GANESH CHATURTHI
Another festival has begun in Mumbai. This one is loud and exciting and lasts for 10 days. It is a Hindu festival celebrating the birthday of Ganesh (the elephant god you see above). The festival began Tuesday night, Sept 18th with lots of music, drum beats, fireworks. The city was ablaze with noise and activity. Wednesday morning, the actual festival begins with even more drum beats and music parading around the city, escorting the numerous Ganesh statues to their temporary temples (pandals) for the next 10 days. I took a drive with my driver to catch some of the excitement. We went to the area where the largest Ganesh in Mumbai is located. I read that it is visited by 1.5 million people daily! Above and below are some of the pictures that i caught driving around the city.
I wish i could have captured some of the music to play for you. It was like a caribbean drum sound - very exciting.
The Ganesh are all around the city, many in individual homes and many in temporary structures built just for this occasion (see one of these pandals in bottom picture). Ganesh is worshipped for 10 days, and "on the 11th day, the statue is taken through the streets in a procession accompanied with dancing, singing, and fanfare to be immersed in a river or the sea symbolizing a ritual see-off of the Lord in his journey towards his abode in Kailash while taking away with him the misfortunes of his devotees. " (Wikipedia -sorry)
(One problem with this festival is that the Ganesh statues are left in the water, causing pollution in the waters. Many Ganesh in the past were made with plaster of paris, but now many are being made with papier-mache, more environmentally friendly. Another note: not all areas in India celebrate this festival to this extent. Our state, Maharastra, puts on one of the more elaborate celebrations.)
A bit about Ganesh, abstracted from 'About.com:Hinduism":
Parvati created Ganesh out of the dirt of her body and gave him the duty of guarding the entrance to her bathroom. When Shiva, her husband, returned he was surprised to find a stranger denying him access, and struck off the boy's head in rage. Parvati broke down in utter grief and to soothe her, Shiva sent out his squad (gana) to fetch the head of any sleeping being who was facing the north. The company found a sleeping elephant and brought back its severed head, which was then attached to the body of the boy. Shiva restored its life and made him the leader (pati) of his troops. Hence his name 'Ganapati'. Shiva also bestowed a boon that people would worship him and invoke his name before undertaking any venture.
Ganesha is one of the five prime Hindu deities (Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva and Durga being the other four)
Actually, the preparations for this event started many weeks ago. The Ganesh statues are made every year out of clay or papier-mache, the temporary temples are constructed (below) and many poles are erected for hanging lights along the streets and alleys.
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