The Ganesh festival in Mumbai is one of the biggest festivals in the country, and in Mumbai is almost as big as Diwali. It is the festival to celebrate Ganesha or Vinayaka, the GOd protecting us from evil, the Elephant God, son of Lord Shiva and Parvati.
Ganesh Chaturthi is the first day of the auspicious period, and the day that Ganesha comes to your home. Families have pooja (religious ceremonies) at their homes, with a Ganesha made out of POP and Clay, intricaly made, with beautiful craftsmanship.
It is also a big day for my family as it was this day, 30 years ago that I was born, on Ganesh Chaturthi. And to this day, my family and close friends celebrate my birthday on Ganesh Chaturthi as it goes on the Hindu calendar, the date changing every year.
On the day of Ganesh Chaturthi, families pray to the idol and over the course of the 10-11 days that he is at home. In any of those 10 days, the families then take their Ganesha for immersion. This can vary from day 1 to day 11. With an elaborate display of colour, music and energy, families from all over Bombay take their Ganesha to the sea, bidding him farewell till he visits them again next year.
We have been keeping Ganesha at our home for years. This year was a little different. Usually, when Lord Ganesha is a guest in your home, one is supposed to abstain from things such as alcohol, non-veg food, smoking etc. In our house, alcohol and smoking is not an issue as no one drinks or smokes, but never really adhered strictly to the non-veg issue. I guess we wanted Ganesha to see us as we are.
This year, for the first time, I decided I would give up non-veg food for the period that he is with us. And it really did feel different!
This evening, we took our sweet Ganesha for immersion as he bid farewell to us. This year was beautiful as we took him to a new place, as opposed to the regular place. The crowds of devotees – families, entire localities, were all coming to immerse their Ganesha – ranging from 1 foot high to 30 feet high. Today was the last day, so people have been going everyday. However the last day is the biggest, and its called Ganesha Visarjan, which literally means Ganesha’s Immersion.
This was beautiful because as we tried to navigate through the crowd and I held our Ganesha close to my chest and heart, people would just clear the way. There were hundreds others like me, but for every Ganesha that passed by, the respect given to each and every idol by every person was astounding. The bigger Ganeshas idols were made to wait, and the smaller Ganeshas could get through faster. So we made our way through the crowd. But every person who passed by our Ganesha would touch it and say a little prayer. I was so touched by the show of love and respect from complete strangers for the Lord God they hold dear. And its this that makes India what India is.. What we call.. Dilwale.. Emotional people.. we think with our hearts.
It is these Festivals that make us who we are – Indians.. be it our Islamic Id festivals, our Parsi Patetis, our Catholic Christmas’s, our Hindu Diwalis, and so many other festivals.. We celebrate not just with ourselves, but with the entire city, as processions filter into the streets, creating traffic jams, noise pollution, etc. Some of the elite say that these processions should be banned, but I say no. I say that while it is an inconvenience, banning these processions would take away an important component of Indian culture, making us sterile and clean like the west. It is this energy and enthusiasm for our culture, our various religions, with our religious tolerance for several religions that give us the opportunity to express and enjoy these festivals.
As I reached the tip of between the Arabian sea and land, at Worli, close to our home, making my way through the procession, I had to pass our Ganesha to the people that actually immerse him into the water. As he was taken out of my hands, I felt a sudden pain in letting him go. He had become a part of the home by just being there, and suddenly letting him go felt so strange.
I came home and gave the household help bakshish for the completion of the Ganesha festival. I walked by the Pooja room, and felt a huge emptiness, seeing my little friend no longer there. Diyas (oil lamps), flowers, kumkum(sacred red powder), agarbatti (incense) mark the place where he used to sit. I guess I could get back to eating my non-veg food again but I didn’t miss it so much. I missed having Ganesha home. But I’m sure he’s watching over now and look forward to seeing him again this time next year. Ganpati Bappa Moriya! Pursha Varshi Laokarya!