The Birth of the Elephant-headed God!

Every ritual in our culture is begun by invoking Lord Ganesha. Vinayaka, Vigneshwara, Mooshika Vahana, Pillayar and Ganapathy, as he is fondly called by his devotees, this God is known to bestow success on his worshippers. Here is my way of invoking his blessings for the beginning of my blogspace, “Mythology Unleashed!!”

The following story narrates the birth of Lord Ganesha and why he became the Elephant-headed God!

Birth of Lord Ganesha

Lord Shiva, one of the Supreme Gods in the Hindu culture, was married to Goddess Parvathi (also known as Shakthi) and together, they spent their days in Kailash, their abode in the Himalayan mountains.

One day, Goddess Parvathi called upon Nandi, the loyal follower of Lord Shiva, to guard their gate, while she went in to bathe. Within a few minutes, Lord Shiva walked in front of the gates and Nandi was put into a dilemma. As per his Mistress’s order, he had to stop Lord Shiva at the gate, but he was a strong loyalist of the Lord and who could think of barring the Lord from entering his own house? Thus wondering, Nandi let Lord Shiva pass the gate.

On the sight of Lord Shiva, Goddess Parvathi was infuriated that Nandi had disregarded her commands. Over hours of thought, she realized that unless she had a loyalist of her own, there would be no soul who would respect her the way the Lord's followers respected him. She decided to create her own loyalist and sculpted an idol using a paste she had prepared for her body. She imparted life to the statue and right in front of her stood a handsome young lad, all decked in energy and valour. Goddess Parvathi was jubilant on her creation and blessed him with unique powers and strengths.

A few days down, she asked him to guard her gate as she had requested Nandi earlier. Just as on the previous day, Lord Shiva attempted to walk past the gate when he was stopped by the young lad. Lord Shiva was enraged at the thought that a random boy was opposing his entrance into his own place. The boy simply waved his staff at Lord Shiva and would not budge on any amount of cajoling that it was his own place.

Lord Shiva left the place fuming at the thoughts that he was sent out from his own abode. He sent a horde of men to fight the young lad who had insulted him. The army of soldiers led by Nandi, known for his courage and strengths, reached the place only to be defeated by the young lad in a jiffy. They hurried back to Lord Shiva and narrated the happenings. Lord Shiva felt insulted at the thought that his army had to suffer a defeat at the hands of a puny boy. He led the warpath to the place where the young lad stood guarding the gate, as cheerful as ever.

The ensuing war between Lord Shiva and the young lad was fearful. Slowly, the Lord began to realize that the lad did possess extraordinary strengths and skills. Unable to ride over his wrath, he aimed his all-conquering Trishul on the young boy. The Trishul found its mark and slew the head of the young lad and there he lay, in a pool of blood.

Hearing the commotion, Goddess Parvathi ran out, only to find her beloved creation lying on the ground, lifeless. She cried her heart out and announced to all those present that the young lad was her own son, her own creation. She declared that her son had to be brought back to life before sunset.

Lord Shiva was now filled with remorse at his actions. He agreed to bring him back to life and ordered his men to go in search of a replacement for the young lad’s head. He instructed them to slay and bring to him the head of any creature that might be sleeping with its head facing north. The men set out in all directions and finally hit upon an elephant sleeping in the same position. They slew the head of the elephant and brought it back to Lord Shiva. Lord Shiva then affixed the head of the elephant to the young lad’s body and brought him back to life. 

The young lad was none other than Lord Ganesha, brought back to life with an elephant head. Lord Shiva blessed him and accepted him as his son. He announced that henceforth, Lord Ganesha would be worshipped at the beginning of all endeavors, as a remover of obstacles, as a destroyer of evils and as the God of Wisdom, Knowledge & Wealth.

Shuklam Baradharam Vishnnum Shashi Varnnam Chatur Bhujam

Prasanna Vadanam Dhyaayeet Sarva Vighnopashaantaye

Meaning: Praise be on the lord who is wearing white clothes, who is all-pervading, who is as bright as the moon and has four hands, who has a compassionate face, let us meditate on him to ward off all obstacles