ॥
The 1st line
offers salutations to Ganesha- the god with a curved trunk, a huge body, and
dazzling like a million Suns. The 2nd line is a prayer soliciting
the god’s blessings for removal of all obstacles and success in all enterprises
undertaken by the devotee.
Ganesha, of course, has many more attributes than the few mentioned in this
shloka. The Mudgala Purana (one of the upa-puranas), composed possibly in the
12th century or earlier, is devoted to the mythology of Ganesha, one
of the panchadevas who are worthy of worship daily and on special tithis. Centuries
ago, Ganesha had become so popular a deity that the Ganapatya sect venerated
him as the principal god. Later, when Vishnu, Mahadev, and Durga gained
prominence and inter-se seniority; Ganesha did not entirely relinquish his
glory and continues to occupy the position of the ‘God of Beginnings.’
(Dancing Ganesha, Sand stone sculpture, Madhya Pradesh, 10th century; Source: https://www.metmuseum.org)
Yet, Ganesha’s own life had a traumatic beginning. Before going for her bath, Parvati, his mother asked him to keep the door and not allow access to anyone. Shiva made an unscheduled visit and insisted upon entering the house. Shiva did not know Ganesha was Parvati’s son, and Ganesha did not know that Shiva was Parvati’s consort. He asked Shiva to wait. Shiva was livid, opened his third eye and instantly incinerated the impudent gatekeeper’s head. Later, to pacify the disconsolate mother, he sent his folks to quickly fetch a head, any head will do. That is how Ganesha was revived to life, and became known to the world as the elephant-headed god. Needless to say, the god’s elephant-head is not without deeper philosophical meaning, as in all icons of Hinduism.
While most Hindu gods and goddesses have excellent physical features, why has Ganesha a seemingly grotesque shape- the head of an elephant (Gajanana), a huge belly (Lambodara), smoky skin colour (Dhumravarna)? Further, he was assigned a mouse for his transport (Mushika-vahana). Yet, Shiva appointed Ganesha, and not the more athletic Kartikeya as Ganapati- the Chief of Ganas (the fearsome foot-soldiers of Shiva).
Mudgala Purana
The Mudgala Purana includes many stories and ritualistic elements related to Ganesha, and mentions the following eight incarnations of Ganesha, each representing different philosophical concepts and stages of creation:
1. Vakratunda - Overcomes the demon Matsaryāsura (envy, jealousy).
2. Ekadanta - Overcomes the demon Madāsura (arrogance, conceit).
3. Mahodara - Overcomes the demon Mohāsura (delusion, confusion).
4. Gajavaktra - Overcomes the demon Lobhāsura (greed).
5. Lambodara - Overcomes the demon Krodhāsura (anger).
6. Vikata - Overcomes the demon Kāmāsura (desire).
7. Vighnaraja - Overcomes the demon Mamatāsura (possessiveness).
8. Dhumravarna- Overcomes the demon Abhimanāsura (pride).
These stories not only highlight Ganesha's role in overcoming various obstacles but also convey deeper philosophical meanings.
Ganesha Worship- Special Days
Bhadrapada Shukla Chaturthi is the most special day for worship of Ganesha who is ceremonially installed at homes and public pandals on this day. How many days may Ganesha be worshipped? Devotees’ choice; Ganesha is equally pleased to be worshipped for a day, three days, five days, or for the entire duration of Chaturthi to Anant Chaturdashi when he is bid farewell, the most spectacular of which is the annual mega procession of Ganesha Visarjan at Mumbai. However, staunch devotees of Ganesha observe a vrata every fortnight- Shukla Chaturthi as Vinayaki vrata, and Krishna Chaturthi as Ganesha Chaturthi vrata. Thus, twenty-four special days for worship of Ganesha. Today is popularly known as Ganesha Chaturthi, but Ram Narayan panchang lists all Shukla Chaturthis as Vinayaki Chaturthi.
Popular Mantras for Ganesha Worship
Ganehsa is a
very popular god; and many mantras, stotras, and bhajans in several languages have
been composed to worship him.
Which are
the most potent mantras to worship Ganesha? The devotees have many to choose
from, depending on their objective.
One may
chant-
Bija Mantra:
ओम गं गणपतये नमः[i],
Ganesha Gayatri Mantra:
ॐ एकदन्ताय विद्महे वक्रतुण्डाय धीमहि।
तन्नो दन्तिः प्रचोदयात्॥[ii]
Ganesha Shadakshara mantra:
ॐ वक्रतुण्डाय हुम्।[iii]
Or, the devotee may recite or listen to Ganesha Shasranamam
Stotram, the 1000 names, of which there are several versions- one named ‘Ga’karadi
Ganesha Sahasranama with each name, pada, and shloka beginning with the
consonant ‘ga’, the bijakshara for Ganesha!
My favourite Stotras and Chants
·
Ganapati stotram[iv] composed
by Adi Shankaracharya; an excellent prayer owing to its lyricism, eloquence,
and poetic elegance.
·
Maha Ganapati Mool Mantra
& Ganesha Gayatri chanting by Uma Mohan.[v]
May Lord Ganesha bless us all.
Resources
·
Sanskritdocuments.org
·
Sahasranama Stotra Sangraha, Gita Press, Gorakhpur
·
CoPilot
·
You Tube
[i] Link for Ganesha Bija Mantra: https://youtu.be/EVMfZxp6XAE?si=G6weGS2ZuGLo-p-N
[ii] Link for Ganesha Gayatri Mantra: https://youtu.be/dkVlpm1mKFI?si=qDo3xPKxXWmagnlO
[iii] Link for Ganesha Shadakshara Mantra: https://youtu.be/dGbQGjEYL8o?si=73zxIiw6TiXikcQt
[iv] श्रीमच्छङ्कराचार्यविरचितं गणपतिस्तोत्रं
सुवर्णवर्णसुन्दरं
सितैकदन्तबन्धुरं
गृहीतपाशकाङ्कुशं
वरप्रदाभयप्रदम् ।
चतुर्भुजं
त्रिलोचनं भुजङ्गमोपवीतिनं
प्रफुल्लवारिजासनं भजामि सिन्धुराननम् ॥ १॥
किरीटहारकुण्डलं
प्रदीप्तबाहुभूषणं
प्रचण्डरत्नकङ्कणं
प्रशोभिताङ्ङ्घ्रयष्टिकम् ।
प्रभातसूर्यसुन्दराम्बरद्वयप्रधारिणं
सरलहेमनूपुरं
प्रशोभिताङ्घ्रिपङ्कजम् ॥ २॥
सुवर्णदण्डमण्डितप्रचण्डचारुचामरं
गृहप्रतीर्णसुन्दरं
युगक्षणं प्रमोदितम् ।
कवीन्द्रचित्तरञ्जकं
महाविपत्तिभञ्जकं
षडक्षरस्वरूपिणं भजेद्गजेन्द्ररूपिणम् ॥ ३॥
विरिञ्चिविष्णुवन्दितं
विरूपलोचनस्तुतिं
गिरीशदर्शनेच्छया
समर्पितं पराशया ।
निरन्तरं
सुरासुरैः सपुत्रवामलोचनैः
महामखेष्टमिष्टकर्मसु
(स्मृतं) भजामि तुन्दिलम् ॥ ४॥
मदौघलुब्धचञ्चलार्कमञ्जुगुञ्जितारवं
प्रबुद्धचित्तरञ्जकं
प्रमोदकर्णचालकम् ।
अनन्यभक्तिमानवं
प्रचण्डमुक्तिदायकं
नमामि
नित्यमादरेण वक्रतुण्डनायकम् ॥ ५॥
दारिद्र्यविद्रावणमाशु कामदं स्तोत्रं पठेदेतदजस्रमादरात् ।
पुत्रीकलत्रस्वजनेषु
मैत्री पुमान्मवेदेकवरप्रसादात् ॥६॥
इति
श्रीमच्छङ्कराचार्यविरचितं गणपतिस्तोत्रं सम्पूर्णम् ।
[v] Maha Ganapati Mool Mantra & Ganesha Gayatri
chanting by Uma Mohan: https://youtu.be/3uYZWsgo8bY?si=Oc2mZP_jj54bmFbb
Well explained.
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