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Ganpati baapa morya, Mangalmurti morya!
This is a chant that is said in chorus and vibrates in every street, every lane, and every house during Ganesh Chaturthi.
Vinayaka, also known as Ganesha or Ganpati, is made of two words: “Gana” and "pati." “Gana” means a group (attendants of Lord Shiva are called Gana), and “pati” means the leader. Hence Ganpati means the leader of the ganas of Shiva.
Ganesh Chaturthi, or Vinayaka Chaturthi, is a Hindu festival celebrated on the anniversary of the day when Ganesha was revived in his new elephant-headed form. It is said that once, Mother Goddess Parvati created a beautiful human form from clay and gave life to it. She then instructs him to stand by the door and not let anyone in while she went in to take a bath. As per her mother’s instructions, Ganesha was guarding the house, and when Lord Shiva returns home, he is denied entry into his house. Furious at this, Lord Shiva beheads Ganesha, but later, realizing his mistake, sends his men to bring back the head of the first creature they come across. Shiva’s men bring back an elephant head, and Lord Shiva brings Ganesha back to life by putting the elephant’s head on Ganesha’s body. Lord Shiva then makes Ganesha the head of his followers. Lord Ganesha is considered a symbol of knowledge, intelligence, wisdom, fortune, and prosperity. He is considered a remover of obstacles. Hence, Lord Ganesha is worshipped before starting any activity to avoid obstacles and ensure success.
Every year, Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated as a 10-day festival. The celebrations start by installing the Ganesha idol made of clay and decorating it beautifully with flowers and lights. Those who cannot perform the rituals for 10 days complete the rituals in fewer days. The four main rituals that are followed are: Prana Pratishta, Shodashopachara, Uttarpuja, and Visarjan.
Prana Pratishta ceremony is done by priests who chant mantras invoking Ganesha into the clay idol. After that, the Lord is offered formal prayers in a 16-step worship called Shodashopachara. Every day of the festival is celebrated with a lot of enthusiasm, devotion, and austerity. Different types of food items, like fruits and sweets, are offered to the Lord. It is believed that modak is the favorite food of Lord Ganesha. The offered food is later distributed to the devotees as prasad. Some children keep their books near the feet of the Lord and seek blessings.
On the last day of the festival, Uttarpuja, a ritual bidding Ganesha farewell is performed. After Uttarpuja, the lord is carried in a public procession with music and devotional songs to a nearby water body and is immersed in it. This is the Visarjan ritual, and it is believed that the Lord returns to Kailash, where Lord Shiva and Mother Parvati are said to reside.
Mithya Dosha and the story of Symantaka Mani
The legend has it that we should not see the moon on a Ganesh Chaturthi day; otherwise, Mithya Dosha (defamation and false accusations) will incur.
The legend goes like this (variations exist): Once on a full moon night, Ganesha had eaten a lot of Modaks and was returning on his Mooshika Vahana. Then suddenly a snake appears, and the mouse (considered prey of snakes) gets frightened and rushes aside to hide. Ganesha falls down on the ground, his stomach breaks open, and all the modaks roll out. Ganesha then stuffs all the modaks back, picks up the snake and ties it around the stomach, and looks for his Mooshika vahana. The moon, having witnessed all this, could not control his laughter and
laughs at Ganesha. Seething in anger, Ganesha then curses that anyone who sees the moon from that day will attract Mithya Dosha (defamation and false accusations). Moon immediately becomes repentant and pleads with Ganesha to free him from the curse. Pleased with the moon’s repentance, Ganesha says that a curse once delivered cannot be retrieved. But he reduces the curse’s effect to only Ganesh Chaturthi day. Hence, it is said that nobody should see the moon on the Ganesh Chaturthi day.
Story of Symantaka Mani
Once on a full moon day, while milking Gomata, Lord Krishna sees reflections of the full moon in the milk bowl. He immediately realizes that he will incur the Mithya dosha and wonders what consequences he may have to face.
Prasenjit and Satrajit are brothers. Satrajit was a great devotee of Surya Bagwan (Sun God). Pleased with his devotion, Surva Bagwan gifts Satrajit a ruby jewel called Syamantaka Mani. Satrajit then wears it around his neck and returns to Dvaraka. Seeing the mani, Krishna requests Satrajit to present the jewel to Ugrasena, the leader of the Yadavas. But Satrajit refuses to do so and instead gives it to his brother Prasenjit. One day Prasenjit, wearing the jewel, goes to the jungle for hunting, and a lion kills Prasenjit and takes away the jewel. The lion, in turn, was confronted by Jambavan (devotee of Lord Rama). Jambavan kills the lion and takes away the Syamantaka Mani. When Satrajit comes to know that his brother was killed and the jewel goes missing. He blames Lord Krishna. He tells everyone that since he refused to give the jewel, Lord Krishna killed his brother and took away the jewel. Krishna immediately realizes that these false accusations are only because of seeing the moon on a Chavithi day. He then goes into the forest, finds the trail of the lion, reaches the cave of Jambavan, and finds the jewel. Jambavan confronts Krishna and a battle starts between Jambavan and Krishna. After a fight of 28 days, Krishna defeats Jambavan. Jambavan then recognizes that Krishna is none other than his beloved Shri Rama, and he came to fulfill his wish to have a fight with him. He penitently gives Krishna the Mani and also his daughter Jambavati in marriage. Krishna returns to Dwaraka and hands over the Symantaka mani to Satrajit. Satrajit regrets making false accusations. He offers Krishna the Mani and also his daughter Satyabhama in marriage. Krishna accepts Satyabhama as his wife but doesn’t take the mani.
It is said that if anyone accidentally sees the moon on Ganesh Chaturthi day, there is nothing to worry and they can worship Lord Ganesha with devotion, hear the Symantaka Mani story, and the Lord will bless them and free them of Mithya Dosha.
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