Ganesh Chaturthi is a
Hindu festival that is celebrated every year in the honor of the benevolent
Lord Ganesh. This religious festival, also known as Vinayaka Chaturthi is a
10-day long nationwide gala.
It typically falls in
the month of August or September. This year, the festivities will begin on 13th
September, a Thursday. Clay idols of Lord Ganesh are worshipped in homes. Huge
and extravagant idols are also crafted for public ceremonies.
Vedic hymns and the
Ganapati Upanishad are read in the form of prayers for the elephant-headed god.
Fasts are also an integral part of the rituals carried out during the festival.
At the end of the
festival, the idols of Ganesh are immersed in rivers or other water bodies. In
Mumbai alone, around 150,000 statues are immersed annually. With the dissolving
of the clay idols, Ganesh returns to Shiva and Parvati at Kailash.
Lord Ganesh is
venerated as the God of New Beginnings, the Remover of Obstacles and the god of
wisdom and intelligence. States such as Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Telengana,
Gujrat and Chhattisgarh carry out this festival with immense zeal and
enthusiasm.
Private and small
celebrations occur in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. Apart from
India, Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated in Nepal. It is also celebrated in
foreign countries like Trinidad, Suriname, Fiji, Mauritius, United States and
European countries by Hindus.
This year too, Ganesh Chaturthi2018 shall be celebrated with extreme devotion and dedication to the Lord, as
has been done since the era of Shivaji.
We wish
everyone a very Happy Ganesh Chaturthi 2018 and hope that the blessings of Lord
Ganesh bring fruitful results in the lives of his devotes and worshippers.
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