The
Sanskrit letter (Logo) is a symbol of Lord Ganesh. Number one indicates
Ganapathi’s head.
All the inspiration and motivation for our actions originate
here. That is why it is known as Karma (reason) Loka. No.2 signifies the stomach
of Lord Ganapathi. This is known as Sthula Loka. As it is the acknowledged seat
of all learning in all branches of knowledge, the proverb, "his stomach
contains all aspects of education" has come into existence. No.3 denotes
the curved trunk of Vinayaka. In any statue of Ganesh the trunk is always
depicted as bent to one side at the tip. In this position the trunk will be
joining the Ajna Kendra on the brow, the Visuddhi kendra in the throat and the
Anahata Kendra in the heart. In other words the enlightenment of Ajna, the
sound of visuddhi and the love of Anahata are fused. This is referred to by the
elders as the path of light. This is the genesis of the mantram
"Vakratundaya hum". Chanting of this mantra gives one gentleness of
speech and also vaksuddhi. Whatever is uttered by a man who has vaksuddhi will
invariably come true. No.4 indicates "Ekadantam" or single tusk. This
is only on one side of the trunk. This should be venerated (Eka dantam
upsasmahe). As for number 5, it indicates the kind eye of Vinayaka showering
soothing, compassionate looks on devotees. Lord Vinayaka’s body is huge but his
eye is small. Still, it is full of affectionate grace. It is for this reason
that elders worship Omkara as embodying the head and torso of Lord Vinayaka. Every
time Omkara is chanted one’s mind should be filled with this symbolic
significance. That way one will have the benefit of Ganapathi upasana along
with Pranavopasana (worship of Omkara).
Prayers
and ritualistic worship have a prominent place in the Indian way of life. The
main objective of these is to make one climb the staircase of devotion and
reach the gate to liberation. But unfortunately these rituals have now
deteriorated into mere mechanical customs, preoccupations to pleasantly while
away time. What is conspicuously absent in our celebration of festivals today
is the sanctity of devotion. Religious rituals are no longer observed with the
attentive care due to them. The culprit might be the shadow of Western culture
looming over our heads since the last two hundred and fifty years. Blind aping
of Western ways has diluted our interest in our own festivals to such an extent
that our celebrations are now more like carrying out chores in a disinterested
dispirited way. Who is to be blamed for this sorry state of affairs? The elders
who take pride in being Westernised and advise the youngsters to follow suit?
Or is it the youngsters who need to be blamed for refusing to have anything to
do with the traditions of the past?
It is time that both the old and the young
realise that to recite Vedas without knowing their meaning or to perform
rituals with no knowledge of their significance is a foolish act as pointless
as that of a donkey carrying on its back a pile of sandalwood. The sweet
fragrance of the sandalwood is lost on the donkey. What can ignorant elders
teach their young except highhandedly commanding them to obey their instructions?
To rectify the situation Mihira proposes to provide detailed explanation of all
the rituals that are observed during our festivals. As the first step in that
direction a special booklet explaining the import and procedural details of
Vinayakavratam is launched and will be circulated free of cost to all the
subscribers of Mihira. What is offered in this booklet is not a cataloguing of
all the stories about Lord Vighnewsara as given out in various Puranas and
legends but an authentic description of this deity as mentioned in the Vedas.
It is good to perform Vinayaka Pooja after reading this essay and strengthening
our devotion for Lord Ganesha. For the easy reference of readers many chants on
Lord Ganesha are included in the booklet.
Though
it is a time honoured practice to start Vinayaka Vratam with the offer of
worship to the idol of Ganesha made with turmeric powder, it is deleted here to
avoid redundancy. It is true that pooja has to be offered first to Lord Ganesha
whoever may be the diety to whom worship is being offered. During the Vinayaka
Vratam the entire worship is to Ganesha only. So it is felt that the custom of
making a turmeric idol can be dispensed with.
The
details of worship given by us are taken from Purusha Sukta. Purusha Suktha is an
extract from the Vedas and as all Vedas have to be sung in a specified way it
may be feared that to read them and not sing them may be wrong. But, when
prayers are offered to God with devotion there is nothing wrong in reading
Vedic chants as one reads verses. Moreover, singing the Vedas is something that
has to be learned directly from a Guru and never through notations given in a
book. It is for this reason that extracts from Purusha Suktham are given in the
booklet.
It
is unfortunate that many people conclude pooja with the verse "Papoham
Papa Karmaham" It is deliberately removed here because it is ludicrous to
meticulously perform the entire pooja and then bewail "I am a sinner. I am
a wicked person". It is not only inauspicious but, as rightly pointed out
by Master E.K., it indicates the height of ignorance to attach sin to
"Atma" which is beyond good and evil. We followed Master E.K.’s
advice in deleting this verse.
Generally
in all books describing Vinayaka Vratam mention of Maha Nivedyam (Offering of
food), Neerajanam (Harathi with Camphor) and Mantra Pushpam (Final phase of
worshipping) are given after the story of Vinayaka Vratam is told. Instead of
that, in our booklet all details of worship are first given and the story is
given as the last item in the ritual of the Vratam.
In
the Vedas we find chants addressed to a number of deities. Those who know the
Vedas only superficially take this as proof to show that in ancient India
people worshipped a pantheon of Gods. But the quintessential message of the
Vedas being that there is only one supreme God, the reference to the multiple
deities can only be a reference to the multiple aspects of the one God. He
manifests Himself as Brahma while creating the universe, as Vishnu while
sustaining it, as Siva while dissolving it and as Indra while implementing any
planned schedule of action. So what we have are not different Gods but the same
God appearing in different forms while carrying out different functions. After
all, are we not aware that a man may simultaneously play various roles in his
relationship to others while he continues to be the same in his essential
nature? A man can at one and the same time be husband to his wife, father to
his son, brother to his sister etc., The feelings he awakens in them are
totally different and the way he treats each of them is also different. Does it
mean that the man has multiple forms? All pervasive God also is like that. He
does not alter or assume different forms. He is seen by us in his different
roles.
In
the beginning of creation, as the ruling deity of "ganas" (groups)
this God was Ganapathi, ruler of groups. He is the regulating principle in this
vast universe He sees to it that groups function in an orderly manner. Along
with our solar system there are twelve others revolving round twelve other
suns. The supreme Lord who regulates the movement of all planetary groups is
Ganapathi. People in this universe exist in seven groups. These groups will be
emerging as various subgroups with clearly earmarked alignments. Lord Ganapathi
is the operative power behind all these groups.
Utterance
will become meaningful only when it is divided into units. Utterance is
"Vak:" or Parvathi. Meaning is "Ardha" or Parameswara. The
child born to these two is Vagardha or Ganapathi. Husband and wife in any
marriage are like two lines. If those two lines are to be joined, a third line
Ganapathi, has to appear. That is a triangle. This triangle is the Yantra of
Ganapathi. No shape can be formed with two lines. So the first shape is that of
the triangle. There is a difference between sound made in the throat and the
utterance that emerges from the mouth. "Varnam" is formed by making
the sound stop at particular intervals. A word is formed by a combination of
varnams. A sentence is formed by a combination of words and a story is formed
by a combination of sentences. That story is life and if it were to have a
happy ending one should know where to begin and where to stop be it an action,
emotion, or utterance. The Lord who bestows on us this dexterity is the Lord of
obstacles, Ganapathi.
For
a smooth and safe ride on a scooter or a car, perfect control over the brakes
is very essential. If there are no brakes, the vehicle will not stop moving and
may prove hazardous to life. The voice box in the throat has two parts that
look verily like the neck of an organ pipe. The Vedas refer to these parts as
"gravanams" Ra signifies the seed of fire (ignition) while
"Ga" signifies seed of Ganapathi (brake) By impeding the continuously
flowing stream of sound with the power of Ganapathi, letters are formed. When
they are used in groups they acquire meaning. This power is worshipped under
the names of Vinayaka and Vighneswara Emergence of utterance is a wonder of
wonders. The creation of this universe is the greatest wonder of all, something
unprecedented. When looked at separately tamarind, water, and salt are
different materials in the world. Once mixed and boiled they all become one -
tamarind soup. This is also a new formation that did not exist before. Thus,
everything in creation is an ever new combination of things. The star Hasta has
the power to bring about these fusions. Ganapathi has Hastimukha, the face of
an elephant.
In
our solar system the planet Jupiter has this power. the presiding deity of this
planet is Brihaspathi or Brahmanaspathi. He is the male version of Goddess
Saraswathi. No learning no worship can ever begin without first offering
worship to Ganapathi. The man who craves for prosperity and for well being here
and in the hereafter, will have his desires fulfilled if he prays to Ganapathi.
The custom of invoking the presence of this auspicious God and then after pooja
immersing the idol is of recent origin. There is no mention of this custom in
the Vedas. Perhaps the people responsible for popularising this custom might
have thought that once the idol is out of the way they can resume their
shameful sinful deeds. The mistake lies in thinking that worship is to the idol
while it is to the all pervasive God. Similarly prayers should be to invoke
God’s presence into the worshipper’s body not into the idol.
Whatever
be the form under which we worship a deity, we should first invoke that form in
our hearts. While chanting Ganapathi mantram we should have His form in our
heart and at the centre of the brow. Where "Gam" is the mantram
"Ganapathi" is the Yantram. Meditation on Ganapathi will then be
tantram. We will obtain mantra siddhi only when these three - Yantra mantra and
tantra are combined. Those who gain mantra siddhi will be merged in Ganapathi.
That means they will reach a high level of enlightenment and from that they
will be elevated to samadhi state.
M.R.L.
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