Myriad forms of faith

HIS ROUND charming face leaves an etched mark on everyone. He is charismatic and overtly popular. He finds a place in paintings, sculptures and everyone's hearts. He is the adorable Lord Ganesha. Almost one out of five streets in Chennai houses a temple with a special seat for him. He is there everywhere and no household wears a complete look without his idol or a painting or some artifact depicting his attractive face.

Says Mrs. Ramani, a housewife, "I feel my house is bare without his presence. He adds life to everything and everyone around him." Very true indeed! The smile on his face is vociferously contagious and brings about a feeling of relaxation and undisturbed calm. It is his remarkable face that attracts many. "I somehow feel as if I've been set free from chains when I look at my Ganesha," quotes Prathiba, a 19-year-old.

He brings about cheerfulness, joy and a vision of security to those who worship and believe in him. More importantly, he is believed to clear obstacles and answer to devotee's prayers. Though sounding superstitious, the belief is supported by many with quite a few anecdotes coming from his ardent devotees to validate the point that he indeed was solely responsible for easing these troubles. Opinions varied from a very thoughtful and mature, "He helped me in my struggle to succeed in life," to a childish "He helped me to get good marks in exams."

The reason for his popularity and widespread fame is obvious. While Mrs. Aditya says, "He is easily identifiable. I can immediately recollect his image in a flash.", young Punitha feels he is extremely cute, which is being the reason for his popularity. Colourful views about him are brought out into the open. "There is a halo of playful innocence around him which fascinates me. Further he is extremely childlike", says Nanditha, a staunch devotee. Surprisingly it is indeed a fact that his presence is felt everywhere. Four out of five cars have his idol stuck on their dashboards.

And what an occasion his birthday is! Celebrated with pomp and splendour, his glory is recited in hundreds of thousands of verses. The flashy makeshift umbrellas, the clay idols that depict his features in detail, the garlands and kozhakottais add a wonderful touch to the celebrations. The size of the idols, taken out on a procession to be immersed in the sea, keep growing taller and taller each year in proportion with the love that people have for him. Mythology has it that he instils a sense of security and courage in the minds of these devotees and helps in overcoming difficulties that they face. Very playful in nature, his frame though childish still has an aura of respect. A very artful creation one can say. So popular that even nature was willing to play with him. Remember the episode when idols of Ganesha were found to drink milk on a particular day. Though the scientific reason being surface tension, as confirmed by experts, it was still Ganesha who hogged the limelight.

Each individual's perception might be different but it is known that all roads lead to Rome. Each one of his many devotees individually associates themselves with him in different ways for different things and yet the bond is the same. He is worshipped and sought after by thousands. Another notable aspect is his adaptability that people have given him which can be seen every year on 'Vinayaka Chaturthi', where his idols take up a theme. One year it was Ganesha helping India win the Kargil war, the next year saw him rescuing flood victims then followed by victims of the devastating earthquake reaching out to grasp his helping hand and so on. The talk here is not to question the authentication of his existence but to admire the equitable love which his devotees have for him and their belief that it is indeed him who saves them from trouble and safeguards their lives and this genuine love is not an art that is to be preserved to posterity but that which provides us with a vision of our future.

D. PRAVEEN

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