Sri Ganesha Chaturthi - Customs and Traditions

Om! Gam! Ganapathaye! Namaha!
Om! Sri Raghavendraya Namaha!
Om! Namo! Bhagavathe! Vaasudevaya!
Om! Ham! Hanumathe! Sri Rama Doothaya Namaha!

Customs and traditions of
Sri Ganesha Chaturthi festival

 Before performing pooja to the idol, pooja is performed to Haridra Ganapathi (made from turmeric powder)

The idol (pratima) of Ganapathi brought for pooja should preferably be made with natural clay and should not be defective with cracks and should have all the features.

Main idol for pooja is installed on an elevated structure (mantapa) or on a wooden platform by drawing a Swastik or Ashtadala Padma symbol with rice.

Ekavimshati Pathra pooja with 21 different varieties of plant leaves and Garike (Durva Grass) is unique in Ganesha pooja.

On the previous day of Ganesha Chaturthi festival, people perform Swarna Gouri Vratha worshipping Goddess Parvathi Devi the Divine mother of Lord Ganesha. Some times both the festivals fall on the same day. Gowri Devi’s idol is also kept by the side of Lord Ganesha during the festival. This we observe generally in Maharastra and Karnataka states.

Succeeding day of Ganesha Chaturthi is known as Rishi Panchami (Bhadrapada Sukla Panchami) a Vratha (austerity) exclusively meant to be observed by women who worship Saptha Rishis on this day.

Towards offerings (Naivedya) we find people presenting Lord Ganesha with unique sweet dishes viz. Modaka (prepared from wheat flour and jaggery) that generally is fried in oil or steam cooked. Apart from this an item called Undraallu (small sweet balls) is also offered. These items are offered in 21 numbers. Fruits like Wood Apple, Guava fruit, Custard Apple, Pomegranate, Bananas etc. are offered to Lord Ganesha on this day.

Generally Tulasi leaves are not used in the worship of Lord Ganesha. But, as an exception it is offered on the day of Sri Ganesha Chaturthi festival.

At Sri Ganesha temples across the country special pooja and rituals are held on the day of Sri Ganesha Chaturthi. At some places Ganesha Homa is also performed on this day.

We find people performing sit ups with crossed hands holding their ears (known as Gunjillu in Telugu) while performing Namaskara as a mark of obeisance to Lord Ganesha.

On the day of Ganesha Chaturthi people avoid looking at the Moon.

There is a tradition to perform the festival for nine days known as Ganesha Navarathri and on the 10th day the idol is taken out in big procession and immersed in water.

The tradition of celebrating Sri Ganesha festival in public was started by Late Sri Bala Gangadhara Thilak in 1893.

Nowadays we find people performing Sri Ganesha Chaturthi festival on a mass scale by forming local committees and install large sized Ganesha idols in different shapes and forms at different place in the city/town.

These large sized idols are generally made up of Plaster of Paris and chemical paints that have an impact on environmental pollution.

Ganesha festival is celebrated across the country with big fan fare and religious gaiety more so in the states of Maharastra, Goa, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Cultural programs are arranged on this occasion for ten days with varieties of entertainment.

It is a very big festival in cities like Mumbai and Hyderabad. At Hyderabad every year the Ganesha idol installed in public place at Khairatabad is considered to be the tallest idol in the country.

After performing pooja as prescribed Ganesha nimajjana (immersing the idol in water) is made as far as possible on the same day if not on the next day. We find people performing Ganesha nimajjana in tanks, rivers or sea wherever available. In some families there is a tradition to keep the Ganesha idol for 3/5/7 days before being immersed. Ganesha idols installed in public places are generally immersed on the 10th day.

At some places the Ganesha idols are retained till completion of Devi Navarathri (Durga Pooja) and immerse the same along with Devi Durga idols on completion of Navarathri festival.

Ganesha Nimajjana is a very big event in cities like Hyderabad, Pune and Mumbai and this will last for more than a day where all the Ganesha idols kept in public places are taken out in procession for immersing in water. It becomes a hectic task for the local administration to control the proceedings and also the water in the tanks or rivers becomes polluted having environmental impact.

Celebrations of Ganesha Chaturthi festival are held not only India but also abroad in countries like Sri Lanka, Nepal, and South East Asiatic countries.

Sri Krishnaarpanamasthu

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