Ganesh Chaturthi is one of the most noteworthy festivals celebrated in India. It remembers the birth anniversary of Lord Ganesha. People believe that prosperity, wisdom, wealth, knowledge, and science will flourish; that is why Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated. Ganesha is considered the “Lord of Beginnings” with the blessings of Ganesha, everything will go smoothly either in our life or in business. There is a strong history behind Ganesh Chaturthi, why Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated which makes way for essential facts about Ganesh Chaturthi. Let us discuss the following in detail.

Why is Ganesh Chaturthi celebrated?

Ganesh Chaturthi is also called Vinayaka Chaturthi, held in the Bhadra month and occurs between mid-August to September. Ganesha considers being the Lord of all Creatures, Education, Success, and Wisdom on the earth, and that is why Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated every year with great zeal. The Hindu lunar calendar describes it as a 10-day festival that starts at the Shukla Paksha and ends on Anant Chaturdashi. It is always believed that devotees who pray to Ganesha can fulfil their desires and wishes. So, the central fact why Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated is that devotees who pray to Ganesha are free from their sins and can lead their life on the path of knowledge and wisdom.

The History behind Ganesh Chaturthi

As we all know, Ganesha is the son of Lord Shiva and Lord Parvathi; there are several stories of history behind Ganesh Chaturthi. There are two main stories of history behind Ganesh Chaturthi. One of them was Lord Parvathi, who created baby Lord Ganesha to guard her while bathing in Lord Shiva’s absence. Meanwhile, Lord Shiva returned home and wanted to enter the premises. However, Lord Ganesha stopped Shiva, which made him angered. Thus, Lord Shiva severed Baby Ganesha’s head after a huge conflict.

When Goddess Parvati came to know this reality, she was heartbroken. Lord Shiva vowed to bring Lord Ganesha back to life. He instructed his disciples to search for the head of the first alive creature that they noticed so that they could replace it on Lord Ganesha’s body. His devotees came back with the head of an infant elephant, replaced on Ganesha’s head, to take him back to life. After this incident, Lord Shiva named Lord Ganesha “Ganapati – leader of the Ganas.”

Another famous story is that the Devas requested Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvathi to create a person who could be a Vighnakarta for rakshasas and help Devas. Thus, they finally created Lord Ganesha so that he could be a Vighnakarta for rakshasas and help Devas.

Facts about Ganesh Chaturthi

• Earlier, Ganesh Chaturthi was a private celebration transformed into a public festival by the great freedom fighter Bal Gangadhar Tilak in 1893. He also encouraged giant Ganesha statues and massive hoarding of Lord Ganesha on the pavilions of Mumbai

• Ganesh Chaturthi is also celebrated in China, Thailand, Japan, Cambodia, and Afghanistan. In China, they worship a deity known as ‘Kangi Ten,’ and Ganesha appears in the currency note in Indonesia. Also, in Cambodia, he is in the form of ‘Prah Kenes.’

• Vedic plays a vital role during Ganesh Chaturthi. Vedas from the Rig Veda and the Ganesha hymns are chanted. People believe that reciting all the 108 names of Lord Ganesha will bring prosperity and wealth to them as the Purana says that Lord Shiva gave Lord Ganesha a boon that he would be worshipped as the first God before any other Lord. Hence Lord Ganesha is considered superior to all

• People believe that Ganesha is the actual writer of the Mahabharata. The great sage Vyasa thought that Lord Ganesha would be the perfect match to write Mahabharata because of his understanding. Thus, Vyasa decided to recite the epic Mahabharata to Ganesha and asked him to write without any interruption

• In India, it is still believed that Lord Ganesha is a Brahmacharya. Also, Ganesha was married to twin sisters named Siddhi and Riddhi, who bore them two sons, Labha and Subha

• In India, Pune and Mumbai are the places that flourished with mastery of the art-making of Lord Ganesha idols. Apart from them, Maharashtra’s Pen district is one of the notable places with close to 800 artisans and 500 workshops to make Ganesha idols

Conclusion

Ganesh Chaturthi is one of the most renowned Hindu festivals; apart from religion, it unites everyone worldwide and India. It is a festival that begins with clay idols decorated with pandals. Daily pooja with devotional songs, offerings, lamps, incense, and the important special sweet called Modakas is offered to every human being who is part of the festival. It remembers the birth anniversary of Lord Ganesha. People believe that prosperity, wisdom, wealth, knowledge, and science will flourish; that is why Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated. It is believed that the substantial history behind Ganesh Chaturthi and the essential facts about Ganesh Chaturthi makes every human being’s life run smoothly without any obstacles with the blessings of Lord Ganesha.