Stories of Lord Ganesha - Indian Worship

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. THE BIRTH OF LORD GANESHA
2. STORY OF GANESH CHATURTHI
3. GANESHA THE VIGNAHARTA
4. NEVER FORGET TO PRAY TO GANESHA
5. WHY GANESHA HAS A BROKEN TUSK
6. GANESHA FREES RIVER CAUVERY
7. STORY OF GAJANANA
8. GANESHA AND GAJMUKHA
9. GANESHA AND GAJASURA
10. HOW DID SHIVA END UP IN GAJASURA’S BELLY
11. GANESHA AND ANALASURA
12. GANESHA AND KUBERA
13. GANESHA AND THE SNAKE AROUND HIS BELLY
14. GANESHA AND LORD VISHNU’S SHANK
15. BE KIND TO ANIMALS
16. LORD GANESHA’S MARRIAGE
17. STORY OF GOKARNA

THE BIRTH OF LORD GANESHA

Why does Ganesha have an Elephant head?
It is believed that once while Parvati was bathing, she created a
human figure from some unguent and balm, gave him life and
asked him to guard the door while she bathed. After a long period
of meditation on Mount Kailash (Lord Shiva’s abode), Shiva chose
that very moment to drop by to see his better half, but was
abruptly stopped by the man-god Parvati had posted at the door.
Outraged by the cheek of this stranger, Shiva cut off his head
only to discover moments later that he had killed Parvati’s son!
For fear of enraging his wife, Shiva immediately dispatched his
ganas (attendants) to get him the head of the first living creature

they could find. Well, the first living creature happened to be an
elephant. As instructed, the head was chopped off and brought
back to Shiva, who placed it on Parvati’s son’s body, bringing him
back to life.

This elephant headed god was welcomed into the first family of
the Hindu heavens and named Ganesha or Ganapati, which
literally means the chief of the ganas, or the attendants of Shiva.
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 worshipped 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.

STORY OF GANESH CHATURTHI

Why do we celebrate Ganeshotsav for 11 days?
Ganesh Chaturthi celebrates the birth of Ganesha on earth.
Legend states that Parvati or Gauri, Lord Shiva’s wife and
Ganesh’s mother, was the daughter of the mountain king,
Himavan. Earth, was therefore her homeland.
She came to visit Goddess Earth and left her husband and son
behind. Lord Shiva could not bear to live without his wife. He sent
his son, Lord Ganesha to bring her back. Lord Ganesha thus came

down to earth where he was welcomed graciously and with open
arms. His stay was extended to 11 days. He then remembered
that he had infact descended on Earth to get his mother back. He
bid farewell to all and returned to his abode, taking his mother
Parvati along with him.

GANESHA THE VIGNAHARTA

How Ganesha won the Adipatyam for removing hurdles?
The Devas were in a turmoil about who would be the one God
who should be prayed to first; one who could be a vighnakarta
(obstacle-creator) in the path of rakshasas (demonic beings), and
a vighnaharta (obstacle-averter) to help the Devas.
Devas approached the Supreme almighty Shiva and wife Parvati
for a solution. Shiva suggested that one of His sons, Ganesha or
Karthikeya, would be ideal for the job. Devas gave the couple a
divine fruit and suggested that they could assign this position to

either of their sons by handing over the fruit to the chosen one.
They were also told that the one to get the fruit would get the
supreme knowledge and immortality. The parents could not
decide who they would give the fruit to. To resolve the issue,
Shiva suggested that whoever can encircle the world three times
taking a dip in all holy rivers along the way and come back first
will get the fruit and hence the Adhipatyam. Kartikeya also known
as Murugan (in Tamil Nadu) or Skanda or Subrahmanya is the
God of War and He is also the Commander in Chief of Deva’s
army. His vahana (vehicle) is peacock, a very swift carrier. Being
a true warrior or God of War, Lord Kartikeya took this challenge
very seriously and started his journey around the world
immediately without wasting anytime in thinking. On other hand,
Ganesha who is God of wisdom, learning and arts, knew very well
that he is no match to Kartikeya in this race. One of the name of
ganesha is is ‘Lambodara’ which means the ‘huge bellied lord’.
Further, Lord Ganesha’s vehicle is mouse/mushak, a very slow
vehicle. So Ganesha knew that with this huge belly and slow
moving mouse he cannot defeat his brother Kartikeya.

Ganesha thought through it and realised that anything which is
very dear to you becomes the center of your life and your life

energy goes into it; such becomes your world. His parents were
dearest to him. So Ganesha applied his intelligence and started
circling his parents three times. In the meantime Kartikeya was
busy going around the whole world. Wherever Kartikeya was
going and taking bath in a holy river he would see Ganesha
ahead of him. This surprised him immensely. When Shiva asked
Ganesha,“Beloved and wise Ganesha! But how can I give you the
prize; you did not go around the world?" He stated that his
parents are the whole world and that he need not go further to
travel the whole world. Lord Shiva stated that Ganesha was the
winner indeed. Kartikeya too agreed that Ganesha used his
intelligence and wisdom and he indeed is better suited for the
adhipatyam as the ‘remover of the obstacles’. Lord Shiva gave the
divine fruit to Ganesha and declared Him the Vignaharta. Ganesh
Chaturthi commemorates this episode. Some legends also speak
of this episode in connection to a dispute about which of the two
sons of Shiva was to be considered the older.

NEVER FORGET TO PRAY TO GANESHA

Why should we take the name of Ganesha before any new
task?

When Lord Ganesha was born, Lord Shiva stated that Lord
Ganesha must be worshiped first to be successful in any
endeavour. However, Lord Shiva forgot about his own rule.
He left for a war with the demons in Tripura and did not worship
Lord Ganesha before doing so.!

While he was on his way in his carriage he faced an obstacle. The
wheel peg was damage.

It was only then Lord Shiva remembered that he had not offered
prayers to Lord Ganesh before departing for the war.

He built a temple, offered his prayers to Ganesha and proceeded
to the battle ground.

Lord Shiva won the war!

WHY DOES GANESHA HAVE A BROKEN TUSK?

Ganesha’s broken tusk
Sage Vyasa approached Lord Ganesha to help him write the Epic,
Mahabharata. Ganesh’s condition was that Sage Vyasa should
continue to recite without a break. Ganesha said he would stop
the moment Vyasa paused. Vyasa agreed to the condition. Then
He came up with his own, saying that Ganesha should not write
anything without understanding the meaning. Ganesha agreed
too and they began. Sage Vyasa began narrating at a great
speed. Ganesha noted it all down at an equally fast pace.

Soon Ganesh’s pen broke. It could not keep up with the pace of
Vyasa's recital. Ganesha realised that he had been too proud and
had underestimated the sage’s intellectual powers.

Quietly, Ganesha broke off one of his tusks, dipped it in the
inkpot and began to use it as a pen to continue writing
Mahabharata.

Sage Vyasa would dictate a difficult stanza when he got tired.
Ganesha would take a few seconds to understand before writing
it down. Sage Vyasa would get his rest then.

This is how the Mahabharata epic was written down. It took them
three years to write it all down. The poem is 100,000 stanzas
long. Several stanzas are said to be lost in the years.

GANESHA FREES RIVER CAUVERY

Ganesha’s kindness
River Cauvery was originally known as Ponni. She was once
disrespectful to Sage Agasthya, when he had come to the South.
In order to teach her a lesson, the Sage imprisoned the entire
river Ponni in his Kamandalam.
Lord Ganesha was requested by Narada to free the river. He took
the form of a crow, landed on the pot and tipped it to the ground,
While taking flight, he spilled some water. This he set the river
free. Ponni was given a new name, River Cauvery.

STORY OF GAJANANA

How Lord Ganesha defeats Lobhasura?
Gajanana is said to be one of the eight avatars of Ganesha
according to the Mudgala Purana. It is stated that one of the
mission of this Avatar was to annihilate Lobhasura. Lord Kubera,
who is the treasurer of wealth, once visited Shiva and Goddess
Parvati. Pleased with the devotion of Lord Kubera, Shiva blessed
him with the vision of the divine couple as and when he wanted.
After the blessing Kubera would want to have the darshan of
divine couple daily. Soon Kubera was smitten by the beauty of
Goddess Parvati and he gazed Her with unholy and lustful
thoughts. Goddess Parvati who realized this gave an angry look at
Kubera. Lord Kubera began to tremble with fear at this look of

the Goddess. Born from the fear was the demon named
Lobhasura. The asura did penance and propitiated Lord Shiva. He
was then granted the boon of fearlessness. The spiritual strength
and lack of fear made Lobhasura powerful. He became the ruler
of the three worlds. Power made him corrupt and he led a
demonic life by killing and looting the innocent. Fed up with
Lobhasura, people approached Sage Raibhya. He then instructed
them to offer prayers to Ganesha in Gajanana form. Gajanana
was immensely pleased with the devotion of the people and
decided to defeat the demon. Lord Ganesha was against want
war and destruction. So He requested Lord Vishnu to apprise
Lobhasura of the strength of Gajanana. Vishnu was able to
convince Lobhasura about Gajanana’s strength and the futility of
opposing him. Lobhasura who also had a spiritual side realized
that he did not have the power to stand before Lord Ganesha.
The demon then surrendered before Gajanana without a fight.
Symbolically, the story also indicates that those who are
overpowered by the demon of greediness can overcome it by
surrendering before Gajanana.

GANESHA AND GAJAMUKHA

Why is Ganesha’s vahana a mouse?
Long time ago, there lived a wicked asura by the name
Gajamukh. He wanted to become richest and strongest king ever.
He was already the kings of asura, but he was still greedy for
more power. He began to worship Lord Shiva and asked Him to
grant him magical powers. Fasting for many days he stood on
just one foot and prayed to Lord Shiva every day. After several
years passed, Shiva was finally impressed and fulfilled his wish to
have magical powers. He asked that no harm should come from
any weapon. He became arrogant and started misusing his
powers. Gajamukh started conquering the world and later started

attacking Gods. Only Shiva, Vishnu, Brahma and Ganesha were
left unconquered by him. Gajamukh then ordered everyone to
worship only and only him. Shiva deciding to teach him a lesson,
asked His son, Ganesha to punish Gajamukh. A terrible fight
commenced between Ganesha and Gajamukh. Arrows, spears
and swords couldn’t defeat the asura Gajasura because of the
boon.

Finally Ganesha, broke off his tusk and threw it on Gajamukh.
This wounded him badly. He turned himself into a mouse and
rushed at Ganesha. Ganesha then jumped and sat on his back.
Crushed under Ganesh’s weight, the asura had to accept defeat.
Ganesha then punished him to remain a mouse forever and kept
him as his vehicle. Gajamukh agreed and thus became Ganesha's
vahana willingly.

GANESHA AND GAJASURA

According to the Hindu Mythology, the name Gajasura is given to
a demon (asura) who takes the form of an elephant (Gaja).
Gajasura gets a boon from Lord Shiva that Shiva will stay in
Gajasura's womb. Parvati looks out for Shiva and is unable to find
him. As a last recourse, she goes to her brother Vishnu, asking
him to find her husband. He calmed her: "Dear sister, please do
not worry. You do realise your husband is Bhola Shankar? He
always grants his devotees whatever they ask of him. The
consequences of which are always getting him into trouble! Let
me find out what has happened." Vishnu realizes that Shiva is
actually inside Gajasura’s womb. So He goes there with an
entourage of Gods, in different avatars and the Shiva's Nandi.

Gajasura sees the light when he is confronted by such a force.
He then releases Lord Shiva. Another version goes like this.
Vishnu goes to Gajasura’s palace with an entourage of Gods, in
different avatars. Vishnu also took the form of a flutist with Nandi
(the bull of Shiva) into a dancing bull and made him perform in
front of Gajasura. The enchanting performance sent the asura
into ecstasy and so impressed was he that he asked the flutist to
demand whatever we wished and that he would have it fulfilled.
Vishnu responded: "Are you sure? Can you grant me anything
that I demand?” Gajasura replied: "Who do you take me for? I
can give you whatever you wish for." The flutist then said: "If
that's so, liberate Shiva from your stomach." Gajasura realised
then that this must have be no ordinary flutist. Vishnu then
revealed himself. Shiva was then liberated. At the end of this
episode it is said that Lord Shiva himself praised Lord Vishnu for
his presence of mind and efforts. While bidding farewell, Vishnu
advised Lord Shiva not to entertain "Dushtaas”, the ones with
crooked thoughts!!

HOW DID SHIVA END UP IN GAJASURA’S BELLY?

The story goes like this. There existed an Asura (demon) with all
the characteristics of an elephant, called Gajasura, who was
undergoing a penance (tapas). Shiva, satisfied by his sincerity,
decided to grant him, as a reward, whatever boon he desired.
The demon wished that he could emit fire continually from his
own body so that he will remain unchallenged. The Lord granted
him his request. Gajasura continued his penance and Shiva
appeared in front of him once again and asked him what he

desired, again. The demon responded: "I desire that You reside in
my belly” and Shiva agreed to this.

This story is also connected to Ganesh’s birth. One version goes
on to talk about how Gajasura had a wish. Having liberated Shiva,
he asked him for one last gift: "I have been blessed by you with
many powers. I have one last request. I wish everyone would
remember me and my form even after I am gone." This gave
Shiva an idea. He brought his own son there and replaced his
head with that of Gajasura’s. Shiva’s son Ganesha is always
invoked first while in prayer. It is traditionally believed that for
one to prosper, one must begin with the invocation of Ganesha.
Ganesha, with Gajasura’s head, is always thus prayed to.
Gajasura’s wish of never being forgotten thus stands fulfilled.

GANESHA AND ANALASURA

Why is the Durva Grass so dear to Lord Ganesha?
A demon by the name Analasura caused trouble and havoc in the
heavens. This demon emitted fire from his eyes and destroyed
everything in his way. Ganesh’s help was sought by the terrified
demigods. He assured the Devas that he would defeat the
demons and bring back peace to the abode. Ganesha confronted
the demon head-on. During the battle, the Asura began to attack
Ganesha with fireballs, trying to engulf him down. At this, Lord
Ganesha took his original form of the virat roop and swallowed
Analasura.

After this, Ganesha became extremely restless due to the
excessive heat inside his body. This was caused by devouring
Analasura. Many efforts were made to cool Him down but all were
in vain. The Moon tried to help Lord Ganesha by standing on His
head. Thus the name Balachandra was derived. Lord Vishnu gave
His lotus to Ganesha to bring down the heat. Lord Shiva tied his
Cobra Snake around the belly of Lord Ganesha. None of this
helped. In the end, a few sages arrived with twenty one Durva
grass blades and placed it on Lord Ganesha's head. And magically
the heat vanished. Thus the Durva grass became a favourite of
Lord Ganesha. He declared that blessings would be granted to
those who prayed to Him with the Durva Grass. No Puja to
Ganesha is ever complete without offering the Durva Grass.

GANESHA AND KUBERA

How Kubera was taught a lesson in humility?
A vain and proud Kubera once invited Lord Shiva for lunch. Lord
Shiva, decided to teach the king of wealth a lesson. He sent his
son Ganesha for the feast while warning Kubera of his son’s
enormous appetite. Kubera looked at the boy with contempt and
did not pay heed to his warning. At the feast, Lord Ganesha
arrived and ate all the dishes that were served to Him. He was
still not satisfied. Soon, He emptied the kitchen and was still
hungry. “Is this all you can give me?” Ganesha asked Kubera.

“I thought this was a grand feast. I am still hungry”. Kubera
rushed to Kailash and and appealed to Lord Shiva for help. Shiva
responded saying any food served with love and affection will
gain satisfaction. Kubera borrowed some roasted rice from
Goddess Parvathi and offered it to Lord Ganesha with humility
and devotion. Ganesha accepted the food and stated that he was
satisfied. Thus Kubera learnt humility.

GANESHA AND THE SNAKE AROUND HIS BELLY

Ganesha’s curse to the moon
After attending Kubera’s feast, Lord Ganesha got on to His
Vahana, the mouse and started His journey towards home. That
night was a full moon. His mouse saw a snake and hid behind a
bush. Lord Ganesha fell to the ground and his stomach split open.
The food fell onto the ground. The moon, who was passing by,
saw this and started laughing loudly. The moon, very handsome,
was proud of his appearance. Seeing a big bellied Ganesha sitting
on a rat amused him. This angered Lord Ganesha. He cursed the
Moon saying “ Oh Moon, your handsome looks have made you
vain. How dare you laugh at me when the entire world worships

me? You shall now receive the fruits of your foolish pride. Your
beauty will vanish because of your vain and ignorance. From
today, whoever sees you on the 4th day of the Bhadrapada
month will suffer because of unjust accusations. You shall always
be black and shall never be seen by anyone again”. The moon
was frightened by this curse. He begged Lord Ganesha to forgive
him. Lord Ganesha relented and said, “The curse cannot be lifted.
You have realised your fault. Those who have been subjected to
such accusations shall be saved. They will regain their good name
when they see you on the second day of the bright fortnight. You
shall be changing from new moon to full moon and back”.
Ganesha put the food back in his stomach, took the snake and
tied it around his belly like a belt and went home.

GANESHA AND LORD VISHNU SHANKH

Why is the trunk of Lord Ganesha facing the right side?
One day, Lord Vishnu’s Valampuri Shankh (conch) was found
missing. This annoyed him greatly. Later he heard the sound of
his conch at a distance. The sound coming from Mount Kailash,
the abode of Lord Shiva. He knew that it was his Panchajanya
Shankh. He sought the help of Lord Shiva and requested him to
ask his son Ganesh to return his conch back to him. He now
meditated on Lord Shiva and requested him to ask his son to
return his conch back to him. Lord Shiva said that anyone wishing
to retrieve the conch should pray to Valampuri Ganesha . In this

rare posture, Lord Ganesh’s trunk is turned to the right). Lord
Vishnu performed the puja immediately and Ganesha was
immensely happy with it He returned back his conch. After this
incident, Lord Ganesha was known as Valampuri Ganesh which
means Ganesha with a trunk facing the right side.

BE KIND TO ANIMALS

Goddess Parvati's lesson to Ganesha on Kindness
Towards Animals

Once while Lord Ganesha was wandering in a forest he spotted a
cat and decided to pursue it. While he had no intentions to hurt
the cat, he wanted to have some fun. Ganesha tried to shoot the
cat with his arrows. The cat was covered with mud while trying to
run away. When Ganesha returned home, he saw his mother,
Parvati waiting for him. His mother was covered in mud and had
scratches on her. Ganesha was upset seeing his mother’s
condition and asked what happened. Parvati stated that it was
Ganesha who did this to her.

She said that on earth, all life constituted her body. She and Lord
Shiva were the protector of all life on Earth. Ganesha realised his
mistake and learnt a lesson to never be cruel to animals.

LORD GANESHA’S MARRIAGE

Story of Shubh, Laabh & Santoshi Maa
It is believed that Lord Ganesh was unable to find a suitable mate
because of His unique appearance. This bothered Him. He
summoned all the rats to burrow deep holes in the path of any
God who were on their way to get married. The potholes
disturbed the journey of the grooms and their marriage
processions took place with extreme difficult. Frustrated, they
went to Lord Brahma to complain.
Lord Brahma then created two beautiful girls Riddhi (who is
described as one with Abundance, Opulence, Wealth) and Siddhi

/Buddhi (who is described as Intellectual and with Spiritual
Prowess) and they were married to Him. With His two consorts,
He had two sons Shubha (Auspiciousness) and Labha (Profit) and
a daughter named Santoshi (Goddess of Satisfaction /
Contentment). The Shiva Purana states that King Prajapati had
two daughters Riddhi and Siddhi. He approached Shiva and
Parvati for the marriage of his girls to Lord Ganesh and Lord
Kartikeya / Karthikeyan (Lord Ganesh’s younger brother). But
both these girls expressed their wish to be married to Lord
Ganesha and wished that he only should be their husband and so
they were married. It is said that if one has Riddhi but doesn’t
have Siddhi / Buddhi then it is worthless. Possessing only Siddhi
without Riddhi is also futile. Lord Ganesh bestows both these
blessings to His ardent devotees. If we delve into ourselves we
will realize that we are all Ganapatis (Gana is our body made of
the Pancha Mahabhuta (Five elements), Pati stands for master or
owner). Thus He shows us the way to achieve both intellect and
wealth to enjoy a rewarding life.

STORY OF GOKARNA

Once Ravana performed an intense sadhana and received as
reward a Jyotirlinga from Lord Shiva himself. Shiva advised
Ravana to carry the Jyotirlinga to his land, with the caveat that
the minute it touches the ground, it would remain at that very
spot, stuck there forever. So Ravana carried the Jyotirlinga with
great care. He held back every physical urge such as eating or
attending to calls of nature and walked almost 4,000 kilometres
from Kailash to a place called Gokarna in Karnataka. Since he had
been walking without food or rest, he felt weak and he wanted to
ease himself. He could however not risk placing the Jyotirlinga
down. But he would not keep the Jyotirlinga down.

He then came upon an innocent looking cowherd boy. Ravana
decided to take his assistance. Ravana told him, “If you hold this
for five minutes, I’ll give you a pearl necklace. Just hold it, don’t
keep it down. Understand?” The boy agreed. Ravana gave the
jyotirlinga to the boy and turned around to ease himself. His call
of nature done, he turned around to look. What did he see? The
boy had kept the jyotirlinga down and, of course, it had sunk into
the earth as per the caveat. Ravana was shocked and looked up
to find Ganapati in place of the cowherd. Ganapati did not want
Ravana to take the Jyotirlinga to Lanka, because if he did, he
would have become superhuman. The linga is still hence at
Gokarna. Even today you will see a small hole in the rock through
which you have to put your finger to feel the jyotirlinga. Ravana
got so furious at this and he knocked Ganapati on the head. He
hit so hard that his head was dented. That is why you will also
find a Ganapati statue with a depression in his skull, at Gokarna.
As legends go, the day of this encounter between Ganesha and
Ravana is celebrated as Ganesh Chaturthi.