Ganesh Chaturthi

Ganesh Chaturthi

Ganesh Chaturthi, also popularly known as Vinayaka Chaturthi, is one of the most important Hindu festival celebrated as the birthday of the Lord of wisdom and prosperity – Lord Ganesha. This auspicious festival is observed in the Bhadrapada month, which is either August or September. It is a ten-day celebration that begins with the arrival of Lord Ganesha's idol at home or in private pandals.

Preparations start months prior to the sacred festival . Ganesha is treated and cared for as a much-loved guest in the homes of those who have a statue of him. 

Ganesh Chaturthi includes 4 distinct rites – Pranapratishhtha, Shhodashopachara, Uttarpuja and Ganpati Visarjan. In Visarjan, the idol is submerged in the sea as part of the final ritual.

Even though Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated across the country of India, the most lavish celebrations take place in the states of Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh, among many other places. One of the best venues to witness the festival is in Mumbai, where tens of thousands of devotees flock to the temple to participate in the festival's prayers and pay their respects to the god.

Ganesh Chaturthi is one such festival that is enthusiastically observed in India and all across the world. Philadelphia Ganesha festival is the name given to it in North America, while having distinct names in other countries. In Malaysia and Singapore, it is referred to as Vinayaka Chaturthi. 

If we can learn anything from Sri Ganesh, it is - “Be sincere and care no one in the line of duty.”