Lord Ganesha

[Guest guest]

Greetings Friends,

 

Here's something I came across and would like to share:

 

Ganesh Chaturthi and Lord Ganesha

 

Ganesha Chaturthi is the birthday of Lord Ganesha on Bhadrapada

Shukla

Chaturti, the day is specially sacred to Lord Ganesha. The worship of

Ganesha continues till Ananta Chaturdasi (Bhadrapada Shukla 14th).

The

festivities continue for full ten days. Thereafter the highly

decorated image made of clay, is carried in big processions and

immersed in sea, river or well.

 

Ganesha is presented as the son of Siva & Parvati. During one of his

birthdays, His mother, Shakti Parvati, cooked for Him twenty-one

types

of delicious food and a lot of sweet porridge. Ganesha ate so much

that even His big belly could not contain it. Mounting His little

mouse, he embarked on His nightly rounds. His mouse suddenly stumbled

upon seeing a huge snake. To adjust His belly, Ganesha put the snake

on as a belt around His stomach. All of a sudden, He heard laughter

emanating form the sky. He looked up and saw the moon mocking Him.

Ganesha infuriated, broke off one of His tusks and hurled it at the

moon. The moon hid himself behind the clouds, immediately Ganesha

pronounced a curse on Him saying, "Let no one look at your face on my

birthday."

 

The symbology behind the mouse and snake and Ganesha's big belly and

its relationship to the moon on His birthday is highly philosophic.

The whole cosmos is likely the belly of God. Shakti Parvati is the

primordial energy. The seven lokas above, seven lokas below and seven

oceans, are inside the cosmic belly of Ganesha, held together by the

cosmic energy kundalini symbolized as a huge snake which Ganesha ties

around Him. The mouse is nothing but our ego. Ganesha, using the

mouse

as a vehicle, exemplifies the need to control our ego. One who has

controlled the ego has Ganesha consciousness or God-consciousness.

 

Ganesha is the God who can protect His devotees from any vigna or

obstacle, and hence the name vigneshwara. He is also known as

Ganapati, the head of the Ganas. He is the God of Knowledge and is

invoked at the beginning of any religious function, be it a marriage;

the teaching of alphabets to a child or the festival in a temple. It

is believed that for the fulfillment of one's desires, His blessing

is

absolutely necessary.

 

To read more, go to: http://www.hindunet.org/puja/deities/ganesha.htm

 

Blessings,

SY Zenith

[Guest guest]

The mouse is nothing but our ego. Ganesha, using the mouse as a

vehicle, exemplifies the need to control our ego. One who has

controlled the ego has Ganesha consciousness or God-consciousness.

 

 

***********

 

Sy,

 

Ganesh riding on the rat reminds me of Siva dancing on that dwarf,

only slightly different--one representing ego and one representing

ignorance or indifference. But I still saw that comparison.

 

Later, Bill