Ganesha - Life Story

Lord Ganesha's Birth

• One day Goddess Parvati was at home on Mt.Kailash preparing for a bath. 
• As she didn’t want to be disturbed, she told Nandi, her husband Shiva’s Bull, to guard the door and let no one pass. Nandi faithfully took his post, intending to carry out Parvati’s wishes. 
• But, when Shiva came home and naturally wanted to come inside, Nandi had to let him pass, being loyal first to Shiva. 
• Parvati was angry at this slight, but even more than this, at the fact that she had no one as loyal to Herself as Nandi was to Shiva. So, taking the turmeric paste (for bathing) from her body and breathing life into it, she created Ganesha, declaring him to be her own loyal son. 
• The next time Parvati wished to bath, she posted Ganesha on guard duty at the door. In due course, Shiva came home, only to find this strange boy telling him he couldn’t enter his own house! 
• Furious, Shiva ordered his army to destroy the boy, but they all failed! Such power did Ganesha possess, being the son of Devi Herself! This surprised Shiva. 
• Seeing that this was no ordinary boy, the usually peaceful Shiva decided he would have to fight him, and in his divine fury severed Ganesha’s head, killing him instantly. 
• When Parvati learned of this, she was so enraged and insulted that she decided to destroy the entire Creation! Lord Brahma, being the Creator, naturally had his issues with this, and pleaded that she reconsider her drastic plan. 
• She said she would, but only if two conditions were met: one, that Ganesha be brought back to life, and two, that he be forever worshipped before all the other gods. 
• Shiva, having cooled down by this time, and realizing his mistake, agreed to Parvati’s conditions. He sent Brahma out with orders to bring back the head of the first creature he crosses that is laying with its head facing North. Brahma soon returned with the head of a strong and powerful elephant, which Shiva placed onto Ganesha’s body. 
• Breathing new life into him, he declared Ganesha to be his own son as well, and gave him the status of being foremost among the gods, and leader of all the ganas, Ganapati.

Lord Ganesha As Ganpati

• Vinakaya or Gananayaka is another name for Ganesha. 
• Gananayaka is the lord of Ganas or one who defeats Gana. 
• A beautiful son named Gana was born to the King Abhijit and queen Gunavati. He was very bright and strong. He was a great devotee of Lord Shiva. Lord Shiva, pleased with his devotion granted him some boons. However, this increased Gana's ego. He soon fell into bad company. 
• One day he visited sage Kapila's ashram. Kapila had a gem called Chintamani that was wish fulfilling and could provide food for thousands. When Gana saw this, he wanted to possess the gem. Kapila did not want to give it to him. But Gana forcibly took it away from him. 
• Kapila prayed to Lord Ganesha. Ganesha appeared in Gana's dream and cut off his head. Gana, on waking up, did not repent but became angry and took his army to kill Kapila. 
• Gana's father, Abhijit, pleaded with Gana to give Kapila back his gem but Gana did not heed the advice. However, on reaching Kapila's ashram he found that Ganesha had assembled an army. 
• In a fierce fight, Gana was killed by Ganesha and Ganesha restored the " Chintamani " to Kapila. Kapila, however, gave it back to Ganesha saying that even a small gem like this could cause trouble, as wealth is the root of many problems in this world. Kapila requested Ganesha to stay back. From then on, this place (Theur near Pune) was called 'Chintamani Vinayaka.

Lord Ganesha As Gajanana

• Gajanana is one of the eight avatars of Ganesha as per the Mudgala Purana. 
• It is stated in the Mudgala Purana that one of the mission of the Gajanana Avatar was to annihilate Lobhasura – the demon greed. Kubera, the treasurer of wealth, once visited Shiva and Goddess Parvati. Pleased with the devotion of Kubera, Shiva blessed him with the vision of the divine couple whenever he wanted. 
• After the blessing Kubera made it a point to have the vision of divine couple daily. Soon Kubera was enamored by the beauty of Goddess Parvati and he gazed Her with lustful thoughts. 
• Goddess Parvati who realized this gave an angry look at Kubera. Kubera was trembling in fear at the look of the Goddess and from the fear was born the demon named Lobhasura. 
• Lobhasura did penance and propitiated Shiva. He was granted the boon of fearlessness. The spiritual strength and lack of fear made Lobhasura powerful and he became to the ruler of the three worlds. Power made the asura corrupt and he led a demonic life killing and looting innocents. 
• Fed up with Lobhasura, people approached Sage Raibhya. He instructed them to offer prayers to Ganesha in Gajanana form. 
• Gajanana was pleased with the devotion of the people and decided to annihilate the demon. Ganesha did not want war and destruction. So He asked Vishnu to apprise Lobhasura of the strength of Gajanana. 
• Vishnu was able to convince Lobhasura about Gajanana’s strength and the futility of opposing him. Lobhasura who also had a spiritual side realized that he did not have the power to stand before Ganesha. The demon surrendered before Gajanana without a fight. 
• Symbolically, the story indicates that those who are overpowered by the demon of greediness can overcome it by surrendering before Gajanana.

Lord Ganesha As Ekdanta

• Ekadanta is a form of Lord Ganesha where He is shown having a single tusk. 
• This form of Ganapati finds mention in the Mudgala Purana of Hinduism. 
• 'Ekadanta' means 'single tooth'. It is believed that Ekadanta is Lord Ganesha's 22nd form out of His 32 forms. 
• The Lord took this form to eradicate Madasura, the demon of arrogance. Myth Behind Ekadanta There are a few popular mythical stories behind the origin of the Ekadanta form of Lord Ganesha. 
• Let's have a look at each one of them: According to the Padma Purana, once Lord Shiva's ardent devotee, Parashuram went to meet Him in Kailash. Since, Lord Shiva was busy meditating, Lord Ganesha prevented Parashuram from entering the abode. Parshuram is known for his anger in Hindu mythology. So, when Lord Ganesha stopped him at the gate, Parashuram became furious and attacked the Lord with his axe. Seeing the axe, Lord Ganesha realised that it was gifted to Parashuram by Lord Shiva. So, He refrained from blocking the attack of the axe and allowed it to chop off one of his tusks. Thus, Ganesha came to be known as Ekadanta. Later Parashuram realised his fault and asked for forgiveness from Lord Shiva, Goddess Parvati and Lord Ganesha. 
• Another myth about Ekadanta goes like this. Once Lord Ganesha was returning from a feast, where He had consumed a large number of laddoos and modaks. While He was returning on His mount, the mouse named Krauncha, a snake came their way. On seeing the snake, the mouse dropped Lord Ganesha and fled away. As a result, Ganesha's belly burst open and all the sweets came out. But Ganesha gathered all the sweets and put them back in His belly. Then He tied the snake around His belly to hold it together. Seeing this incident, the moon (Chandra) burst out laughing. Lord Ganesha became angry on seeing the moon laughing. So, he broke one of His tusks and hurdled it at the moon and cursed it that the moon will never be able to shine in its full glory. Later the moon asked for forgiveness and Lord Ganesha removed the curse from the moon. So, this is how He came to be known as the Ekadanta. This incident is also the reason why people refrain from seeing the moon on the night of Ganesh Chaturthi. 
• There is yet another story which says that Lord Ganesha used one of His tusks as a pen to write down the epic of Mahabharata when He acted as a scribe for Ved Vyasa. 
• The Ekadanta Ganapati is portrayed with a large, stomach, dark complexion, four arms and a broken tusk. It is said that if you worship Ekadanta form of Ganesha, you can achieve success in whatever work you do and improve concentration in your work. The broken tusk of the Lord signifies that He will sacrifice anything to grant the wishes of His devotees. So, worship the Ekadanta with pure devotion and He will fulfill all your wishes.

Lord Ganesha as Female - vinayaki

• The demon, Andhaka, wanted the goddess Parvati to be his wife. He tried to grab her by force so she called out to her husband, Shiva who immediately raised his trident and impaled the Asura. 
• But the Asura had a magic power; every drop of his blood that touched the ground turned into another Andhaka. The only way to kill him was to ensure not a single drop of his blood touched the ground, while he was impaled on Shiva’s trident. 
• Parvati knew that every divine being is a mixture of male and female forms, the male form representing mental potential and the female form representing material resources (Shakti). Parvati therefore called out to all the Shaktis. 
• On her request, every divine being released their female energy who could drink the blood of Andhaka before it touched the ground. Soon the battlefield was filled with the shaktis of every god imaginable. Indra’s shakti emerged as Indrani, Vishnu’s shakti emerged as Vaishavi and Brahma’s shakti emerged as Brahmini. These shaktis drank the blood of Andhaka before it touched the ground. Thus was Andhaka destroyed. 
• Matsya Purana and Vishnu-dharmottara Purana list even Ganapati’s shakti in the list of female warrior goddesses. Her name was Vinayaki also known as Ganeshvari. 
• This form of Ganapati is adored in the Vana-Durga-Upanishad. Images of the female Ganesha start appearing from 16th century onwards. Some are of the opinion that these images perhaps represent Malini, the elephant-headed companion of Parvati, nursemaid to Ganesha, occasionally referred to in the Puranas. 
• The idea of a female elephant-headed deity whether it is the Shakti of Ganesha or the handmaid of Parvati is an integral part of Tantrik practices that preferred to see the divine in female, rather than the more dominant male form.  
• Ganesha, the remover of obstacles, gained popularity in Vedic circles, his female form, Vinayaki, became popular in Tantrik circles. What we do know is that the fourth day after NEW moon is called Vinayaki Chaturthi. This day, which is sacred to Ganesha, is named after his female form.

Lord Ganesha's Marriage

• According to one tradition, Ganesha was a brahmacarin, that is, unmarried. This pattern is primarily popular in southern India . This tradition was linked to Hindu concepts of the relationship between celibacy and the development of spiritual power. 
• In the north of India , on the other hand, Ganesha is often portrayed as married to the two daughters of Brahma: Buddhi ((also called Riddhi) intellect) and Siddhi (spiritual power). 
• Another interpretation is that His devotion towards His mother is the reason why He is considered as a celibate bachelor. To Him, she was the most beautiful and a perfect woman. He vowed that He could marry the girl who would match up to His mother’s beauty and divine qualities. It is said that Lord Ganesh was unable to find a suitable mate because of His unique appearance. This bothered Him and He summoned the rats to burrow deep holes in the path of any God who were on their way to get married. The potholes made the journey of the grooms and their marriage processions extremely difficult. Frustrated, they went to Lord Brahma to complain. 
• Lord Brahma created two beautiful girls Riddhi (Abundance. Opulence, Wealth) and Siddhi / Buddhi (Intellectual and Spiritual Prowess) and they were married to Him. 
• With His two consorts, He had sons Shubha (Auspiciousness) and Labha (Profit) and a daughter named Santoshi (Goddess of Satisfaction / Contentment).
• The Shiva Purana states that King Prajapati had two daughters - Riddhi and Siddhi. He approached Shiva and Parvati for the marriage of his girls to Lord Ganesh and Lord Kartikeyan / Karthikeyan (Lord Ganesh’s younger brother). But both these girls wished that Lord Ganesh should be their husband and so they were married. It is said that if one has Riddhi but doesn’t have Siddhi / Buddhi then it is worthless. Possessing only Siddhi without Riddhi is also futile. 
• Lord Ganesh bestows both these blessings to His ardent devotees. If we delve into ourselves we will realize that we are all Ganapatis (Gana is our body made of the Pancha-Mahabhuta (Five elements), Pati stands for master or owner). Thus He shows us the way to achieve both intellect and wealth to enjoy a rewarding life.

Lord Ganesha wrote Mahabharat

• Sage Vyasa was meditating in the Himalayas. Lord Brahma appeared before him and asked him to write the Mahabharatham for the benefit of all. 
• Sage Vyasa said that he could not compose the verse and write it down too and therefore asked for the help of someone wise, who would write down as he sang. 
• Brahma asked sage Vyasa to pray to Lord Ganesha to help him. Ganesha told Vyasa that he had enormous work to do and hence he would write it down, only if Vyasa was quick in singing it. 
• For his turn, Sage Vyasa requested that Ganesha should understand the meaning of the verse and only then put it down in writing. Vyasa started singing. Whenever he felt Ganesha was writing too fast for him, he would come with a difficult verse, thus by the time Ganesha could decipher the meaning, he would have composed several more verses in his mind. 
• In this way, Vyasa completed the Bharatham in 60 lakhs granthams. This comprises the Kandapuranam, Ramayanam, Savithri Puranam, Nala Puranam and so on. Lord Ganesha wrote on Mount Meru using his tusk. Of these 60 lakh granthams, 30 lakhs are supposed to be in the Deva Logam, 15 lakhs in Yatcha Logam and 14 lakhs in Asura Logam. Only the remaining 1 lakh granthams is assumed to be on the earth. 
• Sage Vyasa is supposed to have sung 8,800 granthams, which were difficult for Ganesha to decipher. He has himself stated that Ganesha, Sage Vyasa himself and his Sugan are probably the only ones who know the meaning of those 8,800 granthams. 
• The Mahabharatham is considered the fifth Veda.

Lord Ganesha And River Kaveri

• Once upon a time, Sage Agastya sought the blessings of Lord Brahma and Shiva.
• The sage wished to create flowing river in a suitable location to offer water to the southern lands. The Gods, listening to his prayers, had his kamandalu filled with sacred water.
• The Sage then reached the Coorg Mountains. On his way, he spotted a small boy and requested him to take good care of his pot containing water as he needed to go to toilet.
• The small boy was none other than Ganesha and he placed the small pot on the ground as he felt that location was perfect for a river.
• then a crow landed on this pot and Sage Agastya shooed off the bird. The crow flew off tipping the pot to the ground and spilled off some water.
• this water formed River Kaveri and is considered as a sacred river.

Learnings:-  Every action happens for a some good cause. so do not be worried even if something bad happens in your life, eventually there will be a good ending.

Lord Ganesha And Kuber

• Kubera, God of Wealth, was quite proud of the fact that he was the richest God. One day, he held a lavish dinner and invited many popular guests, among them were Lord Shiva and Parvati.
• As the Divine couple could not attend the dinner, they sent their son, Ganesha who was a small child.
• Ganesha began to devour all the food and soon there was no food available in the venue.
• he then began to eat all the vessels, dishes, furniture and other things at Alakapuri, Kubera’s city.
• Ganesha then proceeded to swallow the host of the dinner and the terrified Kubera ran to Lord Shiva’s abode and sought his help.
• Lord Shiva handed a cup of roasted cereals to Ganesha and his hunger for food ceased immediately.
• Lord Kubera realized his mistake and sought forgiveness for his pride.

Learnings:- Do not be proud of what you poosess. Instead, concentrate on how you can make use of your possession for good things.

Lord Ganesha And Goddess Parvati

• one day child Ganesha was playing with a cat and was tormenting the animal by pulling his tail and throwing him on the ground.
• he left the cat and went to Mount Kailash to meet his mother Goddess Parvati.
• he was shocked to see her wounded.
• when he asked her about it, his mother replied that it was his action that caused the wound. As she was playing with him as a cat.
• she also said that it is unfair to treat animals cruelly and Ganesha was sorry for injuring the cat.

Learnings:-  Animals have every right to live in this world, just as humans do. So do not cause any injury or ill treat to any animal.

Lord Ganesh And Karthikeya

• Ganesha had a brother whose name was Kartikeya. Ganesha was very clever and sweet natured, where as Kartikeya was very short tempered.
• Both of them used to play on the mountains and sometimes they used to quarrel. So once they had a very big quarrel and each of them thought that the other one was guilty. 
• The matter could not be settled. Finally they soon approached their parents to get justice. 
• Lord Shiva and Parvati heard both the sides and then lord Shiva had an idea "children," he said to them,"let us settle it this way you have to go around the world thrice and one who comes back first will be considered to be the right one the other one wrong.
• Kartikeya always rode a peacock and was very fast at it while Ganesha used a little rat for riding. Kartikeya was sure that he would win the race because his peacock was much faster than the rat. 
• Kartikeya immidiately jumped on his peacock and rode very fast as he could. Ganesha first had a look at his big stomach and then at his little rat. He was sure that he can never win the race.
• Ganesha just sat down there thinking and suddenly he had a bright idea. He made lord Shiva and mata Parvati sit together and quickly went arround them three times.
• Kartikeya came on his peacock after travelling arround the world successfully and told Shiva-Parvati proudly," here I come ! I won and looked at Ganesha 
• Ganesha said "our parents are the mother and father of the world,so going arround them is just like going arround the world! Parvati said to Kartikeya," he has won the race ! 
• Hearing that Kartikeya lost his temper and thought that mother was partial to Ganesha. In a feat of anger he took an oath,"I shall neither look at my mother's, nor any woman's face in the world ! "and Kartikeya kept his word,he never looked at the face of any women in the world.So,in many temples of kartikeya,women do not enter.

Learnings:- Use of wisdom at the right time and right place. respect your parents, there can be no more important as them in your life!

Lord Ganesh And Tulsi

• Tulsi (an herb from the basil family) was a beautiful maiden who, when she saw the resplendent Ganesha, fell in love with him and wished to marry him. 
• Ganesha though was a confirmed bachelor (at least according to some legends) and refused to oblige her. 
• The enraged Tulsi cursed him that one day, he would indeed break his vow of celibacy. Ganesha cursed her in return, that she would marry a demon and later, turn into a plant. 
• Tulsi realized her folly and pleaded for mercy until Ganesha relented. “You will be the most fragrant plant of all” “one that will please all the gods. Your leaves will be used especially in the worship of Vishnu. But you will never be present where I am worshiped.

Lord Ganesh And Moon

• It was on Ganesha Chaturthi.
• Ganesha was riding on his little rat and suddenly a snake crossed his path.The rat was terrified and ran off in fright due to which Ganesha fell down in a thorny bush. 
• The Moon was looking at this from the sky.the Moon laughed loudly at the funny sight of Ganesha's falling down.
• It annoyed Ganesha so much so that he decided to punish the Moon. Angrily he broke one of his tusks and threw it at the Moon. As it struck the Moon,Moon lost the brightness.
• Then the moon went off. The world became dark. People were scared and they screamed and wept. All the Gods in heaven were worried by this confusion.They prayed to Ganesha," please give back the Moon the brightness, "The Moon also repented. The Moon fell at Ganesh's feet and prayed to be forgiven. 
• Ganesha relented but he wanted to teach Moon a lesson.So he said, "the first fifteen days of every month,you will get bigger and then the next fifteen days,you will become smaller and smaller. At the end of the month you will look like my tusk.
• And on the day of Ganesh Chaturthi the person who looks at the Moon will have an allegation of theft on him.

The story of Gokarna Mahabaleshwar

• Ravana,the king of lanka, was a great devotee of Shiva. He often went to Kailasa.There he worshipped Shiva with great devotion.Once,as usual, he had gone to Kailas. 
• Lord Shiva was very pleased with his devotion."I am pleased with you" he told Ravana."ask for any boon. I shall grant it,"when all the world will end in the great floods,"said Ravana, "Lanka should be spared. That's the only boon I want! Shiva was little puzzled. 
• Ravana had already proved troublesome to the gods. Having the boon granted he would trouble the gods still more. So what should be done? Shiva thought of a clever idea He gave Ravana a Shivalinga." take this Shivalinga,"Shiva told him, "wherever you put it down, it would stick fast there That place will be protected from the floods. If you wish to protect Lanka,make sure you put it down on reaching Lanka! Ravana was overjoyed. But shiva warned him, "hold it in both hands.If you leave it anywhere else it will stick to that spot,Then it will not be possible to remove it. So be careful with it!"
• Ravana eagerly started for Lanka. Meanwhile,the gods learnt of Shiva's boon to Ravana. They were horrified They went to Ganesha for help. They told him what had happened."please do something,God," they pleaded to Ganesha,"so that the Shivalinga does not reach Lanka. If it reaches there;Ravana would become more powerful." 
• Ganesha thought for a moment. He had a bright idea,"all right,"he assured them a solution" I shall see that the Shivalinga does not reach Lanka."then Ganesha, in the disguise of a cowherd, stood in Ravana's path. Ravana had walked a long way, was tired and sweating. He wanted to wipe his sweat. But he could not do so;cause he had the heavy Shivalingain his hands. 
• Just then Ravana saw the cowherd boystanding in his path.Behind him there was a river."hey boy! Come here." Ravana called out to the boy."What do you want?" the boy asked;without moving from where he stood."I am very thirsty,"replied Ravana. "Please hold this Linga for just a minute. Do not put it down. I wish to go to the river for a drink of water.I shall not take long.""All right!" said, Ganesha "but the Linga seems very heavy; if my hands get tired I shall call you three times If you don't come immediately back, then I shall put it down!" he warned."Don't worry! "Ravana said."I shall be quick."With a great relief he handed over the linga to the boy. 
• Then he hurried to the river. And as soon as Ravana reached the river; the boy called out;"Ravana, Ravana, Ravana!" and quickly put the linga down.Immediately it stuck there.When Ravana came back from the river;there was no sign of the boy. And the linga had stuck to the ground. Ravana tried to pull it.But it did not move a bit.Yet,because of Ravana's great strength it lost the shape.
• It now resembles the ear of a cow. That is why it is known as Gokarna.The place became a famous place of pilgrimage. Even to-day we know it as Gokarna Mahabaleshwar.