Ganesh Chaturti: A festival of Joy and Devotion
Ganesh Chaturthi, the Hindu festival, is the day Lord Ganesh was born. Ganesh is the son of Lord Shiva and Parvati, who is believed to bestow his presence on earth during this festival. Lord Ganesh is widely worshipped as the god of prosperity, good fortune and wisdom.
The festival of Ganesh Chaturthi is one of the important festivals in India and has been celebrated since ancient times. This festival also has a historical importance, at the end of the last century the foremost leader of his times Sri Bal Gangadhar Tilak transformed the domestic celebrations of Ganesh Chaturthi into a social and religious function.
As per the Hindu calendar, this festival falls between 20th August and 15th September and lasts for 11 days. It is widely celebrated in India and also by the Indian community abroad and it gives me immense pleasure to share the celebration in New Zealand with the readers.
Our celebration in New Zealand starts with spring cleaning our homes to prepare the house for the ‘11 day guest (Lord Ganesh)’. The families are bound to follow the traditions and rituals while making arrangements for welcoming the lord and preparing for his stay. The festival begins with installation of clay idols of the Lord Ganesh and worshiping for odd number of days ( 1,3,5,7,9,or 11). However as per the traditions, on the day of Ganesh chaturthi, one must avoid seeing the Moon, which ways back to the story of Lord Ganesh being mocked by the moon when he fell down while returning home after a sumptuous meal. On the last day of the stipulated time of worship, the idols of Ganesh are immersed in water bodies such as lakes, ponds or the sea as a sign of farewell to the lord and the celebration.. However, recent observation on pollution to water bodies have made slight changes to the immersion process and people in cities prefer to immerse idols in small bucket to avoid water pollution. Further to the immersion process the idol dissolves in the water which is later watered to plants. Indian community in New Zealand prefer an Eco Friendly Idol of Ganesh as compared to traditional Ganesh idols which are decorated with heavy colours and artificial ornaments. The Eco friendly idols of Ganesha which are made of pure clay makes it easy to immerse in water and dissolve.
The Kannada Community celebrates Ganesha festival in New Zealand with much devotion and dedication. The houses are very colourfully decorated with lights and other decorative. The festival involves preparing variety of sweets mainly Modak, made from rice flour/wheat flour with a stuffing of fresh or dry-grated coconut, jaggery, dry fruits and cardamom and sharing it with friends and family. The tradition of inviting friends and family for pooja is also followed here in New Zealand. The festival which is celebrated with much devotion not only brings joy but also is an occasion to meet and greet family and friends.
Ganesh Chaturthi, the Hindu festival, is the day Lord Ganesh was born. Ganesh is the son of Lord Shiva and Parvati, who is believed to bestow his presence on earth during this festival. Lord Ganesh is widely worshipped as the god of prosperity, good fortune and wisdom. The festival of Ganesh...
Ganesh Chaturthi, the Hindu festival, is the day Lord Ganesh was born. Ganesh is the son of Lord Shiva and Parvati, who is believed to bestow his presence on earth during this festival. Lord Ganesh is widely worshipped as the god of prosperity, good fortune and wisdom.
The festival of Ganesh Chaturthi is one of the important festivals in India and has been celebrated since ancient times. This festival also has a historical importance, at the end of the last century the foremost leader of his times Sri Bal Gangadhar Tilak transformed the domestic celebrations of Ganesh Chaturthi into a social and religious function.
As per the Hindu calendar, this festival falls between 20th August and 15th September and lasts for 11 days. It is widely celebrated in India and also by the Indian community abroad and it gives me immense pleasure to share the celebration in New Zealand with the readers.
Our celebration in New Zealand starts with spring cleaning our homes to prepare the house for the ‘11 day guest (Lord Ganesh)’. The families are bound to follow the traditions and rituals while making arrangements for welcoming the lord and preparing for his stay. The festival begins with installation of clay idols of the Lord Ganesh and worshiping for odd number of days ( 1,3,5,7,9,or 11). However as per the traditions, on the day of Ganesh chaturthi, one must avoid seeing the Moon, which ways back to the story of Lord Ganesh being mocked by the moon when he fell down while returning home after a sumptuous meal. On the last day of the stipulated time of worship, the idols of Ganesh are immersed in water bodies such as lakes, ponds or the sea as a sign of farewell to the lord and the celebration.. However, recent observation on pollution to water bodies have made slight changes to the immersion process and people in cities prefer to immerse idols in small bucket to avoid water pollution. Further to the immersion process the idol dissolves in the water which is later watered to plants. Indian community in New Zealand prefer an Eco Friendly Idol of Ganesh as compared to traditional Ganesh idols which are decorated with heavy colours and artificial ornaments. The Eco friendly idols of Ganesha which are made of pure clay makes it easy to immerse in water and dissolve.
The Kannada Community celebrates Ganesha festival in New Zealand with much devotion and dedication. The houses are very colourfully decorated with lights and other decorative. The festival involves preparing variety of sweets mainly Modak, made from rice flour/wheat flour with a stuffing of fresh or dry-grated coconut, jaggery, dry fruits and cardamom and sharing it with friends and family. The tradition of inviting friends and family for pooja is also followed here in New Zealand. The festival which is celebrated with much devotion not only brings joy but also is an occasion to meet and greet family and friends.
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