About Ganesh Chaturthi

Ganesh Chaturthi celebrates the birth of Lord Ganesha, the elephant-headed deity of wisdom, prosperity, and new beginnings. Devotees welcome Ganesha into homes and public pandals with a clay murti, worship him for up to ten days, and bid him farewell with the visarjan (immersion) procession.

Ganesha is invoked before any new venture as Vighnaharta, the remover of obstacles. The festival marks his birth on the fourth day of the bright fortnight of Bhadrapada and embodies the cycle of welcoming the divine into the home and releasing it back to the elements at visarjan.

Mythological Story

Goddess Parvati shaped Ganesha from earth and breathed life into him, setting him to guard her door. When Shiva was stopped by the boy, a battle ensued and Ganesha was beheaded; on Parvati's grief, Shiva restored him with an elephant's head and blessed him to be worshipped first among all deities.