Ganesh Chaturthi History
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Ganesh Chaturthi or "Vinayak Chaturthi" is one of the
major traditional festivals celebrated by the Hindu community. It is
observed in the Hindu calendar month of Bhadrapada, starting on the
shukla chaturthi (fourth day of the waxing moon period). Typically the
day falls sometime between August 20 and September 15. The festival
lasts for 10 days, ending on Ananta Chaturdashi, and is traditionally
celebrated as the birthday of Lord Ganesha.
According to Hindu mythology, Lord Ganesha is the son of
Shiva (The God of Destruction in the Hindu Holy Trinity of
Creator-Preserver-Destroyer) and Parvati (Shiva’s consort). The cutest
and most lovable Indian God, Ganesha or Ganpati has the head of an
elephant on which rests an elegant tiara, four podgy hands joined to a
sizeable belly with each hand holding its own symbolic object - a
trishul or a trident in one, an ankush or goad (made from his very own
broken tooth) in another, a lotus in the third and a rosary (which is
sometimes replaced by modaks, his favourite sweet) in the fourth.
Revered as the deity of auspiciousness and wisdom, Lord Ganesha is also
famous for being a trickster and for his profound sense of humour.
It is believed that Lord Ganesh was born on a fourth day
(chaturthi) of the bright fortnight of the Hindu lunar month of Magh.
Since then, an association between Ganesh and chaturthi has been
established. Thus the festival dedicated to the worship of Lord Ganesha
on this chaturthi day is named as Ganesh Chaturthi.
There is a curiously interesting tale about the birth of
Ganesha. It is believed that once while Parvati was bathing, she created
a human figure from some unguent and balm, gave him life and asked him
to guard the door while she bathed. After a long period of meditation on
Mountain Kailash (Lord Shiva’s abode), Shiva chose that very moment to
drop by to see his better half, but was abruptly stopped by the man-god
Parvati had posted at the door. Outraged by the cheek of this stranger,
Shiva cut off his head only to discover moments later that he had killed
Parvati’s son! For fear of enraging his wife, Shiva immediately
dispatched his ganas (attendants) to get him the head of the first
living creature they could find. Well, the first living creature
happened to be an elephant. As instructed, the head was chopped off and
brought back to Shiva, who placed it on Parvati’s son’s body, bringing
him back to life. This elephant-headed god was welcomed into the first
family of the Hindu heavens and named Ganesha or Ganapati, which
literally means the chief of the ganas, or the attendants of Shiva.
Ganesha is the foremost god of the Hindu pantheon. This brave guardian
of the door to Parvati’s bath is beheld today as the most auspicious God
of new beginnings. He is worshipped during every festival and before
people undertake a journey or embark upon a new venture. You will also
see him carefully guarding entrances to temples and homes, peeping out
of calendars and happily gracing marriages and other such occasions.
It is not known when and how Ganesh Chaturthi was first
celebrated. But according to the historian Shri Rajwade, the earliest
Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations can be traced back to the times of the
reigns of dynasties as Satavahana, Rashtrakuta and Chalukya. Historical
records reveal that Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations were initiated in
Maharashtra by Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaja, the great Maratha ruler, to
promote culture and nationalism. And it had continued ever since. There
are also references in history to similar celebrations during Peshwa
times. It is believed that Lord Ganapati was the family deity of the
Peshwas. After the end of Peshwa rule, Ganesh Chaturthi remained a
family affair in Maharashtra from the period of 1818 to 1892.
1857 was a landmark year for India and moreso in the
context of Indian freedom. It was the year of Sepoy Mutiny, an armed
rebellion against the ruling British Empire by the Indian soldiers. This
was the first war that India waged to gain back her independence from
her white rulers. Though unsuccesful, this battle marked the beginning
of the Indian struggle for independence. Many orators, leaders and
freedom fighters all over India teamed to put up a united resistance to
the British domination. One of these eminent leaders was Bal Gangadhar
Tilak, an Indian nationalist, social reformer and freedom fighter.
Greatly esteemed by the Indian people, especially of Maharashtra, Tilak
was commonly referred to as "Lokmanya" or "he who is regarded by the
people". It was Tilak, who brought back the tradition of Ganesh
Chaturthi and reshaped the annual Ganesh festival from private family
celebrations into a grand public event.
Lokamanya saw how Lord Ganesha was worshipped by the
upper stratum as well as the rank and file of India. The visionary that
he was, Tilak realized the cultural importance of this deity and
popularised Ganesha Chaturthi as a National Festival "to bridge the gap
between the Brahmins and the non-Brahmins and find an appropriate
context in which to build a new grassroots unity between them" in his
nationalistic strivings against the British in Maharashtra. He knew that
India couldn't fight her rulers until she solved the differences within
her own. Hence, to unite all social classes Tilak chose Ganesha as a
rallying point for Indian protest against British rule because of his
wide appeal as "the god for Everyman".
It was around 1893, during the nascent stages of Indian
nationalism, that Tilak began to organize the Ganesh Utsav as a social
and religious function. He was the first to put in large public images
of Ganesha in pavilions and establish the tradition of their immersion
on the tenth day. The festival facilitated community participation and
involvement in the form of learned discourses, dance dramas, poetry
recital, musical concerts, debates, etc. It served as a meeting place
for common people of all castes and communities, at a time when all
social and political gatherings were forbidden by the British Empire for
fear of conspiracies to be hatched against them. An important festival
during the Peshwa era, Ganesha Chaturthi acquired at this time a more
organized form all over India largely due to Lokmanya's efforts.
Since then, Ganesh Chaturthi has been celebrated
throughout Maharashtra as also in other states with great community
enthusiasm and participation. With the independence of India in 1947, it
was proclaimed to be a national festival.
Today, Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated in the states of
Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh and many other
parts of India. The festival is so popular that the preparations begin
months in advance. Days before the actual worship, homes are cleaned and
marquees erected at street corners to house the idols of the Lord.
Elaborate arrangements are made for lighting, decoration, mirrors and
flowers. The artisans who make the idols of Ganesh vie with each other
to make bigger and better sculptures. The sizes of the relatively larger
ones range anywhere from 10 meters to 30 meters in height. These are
installed in marquees and in homes prior to the Puja (worship). During
the festival days, the Lord is worshipped with great devotion and prayer
services are performed daily. The duration of the Lord's stay varies
from place to place; once the worship is complete, the statues are
carried on decorated floats to be immersed in the sea after one, three,
five, seven and ten days. Thousands of processions converge on the
beaches to immerse the holy idols in the sea. This procession and
immersion is accompanied with dancing and the sound of exciting
drum-beats, devotional songs and exploding firecrackers. As the idol is
immersed amidst loud chants of "Ganesh Maharaj Ki Jai!" (Hail Lord
Ganesh), the festival comes to an end with pleas to the Lord to return
the next year with chants of "Ganpati bappa morya, pudcha varshi laukar
ya" (Hail Lord Ganesh, return again soon next year). Tourists from all
over the world come to witness this wonderful event in the sun kissed
beaches of Goa and Mumbai.
While celebrated all over India, Ganesh Chaturthi
festivities are most elaborate in states like Maharashtra, Goa (It is
the biggest festival for Konkani people all over the world), Gujarat,
Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, and other areas which were former states
of the Maratha Empire. Outside India, it is celebrated in Nepal by the
Newars.
In the 21st century, with the world turning fast into a
global village, Ganesh Chaturthi is now celebrated all over the world,
wherever there is a presence of a Hindu community.
ઊંઝામાં ચુસ્ત પોલીસ બંદોબસ્ત વચ્ચે પાટીદારોની બેઠક યોજાઇ
ગાંધીનગર તા. 24 સપ્ટેમ્બર 2015
પાટીદાર આંદોલન સંદર્ભે બિન અનામત વર્ગો માટે જાહેર થનારી યોજના અંગે ભારે ઉત્તેજના
(પીટીઆઇ) નવી દિલ્હી, તા.૨૨
અમદાવાદ,તા.૧૫