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Posted by Harsh Nevatia Sep 12, 2007 |
Ganesh Chaturthi, the birthday of Ganesh, falls in the Hindu month of Bhadra on the fourth day of the Shukla Paksha or the fortnight of the waxing moon. This year it falls on the 15th of September.
Ganesh, also known as Ganpati, is a portly deity due to his over fondness of sweets called laddoos. Every deity in the Hindu pantheon has a vahan or conveyance, which is an animal or bird on which the deity travels. The conveyance of the portly Ganesh is the small mouse. Other deities have often made fun of Ganesh and his mouse, much to their ultimate discomfort.
Once Kartikeya and Ganesh had a dispute. Kartikeya was Ganesh’s elder brother and the two went to their parents Shiva and Parvati. It was proposed that the person who first circumnavigated the world on his vahan would win and to Kartikeya’s surprise Ganesh agreed. Scoffing at Ganesh for being such a fool, Kartikeya sped of on his peacock. Ganesh then mounted his mouse and circled his parents. He told them that they were his world. Needless to add that Ganesh was declared winner and Kartikeya was left fuming.
On another occasion Ganesh had gone to a feast and had over indulged in his favorite laddoos. While returning he found it difficult to balance on his small mouse and fell down. Soma, the moon demi-God, laughed at Ganesh and called him obese. An angry Ganesh put a curse the moon. “You have called me fat so you will become the opposite. Every day you will become thinner and ultimately disappear.” The other deities intervened and the curse was modified. The moon would become thinner till it disappeared, but would then start growing again till it reached its full size. The cycle would then repeat.