Ganesh Chaturthi, also called Chavat in Konkani, is an auspicious
Hindu festival which is celebrated every year in the month of Bhadra as per the
Hindu calendar which generally falls in mid-August to September. It marks the
birthday of the beloved Lord Ganesh. The festival has been celebrated by Goans
with passion and faith and is one of the rare occasions that bring large Goan
families together.
Music composer and producer Mukesh Ghatwal
from St Estevam says, “I am creating music for various institutions and
organisations dedicated to Lord Ganesh and this year at our place, we are going
eco-friendly with our decorations. Everything will be made out of paper without
the use of plastic or thermocol.” He further says, “This year, after two years
of the pandemic, my cousin Atish and his family will be coming home from
abroad. It will be a grand reunion for the family.”
Lord Ganesh is known as the God of wealth, sciences, knowledge,
wisdom and prosperity, and that’s why most Hindus seek his blessings before
starting any important work. Lord Ganesh is known by 108 different names like
Gajanana, Vinayaka, Vighnaharta among others.
“Lord Ganesh is a patron of intellectuals. We traditionally
worship Ganesha before any major enterprise. For our Pooja, first we pray to
Lord Ganesh as he brings everybody closer. Wherever we may be, we come back to
our ancestral home for Ganesh Chaturthi. I believe that Lord Ganesh comes to our
house and clears all negativity and brings happiness in the house. May Ganapati
Bappa shower all of us with petals of success and happiness,” says actor
Pradeep Naik.
Actor and director, Rajdeep Naik says, “The Ganesh Chaturthi
celebrations of the common man for the past two years were low key, without
much enthusiasm, due to Covid restrictions and financial constraints. But for
this past year, dramas have started and I have hope that this year will be a
grand celebration.” He further says “This year, we are celebrating 25 years of
our theatre group Kala Chetana, Volvoi by producing six Konkani dramas.”
Lord Ganesha is the younger son of Lord Shiva and Parvati. There
are various stories behind his birth but two of them are the most common ones.
According to the first story, Lord Ganesh was created by Parvati, out of dirt
from her body, to guard her in the absence of Shiva. She gave him the task of
guarding her bathroom door while she took a bath. In the meantime, Shiva
returned home and Lord Ganesh, who didn’t know who Shiva was, stopped him. This
angered Shiva and he severed Ganesha’s head after a tiff between the two.
Parvati was enraged when she came to know about this; Lord Shiva, in turn,
promised to get Ganesh back to life. The devas were sent to search for a
child’s head facing north but they could only find an elephant’s head. Shiva
fixed the elephant’s head on the child’s body, and that how Lord Ganesha was
born. The other popular story is that the Devas requested Shiva and Parvati to
create Lord Ganesh so that he can be a Vighnakarta (creator of obstacles) for
rakshasas (demons), thus being a Vighnaharta (averter of obstacles) and helping
Devas.
“This year I am celebrating by having my friends over. We will
do our own celebration as I believe God is one and everybody should celebrate
everybody’s festivals. God wants us to work for others besides just worship, so
I will be putting extra efforts with Udant, an NGO of which I am an honorary
member. For me, celebrating is by helping other and society,” says Goan singer,
composer and lyricist, Hema Sardesai.
It is believed that devotees who pray to Lord Ganesh are able to
fulfil their wishes and desires. So, the main essence of Ganesh Chaturthi is
that devotees who pray to him are set free of sins and it leads them on the
path of knowledge and wisdom.
“This year, I will be celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi by visiting
the old age home at Goa Hindu Associations Snehmandir at Bandora, Ponda, this
is now like my big family and I spend time with them, we have 94 inmates out of
which 40 are mobile.” says film director, Rajendra Talak from Margao. He adds
“I do not do puja, but I visit places of importance during the festival.”
Historically, the festival has been celebrated since the time of
King Shivaji. It was during India’s freedom struggle that Lokmanya Tilak
changed Ganesh Chaturthi from a private celebration to a grand public festival
where people from all castes of the society can come together, pray and be
united.
“After two years due the pandemic and low-key celebrations, this
year looks promising as programs are happening and things in general are
improving. I have started decorating; nothing brings joy like making your own
decorations rather than buying readymade decorations. This year people are
showing enthusiasm which is good to see; unlike the past two years, although
that being said we must still maintain Covid precautions and avoid crowded
places,” says musician, Nitin Mardolkar. He further says, “We have also stopped
using fireworks and I request everyone to use the minimum fireworks possible
due to the pollution they create.”
On
the last day of the festival, the tradition of Ganesh Visarjan takes place. As
the word ‘visarjan’ means immersion, on the last day devotees come out in
processions carrying the idol of Lord Ganesha for immersion in a river, sea, or
water body. There is an interesting story behind the legend of Ganesh visarjan.
It is believed that Lord Ganesha returns to Mount Kailash to join his parents,
Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati, on the last day of the festival. It is believed
that when the idol of Lord Ganesha is taken out for immersion, he also takes
away with it the various obstacles of the house and these obstacles are
destroyed along with the visarjan.
