The History And Legends Associated With The Celebration Of Ganesh Chaturthi
The 10 day long festival of Ganesh Utsav is celebrated in a grand and zealous manner during the Hindu month of Bhadra. There are two main legends associated with the celebration of Ganesh Chaturthi, stated in the two major Hindu scriptures, namely the Shiva Purana and the Skanda Purana. The basic details of both these legends I am going to share with you all today.
Story From Shiv Purana
Godess Parvati once became infuriated by the fact that the Shiv ganas, give priority to his orders over hers. It was then that she decided to create her own gana, who would obey only her commands and prevent anyone from intruding on her privacy. It was thus, that she created a human shaped doll from the dough that she used for her bathing and breathed life into it. The day on which she created this human doll, came to be known as the birth day of Lord Ganesha and which is now celebrated as Ganesh Chaturthi.
Story From Skanda Purana
At a feast organized by Chadradev for Lord Ganesha, the latter ate numerous laddoos, making him incapable of walking straight when he got up. As he walked he lost his balance and slipped which caused all the ladoos to roll out of his huge stomach. This amused Chandradev immensely and he couldn’t help laughing, which in turn angered Lord Ganesha. The latter then cursed Chandradev to vanish from the universe, and this caused the world to wane. The Gods got together and sought the help of Lord Shiva in changing Ganesha’s mind and forgiving the Moon God. Lord Ganesha withdrew his curse to extent that the Moon became invisible only for a single day and could be seen partially on Ganesh Chaturthi.
Another Legend
Lord Krishna once saw the reflection of moon in a vessel on the day Badhrapad Chaturthi, which was considered to be an evil omen due to a curse of Godess Parvati. Soon Krishna was accused of stealing a very precious gem named Samantak Mani, which was in fact taken by a bear called Jambavant, after he saw its owner Prasen being killed by a lion in the forest. To prove his innocence, Krishna goes into the forest in serach of the Gem and manages to find it and take it out of Jambavant’s home. Upon learning this, the bear challenges Krishna and a 10 day long fight ensues between the two, at the end of which time Jambavant realizes that Krishna is actually yet another avatar of Lord Rama. Later, Godess Parvati also retracts her curse to prevent the evil effects of seeing the Moon on Bhadraphad Chaturthi for people who worship Lord Ganesha on this day.
I had heard both of these stories from my mom during childhood. your post has made me inspired to tell these to my girls to let them know more about our traditions and culture. thanks for sharing and wishing you and your family a happy Ganesh chaturthi.
It’s very interesting to read these legends after long. I didn’t know about Krishna and the gem stone theft. And may we all be blessed by the good God who removes all obstacles from our path. Happy Ganesh Chaturthi!
Ganesha is such a popular God, and we have all grown up listening to his fascinating stories. The best part is the legends never lose their sheen, and one can hear and read them again and again.
Happy ganesh chathurthu everyone. I really live your way of presenting things. And, I feel proud that some one is spreading awareness about our culture. I always look forward to your post in such cases. Great work.
Yeah I know about Lord Ganesha. I am glad you shared that The History And Legends Associated With The Celebration Of Ganesh Chaturthi. All people called “ganpati bappa morya”. I really liked to read it.
Happy Ganesh Chaturthi to you! Even of we know these stories but every time we read them, they feel new. I guess thats the divinity and magic of Bappa
I had heard both of these stories from my mom during childhood. your post has made me inspired to tell these to my girls to let them know more about our traditions and culture. thanks for sharing and wishing you and your family a happy Ganesh chaturthi.
It’s very interesting to read these legends after long. I didn’t know about Krishna and the gem stone theft. And may we all be blessed by the good God who removes all obstacles from our path. Happy Ganesh Chaturthi!
Ganesha is such a popular God, and we have all grown up listening to his fascinating stories. The best part is the legends never lose their sheen, and one can hear and read them again and again.
It’s always nice to hear stories about festivals in India. You have written these stories in a short and sweet manner. Thank you for sharing this.
Happy ganesh chathurthu everyone. I really live your way of presenting things. And, I feel proud that some one is spreading awareness about our culture. I always look forward to your post in such cases. Great work.
Interesting learning a lot about history and legends about your culture and beliefs. It’s amazing knowing about it.
Honestly, there were so many facts that I read here about which I had no clue. So glad that you shared this post.
Yeah I know about Lord Ganesha. I am glad you shared that The History And Legends Associated With The Celebration Of Ganesh Chaturthi. All people called “ganpati bappa morya”. I really liked to read it.
Few things were new to me..it’s so interesting and joyful to read our own mythology.Our india is so rich in cultures. Happy Ganesh chaturthi.
Happy Ganesh Chaturthi to you and your family. Glad that you are writing stories about this festival. These stories are great to be shared with kids.
I loved this post. You shared many such things which I was not aware of. Ganesh Chathurthi is such a beautiful festival in India
These facts about the festival is so important to share. This connects us to our values and festival stories. Thanks for sharing this!!
I love the ganapati festival. The ten days are like fun and frolic. Good to know story and mythology behind the festivals.
I never knew that there were so many legends related to Ganesh Chaturthi. You always come up with informative posts.
Happy Ganesh Chaturthi. Thanks for sharing the different legends related to Ganesh Chaturthi.