Pillayar/ Ganesh Chathurthi 2020 - Happy birthday Lord ganesha !!

My second post under the label "Festivals" - Ganesh Chathurthi. 

Lord ganesha is one of my favorite. Obviously, as a universal rule, be it anything and everything, we start the task by invoking the blessings of him. That's why the first label in my blog is "Mudhakaram", symbolizing lord ganesha. 

This festival is close to my heart and ironically, the first festival that we celebrated last year (infact the very next day) after moving to our new house. I thought that as a very good sign , as Lord Ganesha is the god of new beginnings, we welcomed him to our newly built home, back in 2019. So, this is my second chathurthi in my new home.!

Baby ganesha and mouse (his vehicle)

Ganesh Chaturthi, one of the most sacred Hindu festivals, celebrates the birth of Lord Ganesha - the supreme God of wisdom and prosperity. This annual occassion is observed by the whole of Hindu community with great fervor and piety. Do you know how this festival came to be practiced?

Ganesh Chaturthi or "Vinayak Chaturthi" is one of the major traditional festivals celebrated by the Hindu community. It is believed that Lord Ganesh was born on a fourth day (chaturthi) of the bright fortnight of the Hindu lunar month of Magh. So, it is observed in the Hindu calendar month of Bhadrapada, starting on the shukla chaturthi (fourth day of the waxing moon period). Typically the day falls sometime between August 20 and September 15. Since then, an association between Ganesha and chaturthi has been established. Thus the festival dedicated to the worship of Lord Ganesha on this chaturthi day is named as Ganesha Chaturthi.

According to Hindu mythology, Lord Ganesha is the son of Shiva (The God of Destruction in the Hindu Holy Trinity of Creator-Preserver-Destroyer) and Parvati (Shiva’s consort). The cutest and most lovable Indian God, Ganesha or Ganapati has the head of an elephant on which rests an elegant tiara, four podgy hands joined to a sizeable belly with each hand holding its own symbolic object - a trishul or a trident in one, an ankush or goad (made from his very own broken tooth) in another, a lotus in the third and a rosary (which is sometimes replaced by modaks, his favorite sweet) in the fourth. Revered as the deity of auspiciousness and wisdom, Lord Ganesha is also famous for being a trickster and for his profound sense of humor.

There is a curiously interesting story about the birth of Lord Ganesha. 

It is believed that once while Parvati was bathing, she created a human from turmeric powder (some books mention clay), gave him life, accepted the boy as her own son and asked him to guard the door while she bathed. She mentioned not to let anyone enter till she comes out from bath. Incidentally, after a long period of meditation on Mountain Kailash (Lord Shiva’s abode), Shiva chose that very moment to drop by to see Parvati, but was abruptly stopped by the boy from entering the house. When asked, he told him that his mother was bathing and had asked him to not let anyone pass through the doors. Little did the boy know that Shiva was his own father. Lord Shiva too, was not aware of the true identity of the boy guarding the gates. He turned furious on being stopped from entering his own house. In a fit of rage, Shiva lifted his trident, severed the little boy's head and entered the house. 

Goddess Parvati came out and was shocked to see her son lying dead before her eyes. She revealed the true identity of him and implored Lord Shiva to bring him back to life. Shiva, filled with remorse and guilt, agreed to bring the boy's life back. But it was not possible for him to join the severed head to the body as the impact of his trident was irreversible. But, he knew that the boy lost his life while keeping his word to his mother, proving his unconditional love. So, he called his Nandhi (Bull), ordered nandhi to bring back the head of the first creature that he sees (away from its mother). Nandhi saw an elephant calf first which was away from its mother. So he brought the head of an elephant calf. Shiva placed the head of the elephant calf on the boy and brought him back to life. Though Parvati was happy to see her son alive, she feared that the boy will be mocked for his unusual presence. So, shiva invoked all gods, and asked them to bless their son. He then named him "Ganesha" and introduced him as his own son. 

Shiva blessed Ganesha with a boon stating that he would be the first recipient of people's prayers and offerings. No puja can begin without paying an ode to Lord Ganesha. Ganesha is the foremost god of the Hindu pantheon. This brave guardian of the door to Parvati’s bath is beheld today as the most auspicious God of new beginnings. He is worshiped during every festival and before people undertake a journey or embark upon a new venture. You will also see him carefully guarding entrances to temples and homes, peeping out of calendars and happily gracing marriages and other such occasions.

Coming back to "Ganesh Chathurthi" festival, people buy lord ganesha made out of clay (some make home made pillayar out of turmeric powder), since goddess parvati made out of clay/ turmeric powder and gave life to it. They decorate him with umbrellas, flowers, poonal, and so on.. Pillayar loves flowers especially Arka/ Giant Milkweed (எருக்கம்பூ), Arugampul / Bermuda Grass / Durva (அருகம்புல்). 

Arka means "Ray of hope" in Sanskrit. 

Erukkam Poo / Arka

I was so curious to find the reason behind the liking towards Bermuda grass/ அருகம்புல். I read a couple of stories from an online blog.

Once there was an Asura (demon) named Anal Asura. He was terribly dangerous and enormous. He used to emit fire from his eyes and had a raucous voice. Whenever he used to speak, people used to tremble just because of his voice. All the Gods were petrified of him. Everybody went to Lord Ganesha and requested him to slay the demon. Ganesha disguised himself as a child and went to deal with the demon. Ganesha confronted the demon, and a Sarvaksha (a form of war where the opponents fight by using their eyes as weapons) started between them. The demon burnt everything around Lord Ganesha. Anal Asura’s eyes were oozing fireballs, and after many efforts he tried to gulp Lord Ganesha.

In the meantime, Ganesha took his ‘Virat Roopam’ (disguised himself as a giant). Instead of Anal Asura trying to gulp Lord Ganesha, Ganesha gulped Anal Asura. Due to the increased heat in his body he laid on the ground. He tried hard to control and beat the heat, but each passing minute was making him uncomfortable and the heat was becoming unbearable for him. He applied a massive amount of Chandan (sandal paste) on his body, but even that did not help. All Gods put their heads together to find a solution that would make Ganesha better. They finally decided to make a foundation of the Moon, and apply it on Ganesha’s head. Hence, Ganesha is often known as ‘Balachandra’ (the one who has a crescent moon on his head). Lord Vishnu gave him his Lotus, thus lending the name ‘Padmapani’(the one who holds the Lotus flower). Lord Varuna (Rain God) showered plenty of water on him; but all in vain. Everybody tried to calm Ganesha, but everything was proving fruitless. Sages who came there with a bunch of 21 Durvas, tried to put on his head and immediately, a miracle happened. Ganesha became normal. Ganesha uttered only ‘Durva’ a simple grass made my agony into normal. So it is believed that offering Durva to lord ganesha brings positivity and peace.

There is one more tale attached to the same story. Once there was a Yakshini (semi-goddess) who loved Lord Ganesha and wanted to marry him. Ganesha too was interested in getting married to her. However, Parvati (Ganesha’s mother) did not want the alliance to grow, so she cursed Yakshini to take the form of Durva Grass. As it is a grass and no one will ever pay attention towards her, Durva asked for apologies and pardon. She asked Goddess Parvati to reverse the curse. Parvati told her even though she acquired the form of grass she will always remain an object of Ganesha’s affection.

Another tale which tells us the significance of Durva grass, which is as follows. Sage Kaundinya was telling the importance of Durva to his wife Ashraya. But Ashraya had a doubt about it. So sage Kaundinya gave a bunch of 21 Durva and told Ashraya to get the gold equivalent to Durva from Lord Indra who is God of all other Gods. She went to Lord Indra and asked about gold. Indra sent her to “Kubera” who is the treasurer of Gods. When Durva and the gold was measured simultaneously, the entire gold was kept and still, it did not match durva. All the other Gods like Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva arrived and sat along with Gold but the weight of Durva was more. Everybody was perplexed. When all Gods went to see sage Kaundinya at his ashrama and confessed the importance of Durva. Kaudinya said that Ganesha is king of everyone and there is no one superior to him.

The minimum number of Durva to be offered to Lord Ganesha should be 21. Tie the Durva together and offer them to Lord Ganesha after dipping into water. The entire idol of Ganesha excluding the face should be covered with Durva. Thus the fragrance of Durva spreads around the idol.

Bermuda grass/ Arugampul

Usual Offerings on the day :

Flowers (includes Arka and bermuda grass)

Betel leaf and nut, Coconut, Fruits

Cooked Rice and Toor dal with a tsp of ghee

Appam

Sundal

Ulundhu Vadai

Payasam (Moong dal Channa dal payasam is preferred)

Modaks / Kozhukattai (Coconut Poornam, Urad dal, Sesame seeds)

So, make a pillayar and a cute mouse (his vehicle) out of clay/turmeric, decorate him according to your wish (you can keep idols along with the hand made ones), chant few shlokas of Lord Ganesha, sing few songs on him , offer food especially modak, invoke his blessings!!

He is definitely the remover of obstacles!  Let everyone's house be filled with positive energy..!

My Ganesh / Pillayar Chathurthi 2020 (Aug 22, Saturday) :

A simple pooja with the usual offerings! 

Vinayagar Chathurthi 2020!

How to send off Lord Ganesha ?

The next day, immerse him in water. He gets dissolved. The water can be used for the plants in your garden. 

Happy Ganesh Chathurthi everyone !! Stay blessed !!

A tribute to Lord Krishna - Gokulashtami 2020 !

Krishna Janmashtami / simply Janmashtami / Gokulashtami is an annual hindu festival celebrating the birth of Lord Krishna, 8th avatar of Vishnu. Krishna was born in the Rohini nakshatra, in the Hindu month of Bhadrapada, on the 8th day of the waning moon (Krishna Paksha) at midnight.

I always had an interest in learning and understanding the Hindu festivals ! In fact, i have a separate notebook where i write down the history, significance behind the festival , the offerings to be done, the shlokas to be chanted etc...

This blog was not born on a single night! I always had the passion to write blogs (especially food and culture) ! Food - because, i loved to eat (when i did not know the meaning of cooking, now i love to cook). Culture - because, my family celebrated each and every festival in its own way and ensured the tradition is not forgotten and passed on to the next generation. That's what i am striving for right now, trying to teach my son the importance and significance behind each festival. 

So, why am i starting the new label with Janmashtami? Obviously, the recent love and respect that i developed towards Lord Krishna. Growing up, i just know gokulashtami is Krishna's birthday and i can enjoy all the home made snacks and sweets. My grandmother would ask me to chant few shlokas which i obediently did (for the sake of eating bakshanams). So, why did i mention the word "recent"? During this lock down period , my husband and I watched the series "Mahabharath". This is not the first time for me though. I have read a book, watched different versions of it, but those times, it did not create any impact. This recent watch made an impact ; those sayings of Lord Krishna, the relationship between Arjuna and Krishna, between Draupadi and Krishna, between Pandavas and Krishna, the Bhagavad gita (without which Mahabarath doesn't exist, at least for me) etc.. I developed a strong respect and love for him, a single post is not enough to describe his leelas. 

The series had these lines in its title song which i loved the most :

"கிருஷ்ணரின் மகிமையும் கீதையின் பெருமையும் ஒன்றாக சங்கமிக்கும் புண்ணிய காவியம்...மஹாபாரதம் "

"Krishnarin mahimayum geethayin perumayum, ondraga sangamikum punniya kaaviyam.. Mahabharatham.." So true! 

I felt i wanted to do something special for his birthday (sincere offerings and prayers is the least that i can do). This is the first Gokulashtami after starting a blog and moving to our own house. So i thought i should not miss it. Without his blessings, nothing is possible is what my mind said.

Recently, i read an article regarding Lord Krishna and number 8. How krishna is associated with number 8? I wanted to share that here in this post.

Krishna and Number 8 :

He is the 8th incarnation of Lord Vishnu. 

He is the 8th son of Devaki and Vasudeva. 

He took birth on the 8th day (Ashtami) of the Krishna Paksha (dark fortnight).

Krishna had mainly eight wives, he is called Ashtabharya (Ashta means eight, bharya means wife). He had 16100 gopis (1 6 1 = 8) He had 80(8 0 = 8) sons from his 8 wives. 

He lived for 125 (1 2 5 = 8) years.

In numerology, the number 8 represents infinity and everything good in the universe is infinite. It is the number, supplying infinity and abundance without any lack of infinite wisdom, infinite prosperity, infinite love, infinite joy, and infinite happiness. In other words, it is the number of completeness and unending abundance.

The number 8 have no ending and it loops back itself. No one knows where it starts and where it ends. Like number 8, no one knows what is hidden in the mystic smile of lord Krishna. Like infinity, lord Krishna cannot be understood.

Master of Rasaleela : 

There are 8 Rasas or emotions of drama (love, humor, sadness, anger, courage, fear, horror, and wonder). Lord Krishna is the master of Rasleela. The science of Yoga has eight limbs, the ashtanga yoga or the eight-limbed yoga. The ashtanga yoga is the considered the complete yoga. And he is known as Yogiraj . The best form of salutation to the deity is considered the eight-fold salutation (shashtanga namakaskaram). 

8 forms of Laxmi :

There are 8 forms of Laxmi. Laxmi is the consort of lord Vishnu. These eight forms of Laxmi are the eight Shaktis of Lord Vishnu. And in Krishna incarnation, these eight Shaktis became his eight wives. He is Pathi (husband/owner) of these eight forms.

Thus, duality - pain or pleasure, happiness and distress, victory or defeat, love or hatred, he is the complete. He is a know-er of the infinity, never bewildered with finite and its upheaval. His mystic smile expresses that. Thus, number 8 is the best suited indication of his personality.

Krishna takes up so many forms. Famous ones - Santhana gopala krishna (for pregnancy), sammohana krishna ( a very rare form of krishna for peaceful life), etc..

The rare form of Lord Krishna called Sammohana Krishna , who is half of lord krishna and half of rukmani. There is a shloka associated with this form of krishna which can be chanted everyday for pure marital bliss and to beget children.

It will be never ending if i have to write his entire story. A small video covering important phases of his life, at least the phases which i admired the most after hearing or reading! I have added my favorite title song as the music from the famous show "Nalam Tharum Narayaneeyam" (Doordarshan channel) - A tribute to Lord Krishna on his birthday! 

Usual Offerings on the day :

Flowers (Tulsi included)

Betel leaf, Paaku, Fruits, Coconut

Milk, Curd, Butter

Poha / Aval, Jaggery

Any Sweet 

Vadai

Bakshanams / Snacks

My Gokulashtami 2020 : 

This year i wanted to make it grand. Two reasons : One for Lord krishna and another one for my charming kutti krishna. He absolutely love Bakshanams and snacks. So, with full love, i made Ribbon Pakoda , Mullu Muruku, Seedai [happy that i got a few good ones for krishna(s), remaining burst]. 

A video of my little krishna chanting a sloka from Krishnashtagam (Dhyana sloka of bhagavad gita) ! Love his mazhalai :)

Other offerings:

Diary : Milk, Freshly prepared and fermented curd, Butter

Aval and Fruit : Aval panchamritham (just to include jaggery , poha, fruits and honey in a single dish)

Sweet : Appam, Milk Kheer (Paal Payasam), Karupatti Almond Burfi (Healthy)

Savory : Paruppu Vadai

Flowers : Flower maalai (made at home) and few tulsi leaves from my backyard.  

Betel leaf and nut , coconut and fruits!

The pooja is done in the evening (since krishna was born at midnight) by chanting few krishna shlokas.

A simple pooja at my house : 

May this Krishna Janmashtami bring happiness in your life! Let him come inside your house and take away all worries and sorrows..! Enjoy the festival with LOVE in your heart..!

Happy Gokulashtami everyone :) Stay blessed !!!