Among the various Hindu Gods and Goddesses, Lord Ganesha is considered the prime deity of worship. If you’ve a project that needs to have a good start and an excellent finish then, the main deity to approach for the success of a project is Lord Ganesha.
There are many stories about this god and how he is also a friendly god among all gods. He is a prankster, wise, thoughtful, and playful person. Many of his stories of his childhood and later adulthood make quiet an entertaining telling of the story. Many a bedtime stories featured his sagacious pranks and his intended morals.
Once it so happened that an entire village was traveling to the main city. They were led by a group of the King’s royal guards. It was a long and strenuous travel. The efficient royal guard ensured that all went as per plan in shifting the flood affected villagers to safe and dry area as per the King’s ordain.
The villagers had with them some dry provisions, few change of clothes, vessels that were not washed away in the flood. As dusk appeared, the travelers decided to rest for the night. Given the few things that they carried, a camp was set up.
After the sick were treated and food was distributed, the villagers settle down ill at ease. To pass the time with fear of the unknown, a storyteller volunteered to have a session of storytelling. The children among the group were enthralled about the shift and the camping. It was an adventure for them.
The woman tighten the string of the ‘Ek Tara’ opened the narration with an invocation to the Vignahartha Ganesha. A shadow puppet artist accompanied the storyteller making their audience forget about their worries.
Lord Ganesha and His Antics
At Mount Kailash, the newly wed Parvati and Shiva were living at peace and finding joy in exploring each other’s compatibility. Often Shiva would leave Parvati in Kailash and go off to investigate his Divine work-related tasks. This then meant, that Parvati was left to her own devices and alone.
Shiva had been a bachelor who was newlywed. He was yet to understand about private quarters for woman and their need for space too. He was unaffected by the woman’s need for her space. He would return from his assigned work at inappropriate time enter as he pleased.
He considered Kailash to be his personal belonging inclusive of Parvati. But his wife who was used to having her own private quarters where she disallowed even parents from walking in and out of it without any prior intimation. Even as a maiden, she had enjoyed having her own private space. Now as Shiva’s young bride, she found it difficult to create some space that Shiva would not enter as and how he pleased.
So, she decided that she would create a guard for herself and be at peace while she was in her private quarters. This way she would ensure that she is not caught off-guards by Shiva. She gathered some of her sandal and turmeric pastes from her bath to create a young lad. She was engrossed with such love and affection creating the lad that she was hardly aware of the passing time.
After the figure of a boy was created she breathed life into him. As the boy came to life with a curiously mischievous eyes twinkling, Parvati took pride in her creation. Then, she instructed him to guard the front door of her private quarters. He was not to let anyone enter the premises unless she gave the permission.
The little boy who was an obedient and a loyal son immediately agreed to do as she had instructed him. Parvati left him at the doorway and went ahead for her ablutions. The little lad looked at his staff that his mother had given him before she left him at the door.
He swung his staff a couple of time as he walked back and forth in front of the doorway. A few minutes passed, Shiva with his followers returned to Kailash and proceeded towards seeing Parvati with mischief brewing when he knew she was in her private quarters.
Right at the door, Shiva saw a young lad and ignoring him he went ahead. But the lad as instructed by his mother, prevented him from entering the premises. He then, told Shiva not to enter without permission. In the beginning, Shiva thought the lad was not aware of who he was and is mistaken to stop him from entering his home.
The calm Shiva was irked that the lad was an obstacle. None of Shiva’s retinue knew who he was. After a few minutes of explaining that he was the Lord of the house, Shiva tried all tricks of persuasion to visit Parvati in her inner quarters.
The young lad who did not recognize Shiva as the mighty slayer, he continued to persist that he would not allow him to enter the premises. Quick to anger Shiva tried to threaten him; but then, even that did not work to move the lad’s stand to safeguard his mother’s private space.
The argument and haggling got beyond control with loud disagreements between the two. Shiva, who was angered beyond control, he chopped off violently the head of the lad. Parvati by then hearing all the commotion came out just to see her son’s head roll off his body.
Parvati’s anger and grief found no bounds. She faced Shiva and told him in no uncertain terms that she wanted her son back. Shiva was filled with morose for having unjustly slaying his own son after Parvati explained how he had come to be in Kailash guarding her door.
Parvati was unstoppable in her fury and sadness of losing her son. To pacify her the followers and Shiva tried all form of persuasion without any success. Then, Shiva called for other deities to help him calm down his wife. But Parvati was beyond control.
Shiva then promised Parvati that he would bring back the life of his child. He asked his followers to go find the head of any dead animal with its head facing the north. The search group returned with the head of an elephant.
Shiva attached the head to the lad’s still body and in this way the lad was reborn with an elephant head. All the deities who had joined to solve Shiva and Parvati’s dispute blessed the Young Ganesha with different skills.
To compensate his err, Shiva bestowed upon him as the prime lord of worship before the start of any activity. Thus, in this way Lord Ganesha became the lord who removes and eliminates hurdles in various situation in his devotee’s life.
The storyteller stopped his story to explain that their situation will also be overcome with the help of Lord Ganesha who see them reach their destination safely. The children and the adult lower the fire and went to rest from their fatigue. Each of them carried with them the story of Lord Ganesha in their heart and mind hoping and praying for the new dawn.
The royal guards took turn to watch out for any looming harm from wild animals or thieves. In this way the travelers, guards, and transporting animals slept for the night.
Itinerant Storyteller 