ganesha or ganapati (translated as the king of sets) is the elephant headed son of lord shiva and is widely worshipped by the hindus. he is the god of the 'beginning' (so much so that to ganesh is to begin in many indian languages), the god of elimination of troubles, and a deity who is easily pleased (with good food).

ganapati is considered god of wisdom in mythology. though name "ganapati" appears in rigveda , he is not the same god who is worshipped as elephant-headed god today. "gana" represents a clan and "pati" is considered chieftain. in vedic times, image worship did not exist and "ganapati" stood for brihaspati or brahmin. the concept of ganapati as elephant-headed god evolved in later age.

in hindu mythologies, every deity has an animal vehicle of his own and lord ganesh has mouse as his vehicle! the elephant in indian ethos occupies significant place. due to its enormous strength, huge form, sharp memory and cleverness, indians who visualize divinity in all living creatures naturally ascribe super qualities in this great animal. in our vast tropical forests, roaming elephant herds are led by powerful youthful elephant who commands respect from young and old ones.

among early aryans and native tribes, elephants evoked fear and respect and it did not take long to conceptualize an elephant god who was full of contrasts. for a heavy god, with enormous body and appetite, he rides a small mouse! he has big ears and small eyes. for his super intellect and sharp memory, he is humble and served as a scribe to great vyasa who wrote (dictated) the mahabharata . he is considered ameya (beyond measure), and aprameya (beyond visualization (riddles)). it is perhaps only to represent the omniscient form of the almighty that ganesha is worshipped.

rainy season occupies a very important place in the indian subcontinent and the ganesh festival is the most important event during this period. in the south of the vindhyas, ganesha idols prepared from clay are worshipped by the hindus. special delicacies of coconut, rice flour and jaggery, called modakas are offered to this god and many cultural events are organized on the occasion.

this god of wisdom has two wives, siddhi and buddhi. sidlhi is achievement and buddhi is intellect. these two, together, when fully utilized, lead one towards wisdom. but it is the celibate god ganapati who is most popular as god of learning, especially among students. schooling in india starts with homage to ganesha and early lettering to kids starts with " shri ganeshaya namah ."

ganesha became popular in myanmar, sri lanka, malaysia, java (indonesia) thailand, cambodia and other countries as well, and many archaeological excavations in these countries have proved his popularity in ancient times. many legends have grown up around this deity.

source: www.kamat.com