Ganesh Rocks

Ganesha rocks!
Today, it’s that time of the year when chants of “Ganapati Bappa Morya” begin to resound across the country as long serpentine
queues of trucks carrying idols of Lord Ganesha inch their way into our homes and hearts. The elephant headed God’s back
and it’s time to rejoice, exclaims Viren Naidu Pandals with Ganesha idols dominate the country’s landscape, in an endeavour to win the coveted “best pandal
award” (an equivalent to an Oscar, literally!); women browse through every recipe book to outdo one another in the
‘modak preparation’ competition; the shops are busy selling exclusive merchandise; and the installation of Ganesha
idols in households and in mandals, is enthusiastically pursued. And if that’s not all, police and traffic personnel are
also deployed in order to ensure that the festivities go off smoothly. The Lord of success and destroyer of evil is
here! Also worshiped as the god of wealth, education, knowledge, he is the true symbol of wisdom and a bringer of
prosperity and good luck. Ganesha is also the demolisher of vanity, selfishness and pride. For India, the festival of
Ganesh Chaturthi acts as the perfect platform for people to come together, share camaraderie and exercise
devotion to God.
The festival in India, over decades, has gained immense popularity and preparations begin months in advance.
Sculptors who create the idols vie with one other to make bigger and better sculptures. Devotees playing trumpets,
cymbals, drums and flutes welcome the arrival of the elephant God, with open arms. The festival begins with the
setting up of magnificently carved Ganesha idols in the sacred corners of the homes and mandaps that are
artistically decorated, illustrating religious themes or current events. Prayer services are offered daily and these
services are not just restricted to the time of the festival; it’s also pursued otherwise. Irrespective of a religious
occasion, several Indians in many ways invoke the lord’s blessings with the recitation of “Om Ganeshaya Namaha” (I
bow to Thee Lord Ganesh). Enthusiasts flock mandaps to sing hymns from religious sholkas. And of course,
Ganesha’s favourite sweet dish, modak is prepared in different flavours and distributed.
During the festival, an array of the cultural/musical programmes are organised and few even bring to light social
issues, through short skits and few even use the festival as a platform to address current affairs, in an endeavour to
raise awareness. We
are all aware that this trend was initiated by Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak during the nascent stages of Indian
nationalism. Ganesh Chaturthi was prominently promoted by Tilak who brought to the cause of independence a fire
of religious revivalism. The festival aided community involvement in the form of poetry recital, musical concerts,
debates, etc. It served as a meeting ground for people of all communities, at a time when all social gatherings were
prohibited by the British Empire for trepidation of conspiracies, to be caused against them.
The duration of the Lord’s stay varies from place to place; but once the worship is completed, the idols are
immersed in the sea. However, all efforts are initiated to keep the religious roots intact with some needed alterations
to suit the changing sustainability issues. Religious rules demand immersion of all idols in natural water sources.
However the immersion of increasing number of idols against the few number of water resources available have
raised concerns among environmentalists. Not only is there an acute shortage of water resources, the harmful
materials used for preparing idols have caused severe damages to the water ecosystem. Hence, proactive citizens
have taken the initiative to raise concerns about water pollution during this festive period with due respect to the
spiritual sentiments of the devotees and also by upholding conventional values and also at the same time, adopting a
modernistic approach to the cause. While it’s imperative to respect religious sentiments, one needs to adopt
measures that are environmental friendly.
Sadly, when it’s time to immerse the great God of prosperity and wisdom, sorrow looms over us as we return to
our homes, awaiting Ganesha’s return, the following year. But the excitement continues to prevail as communities

discuss ways through which they could construct elaborate extravagant pandals the next year; women discuss
innovative recipes they could experiment with to prepare modaks, sculptors start brainstorming on how they could
artistically create praiseworthy idols and if that’s not enough, one can only reminisce the joy derived out of the
festivities and eagerly anticipate what the next festival would have in store for them.
So shun all your worries and have a great Ganesha Chaturthi ahead and most importantly, don’t forget to binge on
those scrumptious modaks that go with it.