2. Lord Ganesha Rolls Through Stuttgart

[Guest guest]

throwing water out of buckets on the street in order to clean it for the arrival

of the holy chariot. The chariot is jointly pulled by men and women, who brace

themselves heavily against the ropes. A Hindu priest stands next to the

Elephant God. A nageshwaram player and drummer step ahead. Behind the vehicle,

two men with bare torso roll themselves over the hot asphalt, holding a coconut

in their hands. Curious bystanders line the roadside asking what is the meaning

of this shimmering procession. "We sometimes commit mistake in the daily life,"

explains Kumaran, "in this festival we can correct these mistakes." "This

morning ends our festival," he says, "however in the coming year we want to

pull the chariot through Stuttgart again

 

 

[Guest guest]

Namaste Lambodara Dasji,

 

Thank you for posting this article, really lovely. Love it very much

and delighted that Ganesha is very much part of the culture in Europe

too.

 

Jai Ganeshaya

Sy

 

, Lambodara Das <lambodara_das>

wrote:

> 2. Lord Ganesha Rolls Through Stuttgart

> http://www.stuttgarter-zeitung.de/stz/page/detail.php/474268

>

> STUTTGART, GERMANY, August 2, 2003: A Ratha (chariot) festival was

> conducted for the first time in the streets of Stuttgart by the

Hindu

> community on Saturday, August 2. Many German residents of the city

> stretched their necks out of their windows, unbelievingly, as

hundreds

> of Hindus pulled the Elephant God on a holy vehicle through the

> streets. For nine days, the Hindus living in Stuttgart and the

> surrounding region have been celebrating. This Saturday was the

> highpoint of the festival. "Our chariot was specially made for us

in

> Sri Lanka," said Apputhurai Kumaran, a teacher of Hindu culture.

> Subsequently the vehicle was taken apart and brought in a container

by

> airplane to Germany. Men run before the vehicle, throwing water out

of

> buckets on the street in order to clean it for the arrival of the

holy

> chariot. The chariot is jointly pulled by men and women, who brace

> themselves heavily against the ropes. A Hindu priest stands next to

the

> Elephant God. A nageshwaram player and drummer step ahead. Behind

the

> vehicle, two men with bare torso roll themselves over the hot

asphalt,

> holding a coconut in their hands. Curious bystanders line the

roadside

> asking what is the meaning of this shimmering procession. "We

sometimes

> commit mistake in the daily life," explains Kumaran, "in this

festival

> we can correct these mistakes." "This morning ends our festival,"

he

> says, "however in the coming year we want to pull the chariot

through

> Stuttgart again

>

>

>

>

>