Lord Ganesha

What better way other than starting the New Year with prayers to Lord Ganesha who is believed to be the destroyer of all obstacles.

Most Hindu rituals begin with the chants " Shuklambaradaram Vishnum Shashivarnam Chaturbhujam, Prasanna Vadanam Dyayath Sarva Vigna Upashantaye". In this short prayer, Lord Ganesha is described as one who wears white garments (Shuklambaradaram), who is omnipresent (Vishnum), moon-colored (Shashivarnam), having four arms (Chaturbhujam), and a charming face (Prasanna Vadanam). The prayer seeks Lord Ganesha's blessings to remove all obstacles (Sarva Vigna Upashantaye).

In Tamil Nadu, it is common to see the idol of Lord Ganesha, also called Vinayaka, installed at public places such as street sidewalks/junctions and near tree trunks. Such locations are very convenient for the people in great hurry who prefer to have a quick 'darshan' without any time-consuming rituals.

The installation of one Ganesha idol on the street side seems understandable, and adequate. However, in some of the way-side temples in Chennai, I have seen two idols of Ganesha installed side-by-side. It was strange to me as with many others too. For a long time, I used to wonder why two idols for the same God at the same place? What is really the significance of installing twin Ganeshas in the same place? The Sankaracharya of Kanchi known as "Mahaperiyaval" offers an interesting explanation in the "Deivathin Kural" (Vol.6). Let me share a brief summary of what I have learnt.

There are two idols of Ganesha because they perform diametrically opposite functions. One of them is "Vignaraaja" - He creates vignams or obstacles, while the other is "Vinaayaka" who removes the obstacles; both seemingly opposite functions.

The commonly held belief is that Lord Ganesha is the remover of obstacle. Does it not sound strange that Ganesha also creates obstacles? Not really because the obstacle He creates is really a blessing in disguise. Due to Poorva karmas, it is possible that one can face a major or disastrous obstacle in the course of carrying out a task. In order to avoid it, Ganesha is the form of Vignarajah creates a small obstacle - like a speed breaker to avoid a collision. Thereby, He blesses the devotee to channelize the efforts in carrying on the task further avoiding a major obstacle. It's like giving a medicine to stir up a disease before curing it.

So, Lord Ganesha is a "Vigna Kartha" -one who creates obstacles and also a "Vigna Hartha" - one who destroys obstacles. Next time when you face a small obstacle in anything you do, take it as a blessing!

Remember Vignaraajo Vinaayakah. On that note and prayers to Lord Ganesha, let us begin a peaceful, prosperous and joyful New Year!