🙏🏻 Ganpati bappa morya 🙏🏻 🌺 { Ganesh Chaturthi Special } 🌺

🙏🏻The birth of lord Ganesh🙏🏻

The birth of Ganesha

goddess Parvati was at home alone while her husband Lord Shiva had gone to the forest for meditation. She wanted to take a bath but there was nobody to secure the door for her, so she created a statue of a boy using turmeric and sandalwood paste and blessed the statue to come alive. This is how Ganesha was born. Parvati then gave a command to Ganesha that no one should enter the door, and so he stood by the door to guard it. Soon after, Lord Shiva returned home and was stopped by Ganesha as he was coming in. Ganesha said that he had been commanded by his mother order not to let anyone through the door. Lord Shiva explained to Ganesha that it was good he was obeying his mother’s order, but that this command did not apply to him as Parvati was his wife. But Ganesha held firm and didn’t listen to any excuse. After a long argument with Ganesha, Lord Shiva got very angry. He took his lethal sword out and cut off Ganesha’s head. When Goddess Parvati came out and saw Ganesha’s body on the ground without his head and Shiva with his sword in hand, she started crying. She explained to Lord Shiva that Ganesha was their son and he was only obeying her command. She asked Lord Shiva to bring him back to life. Lord Shiva felt sorry for what he had done in anger to the small boy, so together with Parvati, they took Ganesha’s body to Lord Bramha (the Creator of the Universe) and asked for his help to fix Ganesha’s head. Lord Brahma explained to both of them that anything destroyed by Lord Shiva’s lethal sword could not be fixed. He said that Ganesha’s original head could only be replaced by someone else’s head who would be found with their back to their mother. And all this must be done before sunset. Time was running out, so Lord Shiva hurriedly sent his men out in search of someone whose back was turned to face their mother. His men kept searching in the forest but couldn’t find anyone until they saw a baby elephant with its back facing its mother’s. So they decided to take the baby elephant’s head back with them and presented it to Lord Shiva. It was just about before sunset, so there was not much time left. Lord Brahma had no other option but to attach the elephant’s head to Ganesha’s body. But when Ganesha came to life, his mother Goddess Parvati didn’t like the look of her son anymore. Hence Lord Bramha explained that he would give him some special blessings and powers so that nobody would ever comment about his unusual look. Since then Ganesha became a much revered God. There is always, for example, a Ganesh ritual before any inauguration of a new business, the purchase of a new house or any other beginning.lord Shiva declared Ganesha to be his own son as well and gave him the status of being foremost among the gods, and leader of all the ganas (classes of beings), Ganapati.

Meaning of the story of Ganesh :

At first glance, this story just seems like a nice tale that we might tell our children or a myth without any real substance. But, it's true mystical meaning is veiled. It is explained thus:

Parvati is a form of Devi, the Parashakti (Supreme Energy). In the human body, She resides in the Muladhara chakra as the Kundalini shakti. It is said that when we purify ourselves, ridding ourselves of the impurities that bind us, then the Lord automatically comes. This is why Shiva, the Supreme Lord, came unannounced as Parvati was bathing.

Nandi, Shiva's bull, who Parvati first sent to guard the door represents the divine temperament. Nandi is so devoted to Shiva that his every thought is directed to Him, and he is able to easily recognize the Lord when He arrives. This shows that the attitude of the spiritual aspirant is what gains access to Devi's (the kundalini shakti's) abode. One must first develop this attitude of the devotee before hoping to become qualified for the highest treasure of spiritual attainment, which Devi alone grants.
After Nandi permitted Shiva to enter, Parvati took the turmeric paste from Her own body, and with it created Ganesha. Yellow is the colour associated with the Muladhara chakra, where the kundalini resides, and Ganesha is the deity who guards this chakra. Devi needed to create Ganesha, who represents the earthbound awareness, as a shield to protect the divine secret from unripe minds. It is when this awareness begins to turn away from things of the world, and toward the Divine, as Nandi had, that the great secret is revealed.

Shiva is the Lord and Supreme Teacher. Ganesha here represents the ego-bound Jiva. When the Lord comes, the Jiva, surrounded as it is with the murky cloud of ego, usually doesn't recognize Him, and maybe even ends up arguing or fighting with Him! Therefore, it is the duty of the Lord, in the form of the Guru, to cut off the head of our ego! So powerful is this ego, however, that at first, the Guru's instructions may not work, as Shiva's armies failed to subdue Ganesha. It often requires a tougher approach, but, eventually the compassionate Guru, in His wisdom finds a way.

Devi threatened to destroy the whole Creation after learning of Ganesha's demise. This indicates that when the ego thus dies, the liberated Jiva loses interest in its temporary physical vehicle, the body, and begins to merge into the Supreme. The physical world is here represented by Devi. This impermanent and changeable creation is a form of Devi, to which this body belongs; the unchanging Absolute is Shiva, to which belongs the Soul. When the ego dies, the external world, which depends on the ego for its existence, disappears along with it. It is said that if we want to know the secrets of this world, which is a manifestation of Devi, then we must first receive the blessings of Ganesha.

Shiva restoring life to Ganesha, and replacing his head with an elephant's, means that before we can leave the body, the Lord first replaces our small ego with a "big" or universal ego. This doesn't mean that we become more egoistic. On the contrary, we no longer identify with the limited individual self, but rather with the large universal Self. In this way, our life is renewed, becoming one that can truly benefit Creation. It is however only a functional ego like the one Krishna and Buddha kept. It is like a thin string tying the liberated Consciousness to our world, solely for our benefit.

Ganesha is given dominion over the Ganas, which is a general term denoting all classes of beings, ranging from insects, animals and humans to the subtle and celestial beings. These various beings all contribute to the government of the Creation; everything from natural forces like storms and earthquakes to the elemental qualities like fire and water, to the functioning of the body's organs and processes. If we don't honour the Ganas, then our every action is a form of thievery, as it is unsanctioned. Therefore, instead of propitiating each Gana in order to receive their blessings, we bow to their Lord, Sri Ganesha. By receiving His grace, we receive the grace of all. He removes any potential obstacles and enables our endeavours to succeed.

Such is the greatness of Sri Ganesha! Jai Ganesha!