Ganapati Festival Religion meets Practicality
The streets of India are full of positive energy, new beginning, colors and joy. Echo’s of Ganapati Bappa Moriya !!.. the sound of drums and other musical instrument fil enthusiasm in the atmosphere. While most of us know the rituals behind I am not sure of how many of us have looked into the depth of it. Here, I just try to build a bridge between Atheists and devotees and want to focus on what has become a ritual over time, was actually a well thought process to teach important lessons of life in a manner that is filled with love and joy.
Shri Ganesha, Son of Goddess Parvati and Lord Shiva is welcomed in many households and societies today across the world, especially in India on the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi. The festival is a mixture of welcoming a new born child and showing respect to the guest of honor. The festival gives people a reason to bring loved ones together and also divide responsibilities amongst each other where they as a family ensure that Ganapati is not left alone at home at any given point in time and certain discipline is followed at home for the duration of stay of the special child.
The joy that people experience is regardless the financial status and class that society has now been divided in. It is just a pure moment of joy and new beginning for all. The duration for which the family nurtures Ganapati is decided by the head of the family, and soon before you know it is time for them to bid him Good bye. While all families bid him bye with pomp and show hearts are left behind with solitude. Strong lesson behind the ritual set in us slowly and progressively, “Every person who comes in our life has to depart one day, all the happiness that we enjoy in life fades of after some time but promises to be back again, it leaves memory for lifetime. Like the Ganapati festival few other festivals like Navratri too carry on for few days and then come to an end.”
So, do we stop living life with the fear of festivals coming to an end? Or we rather start waiting eagerly for next season of festivals to come? We live with positive attitude and look forward to celebrate all of this again, the duration in between teaches us patience and tells us it’s worth the wait. Such festivals beautifully complete the cycle of life from beginning to end to a new life again. Endearments do no good, they just make us weak and fractional.
As I come to last lines of blog I know, it’s really difficult to bid good bye. May God bless us all with the strength to deal with difficult times of various farewells and closures in our lives.
AMEN !!
Manisha Dawar