When there is a festive occasion at home and my folks
are busy putting things in order I have this habit of asking questions about
the procedures that are being followed so fervently. They always answer them with
a lot of patience, accepting or refuting their explanations thankfully is up to
me. Today is Ganesha Chowthi, the fourth day of Shuklapaksha of Bhadrapada celebrated
with much grandeur across the country to honour Ganesha's birthday, and like
any other Indian God he has his special requirements. Twenty one seems to be
his favourite number. Twenty one names, twenty one flowers, twenty one leaves
and twenty one sit ups. I had returned home from the hospital this morning and
the first thing Amma reminds me to do is this customary exercise, so holding my
ears with crossed hands and reciting this sloka
I began.
"Benaka benaka...
Ekadanta....
Pachegallu...
Panipeeta...
Muthinunde...
Honnagante
Inthopuva Sri Siddhi Vinayaka
Devara padakke namo namasthe!"
Up
and down, twenty one times!
“Why
‘Garike’ hullu Amma?”
I
asked looking at the fresh green grass that was offered to him and as always
was thinking of something else.
“Governments
rise and fall, machines rust away, great buildings crumble, but mountains still
stand, rivers flow to the sea and the earth is clothed in grass and verdure.
Nature gives. And takes away. And gives again...”
So
writes Ruskin Bond in his book‘The Book of Nature’. And here we were offering the
same grass to God. A friend of mine had opined over a conversation just yesterday ’Nature is God’ and that echoed strongly now.
There
are two versions to the story behind Ganesha’s special liking towards this
grass. Apparently an Apsara in heaven wanted to marry him and she disturbed his
meditation, he declined her proposal and in return she cursed him. He started
having some burning sensation on his forehead and this grass came to his
rescue. The second story is more interesting, Ganesha devoured a demon named
Analasura who was troubling Yamaloka. This demon had the power to emit fire, so
when he ended up in Ganesha’s stomach he gave him hell of a time. Thousands of
sages offered this grass to Ganesha which reduced his discomfort. And therefore
it is concluded that if you were ever to give Ganesha one thing, it has to be
this ‘Garike hullu’.
Mythical
I know but this was not what Amma told me today. She looked at me with some
sort of amusement, it was more than the gratification she got because I was listening
to her like every year.
“Hmmm…because
he has an elephant head right and elephants are herbivores…they love eating
grass…what Zoology have you learnt in school Oppi! Now go eat the Kadubu I have made!” she said and
continued her effort to please Ganesha.
She
heard the conflict in my head, maybe.
-R.
