| Type: | Hindu |
| Ganesha | |
| Gender: | Male |
| Father: | Shiva |
| Mother: | Parvati |
| Siblings: | Kartikeya (brother) |
| Consort: | Buddhi, Riddhi and Siddhi or celibate in some traditions |
| Deity Of: | God of New Beginnings, Wisdom and Luck; Remover of Obstacles Supreme God (Ganapatya) |
| Day: | Tuesday or Wednesday, Sankashti Chaturthi |
| Affiliation: | Deva, Brahman (Ganapatya), Saguna Brahman (Panchayatana puja) |
| Abode: | • Mount Kailash (with parents) • Svānandaloka |
| Weapon: | (axe), (noose), (elephant goad) |
| Mount: | Mouse |
| Symbols: | Swastika, Om, Modak |
| Festivals: | Ganesh Chaturthi, Ganesh Jayanti |
| Texts: | Ganesha Purana, Mudgala Purana, Ganapati Atharvashirsa |
| Equivalent1 Type: | Japanese Buddhist |
| Equivalent1: | Kangiten |
Ganesha (Sanskrit: गणेश,), also spelled Ganesh, and also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, Lambodara and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in the Ganapatya sect. His depictions are found throughout India.[1] Hindu denominations worship him regardless of affiliations. Devotion to Ganesha is widely diffused and extends to Jains and Buddhists and beyond India.[2]
Although Ganesha has many attributes, he is readily identified by his elephant head and four arms.[3] He is widely revered, more specifically, as the remover of obstacles and bringer of good luck;[4] [5] the patron of arts and sciences; and the deva of intellect and wisdom. As the god of beginnings, he is honoured at the start of rites and ceremonies. Ganesha is also invoked during writing sessions as a patron of letters and learning.[6] Several texts relate anecdotes associated with his birth and exploits.
Ganesha is mentioned in Hindu texts between the 1st century BCE and 2nd century CE, and a few Ganesh images from the 4th and 5th centuries CE have been documented by scholars.[7] Hindu texts identify him as the son of Parvati and Shiva of the Shaivism tradition, but he is a pan-Hindu god found in its various traditions.[8] [9] In the Ganapatya tradition of Hinduism, Ganesha is the Supreme Being.[10] The principal texts on Ganesha include the Ganesha Purana, the Mudgala Purana and the Ganapati Atharvasirsha.
Ganesha has been ascribed many other titles and epithets, including Ganapati (Ganpati), Vighneshvara, and Pillaiyar. The Hindu title of respect Shri (Sanskrit: श्री; IAST: ; also spelled Sri or Shree) is often added before his name.[11]
The name Ganesha is a Sanskrit compound, joining the words gana, meaning a 'group, multitude, or categorical system' and isha, meaning 'lord or master'.[12] The word gaṇa when associated with Ganesha is often taken to refer to the gaṇas, a troop of semi-divine beings that form part of the retinue of Shiva, Ganesha's father.[13] The term more generally means a category, class, community, association, or corporation. Some commentators interpret the name "Lord of the " to mean "Lord of Hosts" or "Lord of created categories", such as the elements.[14] Ganapati (Sanskrit: गणपति;), a synonym for Ganesha, is a compound composed of , meaning "group", and , meaning "ruler" or "lord". Though the earliest mention of the word Ganapati is found in hymn 2.23.1 of the 2nd-millennium BCE Rigveda, it is uncertain that the Vedic term referred specifically to Ganesha.[15] The Amarakosha,[16] an early Sanskrit lexicon, lists eight synonyms of Ganesha: Vinayaka, (equivalent to Vighnesha), (one who has two mothers),[17] (equivalent to Ganapati and Ganesha), Ekadanta (one who has one tusk), Heramba, Lambodara (one who has a pot belly, or, literally, one who has a hanging belly), and Gajanana (), having the face of an elephant.
Vinayaka (Sanskrit: विनायक; ) or Binayaka is a common name for Ganesha that appears in the s and in Buddhist Tantras. This name is reflected in the naming of the eight famous Ganesha temples in Maharashtra known as the Ashtavinayak (Marathi: अष्टविनायक,).[18] The names Vighnesha (Sanskrit: विघ्नेश; ) and Vighneshvara (Sanskrit: विघ्नेश्वर; ) (Lord of Obstacles)[19] refers to his primary function in Hinduism as the master and remover of obstacles ().[20]
A prominent name for Ganesha in the Tamil language is Pillai (Tamil: பிள்ளை) or Pillaiyar (Tamil: பிள்ளையார்).[21] A. K. Narain differentiates these terms by saying that pillai means a "child" while pillaiyar means a "noble child". He adds that the words pallu, pella, and pell in the Dravidian family of languages signify "tooth or tusk", also "elephant tooth or tusk".[22] Anita Raina Thapan notes that the root word pille in the name Pillaiyar might have originally meant "the young of the elephant", because the Pali word pillaka means "a young elephant".
In the Burmese language, Ganesha is known as Maha Peinne (in Burmese pronounced as /məhà pèiɰ̃né/), derived from Pali . The widespread name of Ganesha in Thailand is Khanet (can be transliterated as Ganet), or the more official title of Phra Phi Khanet.[23] The earliest images and mention lists Ganesha as a major deity in present-day Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam dating to the 7th and 8th centuries, and these mirror Indian examples of the 5th century or earlier. In Sri Lankan, among Sinhalese Buddhists, he is known as Gana deviyo, and revered along with Buddha, Vishnu, Skanda and other deities.[24]
Ganesha is a popular figure in Indian art. Unlike those of some deities, representations of Ganesha show wide variations and distinct patterns changing over time.[25] He may be portrayed standing, dancing, heroically taking action against demons, playing with his family as a boy, sitting down on an elevated seat, or engaging in a range of contemporary situations.
Ganesha images were prevalent in many parts of India by the 6th century. The 13th century statue pictured is typical of Ganesha statuary from 900 to 1200, after Ganesha had been well-established as an independent deity with his own sect. This example features some of Ganesha's common iconographic elements. A virtually identical statue has been dated between 973 and 1200 by Paul Martin-Dubost,[26] and another similar statue is dated 12th century by Pratapaditya Pal.[27] Ganesha has the head of an elephant and a big belly. This statue has four arms, which is common in depictions of Ganesha. He holds his own broken tusk in his lower-right hand and holds a delicacy, which he samples with his trunk, in his lower-left hand. The motif of Ganesha turning his trunk sharply to his left to taste a sweet in his lower-left hand is a particularly archaic feature. A more primitive statue in one of the Ellora Caves with this general form has been dated to the 7th century.[28] Details of the other hands are difficult to make out on the statue shown. In the standard configuration, Ganesha typically holds an axe or a goad in one upper arm and a pasha (noose) in the other upper arm. In rare instances, he may be depicted with a human head.
The influence of this old constellation of iconographic elements can still be seen in contemporary representations of Ganesha. In one modern form, the only variation from these old elements is that the lower-right hand does not hold the broken tusk but is turned towards the viewer in a gesture of protection or fearlessness (Abhaya mudra).[29] The same combination of four arms and attributes occurs in statues of Ganesha dancing, which is a very popular theme.[30]
Ganesha has been represented with the head of an elephant since the early stages of his appearance in Indian art. Puranic myths provide many explanations for how he got his elephant head. One of his popular forms, Heramba-Ganapati, has five elephant heads, and other less-common variations in the number of heads are known. While some texts say that Ganesha was born with an elephant head, he acquires the head later in most stories. The most recurrent motif in these stories is that Ganesha was created by Parvati using clay to protect her and Shiva beheaded him when Ganesha came between Shiva and Parvati. Shiva then replaced Ganesha's original head with that of an elephant. Details of the battle and where the replacement head came from vary from source to source. Another story says that Ganesha was created directly by Shiva's laughter. Because Shiva considered Ganesha too alluring, he gave him the head of an elephant and a protruding belly.[31]
Ganesha's earliest name was Ekadanta (One Tusked), referring to his single whole tusk, the other being broken. Some of the earliest images of Ganesha show him holding his broken tusk. The importance of this distinctive feature is reflected in the Mudgala Purana, which states that the name of Ganesha's second incarnation is Ekadanta.[32] Ganesha's protruding belly appears as a distinctive attribute in his earliest statuary, which dates to the Gupta period (4th to 6th centuries).[33] This feature is so important that according to the Mudgala Purana, two different incarnations of Ganesha use names based on it: Lambodara (Pot Belly, or, literally, Hanging Belly) and Mahodara (Great Belly).[34] Both names are Sanskrit compounds describing his belly (IAST: ).[35] The Brahmanda Purana says that Ganesha has the name Lambodara because all the universes (i.e., cosmic eggs; IAST: ) of the past, present, and future are present in him.[36]
The number of Ganesha's arms varies; his best-known forms have between two and sixteen arms.[37] Many depictions of Ganesha feature four arms, which is mentioned in Puranic sources and codified as a standard form in some iconographic texts.[38] His earliest images had two arms.[39] Forms with 14 and 20 arms appeared in Central India during the 9th and the 10th centuries.[40] The serpent is a common feature in Ganesha iconography and appears in many forms.[41] According to the Ganesha Purana, Ganesha wrapped the serpent Vasuki around his neck.[42] Other depictions of snakes include use as a sacred thread (IAST: )[43] wrapped around the stomach as a belt, held in a hand, coiled at the ankles, or as a throne. Upon Ganesha's forehead may be a third eye or the sectarian mark (IAST:), which consists of three horizontal lines.[44] The Ganesha Purana prescribes a tilaka mark as well as a crescent moon on the forehead.[45] A distinct form of Ganesha called Bhalachandra (IAST: ; "Moon on the Forehead") includes that iconographic element.[46]
Ganesha is often described as red in colour.[47] Specific colours are associated with certain forms.[48] Many examples of color associations with specific meditation forms are prescribed in the Sritattvanidhi, a treatise on Hindu iconography. For example, white is associated with his representations as Heramba-Ganapati and Rina-Mochana-Ganapati (Ganapati Who Releases from Bondage). Ekadanta-Ganapati is visualised as blue during meditation in that form.
The earliest Ganesha images are without a vahana (mount/vehicle). Of the eight incarnations of Ganesha described in the Mudgala Purana, Ganesha uses a mouse (shrew) in five of them, a lion in his incarnation as Vakratunda, a peacock in his incarnation as Vikata, and Shesha, the divine serpent, in his incarnation as Vighnaraja. Mohotkata uses a lion, uses a peacock, Dhumraketu uses a horse, and Gajanana uses a mouse, in the four incarnations of Ganesha listed in the Ganesha Purana. Jain depictions of Ganesha show his vahana variously as a mouse, elephant, tortoise, ram, or peacock.[49]
Ganesha is often shown riding on or attended by a mouse.[50] Martin-Dubost says that the rat began to appear as the principal vehicle in sculptures of Ganesha in central and western India during the 7th century; the rat was always placed close to his feet.[51] The mouse as a mount first appears in written sources in the Matsya Purana and later in the Brahmananda Purana and Ganesha Purana, where Ganesha uses it as his vehicle in his last incarnation.[52] The Ganapati Atharvashirsa includes a meditation verse on Ganesha that describes the mouse appearing on his flag.[53] The names (mouse-mount) and (rat-banner) appear in the Ganesha Sahasranama.[54]
The mouse is interpreted in several ways. According to Grimes, "Many, if not most of those who interpret 's mouse, do so negatively; it symbolizes as well as desire".[55] Along these lines, Michael Wilcockson says it symbolises those who wish to overcome desires and be less selfish.[56] Krishan notes that the rat is destructive and a menace to crops. The Sanskrit word (mouse) is derived from the root (stealing, robbing). It was essential to subdue the rat as a destructive pest, a type of vighna (impediment) that needed to be overcome. According to this theory, showing Ganesha as master of the rat demonstrates his function as Vigneshvara (Lord of Obstacles) and gives evidence of his possible role as a folk grāma-devatā (village deity) who later rose to greater prominence. Martin-Dubost notes a view that the rat is a symbol suggesting that Ganesha, like the rat, penetrates even the most secret places.[57]
Ganesha is Vighneshvara (Vighnaraja, Marathi – Vighnaharta), the Lord of Obstacles, both of a material and spiritual order.[58] He is popularly worshipped as a remover of obstacles, though traditionally he also places obstacles in the path of those who need to be checked. Hence, he is often worshipped by the people before they begin anything new.[59] Paul Courtright says that Ganesha's dharma and his raison d'être is to create and remove obstacles.
Krishan notes that some of Ganesha's names reflect shadings of multiple roles that have evolved over time.[20] Dhavalikar ascribes the quick ascension of Ganesha in the Hindu pantheon, and the emergence of the, to this shift in emphasis from (obstacle-creator) to (obstacle-averter).[60] However, both functions continue to be vital to his character.
Ganesha is considered to be the Lord of letters and learning.[61] In Sanskrit, the word buddhi is an active noun that is variously translated as intelligence, wisdom, or intellect. The concept of buddhi is closely associated with the personality of Ganesha, especially in the Puranic period, when many stories stress his cleverness and love of intelligence. One of Ganesha's names in the Ganesha Purana and the Ganesha Sahasranama is Buddhipriya.[62] This name also appears in a list of 21 names at the end of the Ganesha Sahasranama that Ganesha says are especially important.[63] The word priya can mean "fond of", and in a marital context it can mean "lover" or "husband",[64] so the name may mean either "Fond of Intelligence" or "Buddhi's Husband".[65]
Ganesha is identified with the Hindu mantra Om. The term (Om is his form), when identified with Ganesha, refers to the notion that he personifies the primal sound.[66] The Ganapati Atharvashirsa attests to this association. Chinmayananda translates the relevant passage as follows: