Milagrin Gonsak iea mughô, Choll iea neureo meltoleu...



The Monsoon has done its best; the rain has washed off the dust accumulated through the summer, from every leaf, every blade of grass...
The wind has shaken off every dry leaf and twig to the ground where the Earth will take care of it...
The lightning in its might, has scared us no doubt, but has sparked off some nitrates with the help of the raging thunder.
Oh yes, the Earth is ready to receive Lord Ganesha on His yearly visit to us.
An abundance of fruits is at hand and we know Lord Ganesha loves to eat.

The attributes of Lord Ganesha, also known as Vinayaka, fill you with wonderment.
He is the elephant-headed Hindu god of wisdom, literature, worldly success and peace.
The Lord is invoked before any sort of venture is undertaken, a marriage, a job, any business deal, nothing can be commenced without the blessing of Lord Ganesha.
It is He who decides between success and failure, it is left to Him to remove obstacles or create them if and when He deems them necessary.

But to a little girl of seven, roaming the ‘paim-vateu’ of Aldonã, the diverse attributes of the Lord mean very little, she just loves the Lord. She moves from house to house just to see Him.
She hurried through her studies and chores, a bath, a clean dress and she was out on her ‘visits ‘to the Lord, after of course, asking  for permission from her elderly Grandfather,
‘May I go to see the ‘mattollis of the Lord Ganesh’ she says and the Grandfather always with a smile says.
‘Yes of course’.
The Grandfather most certainly would have allowed these ‘visits’ but to request is a form of respect and politeness.

Out skips the little girl to the houses, where the Lord had been installed in all splendour that a financially strapped family could afford.
The little girl marvels at the ‘mattollis’, little trellised structures of bamboo, filled with an array of wild fruits, painstakingly collected over days, from nearby hills.
Ganesha, sits very comfortably on a seat of wood covered with spangly paper, everything executed with a great deal of care and glue and of course huge dollops of love.
A well-polished brass lamp filled with oil to its brim, oh how it shone, flowers everywhere and in the midst of all this grandeur sits the Lord gazing at everyone with His kind and benevolent eyes. The little girl is transfixed.
‘How beautiful, ‘she thinks.
A treat is when the ladies of the house dressed in their nine-yard saris, adorned with flowers in their hair and whatever jewelry they might possess do some ‘fugdeos’ in front of the Lord as a prayer to Him.
A woman belonging to the household espies, the bright-eyed, filled-with- wonder little girl, she then takes a ‘neuri’ wraps it in a leaf and hands it to the little girl.
The little girl sits then, high on the pillars supporting the gate of her house and eats her neuri carefully and in peace. That is what the Lord wishes for you, Peace.

My memories of Lord Ganesh are precious, not for me the new vogues.
I know the effort that went into arranging that ‘mattolli’ and the seat for the Lord, the reverence and love shown when you have little to spare and every penny spent means a great deal.

What makes any religion peaceful and full of love are the little legends, vignettes interspersed in the lore.

There are so many legends woven around Ganesha, but the one I love the best is the one about Kubera. 

Ganesha and Kubera
Kubera, the god of wealth, was very proud of his boundless fortune. He was terribly pleased with his wondrous palace.
He marveled at his garden filled with the sweet smell of a profusion of roses and jasmine.
He swooned with pleasure every time he looked at his beautiful wife and the jewels she wore, which of course were the envy of most other goddesses.
His cooks and the food they cooked was legendary, their food was the talk of the town, everyone drooled at the mere mention of it.
Oh yes, Kubera did feel he had arrived, he knew how to live well and as is usually the case, looked down on everybody, even Lord Shiva who lived a simple austere life in the open mountains.

Now Kubera was not happy just to be wealthy, he wanted the other Gods and Goddesses to be impressed by his wealth.
He organised lavish parties, gorgeous dinners, and although the Gods and Goddesses were full of praise and adulation, Kubera was never happy.

The more parties he gave the emptier he felt, until that memorable day when his beautiful wife trying out her latest necklace of emeralds and pearls said, 
‘Kubera my dear,’ there is one way you can jolt everyone, make you the talk of Kailash... let us throw a huge lunch, a lavish one, with flowers, decorations, delicious food as only our cooks can prepare. 
She breathed in deeply, and for effect arched her beautiful, deep black brows …
Amongst our famous guests, let us invite the Divine Couple, Shiva and Pârvatî.’

Kubera was thunderstruck, ‘Oh, oh oh, Kauberi you are one smart Goddess, why did I not think of that before?’ 
Kauberi smiled a mysterious smile as Kubera did a little jig.
‘This is a most wondrous idea.’
He gave her a hug and dashed off to get ready to visit the Divine Couple, Shiva and Pârvatî...

Entering Shiva and Pârvatî’s abode with deep reverence and such humility, which really speaking was quite dishonest and false, because he, Kubera, was so disdainful of this austere abode.

‘What is wrong here, what is this place? Is this the abode of the Divine Couple, Shiva and Pârvatî?  
‘Such wasteland, brrrr this cold wind is slicing through my body. Can Shiva, not even provide a better home for his family....
Some warmth, a good fire going? ‘My teeth are chattering.

Shiva and Pârvatî were having a cozy chat sipping a cup of warm ginger tea when they were interrupted by this unexpected appearance of Kubera.
‘Oh Kubera, how good to see you but what brings you here?’ They both asked.
Kubera was at a loss for words. He had come in a rush, on a whim. He had not thought of anything in his hurry to invite Shiva and Pârvatî.
He could not possibly tell Shiva and Pârvatî that he wanted them to admire his house, his jewels, his garden or his food. 

In a burst he said, 'I wanted to invite you for lunch.

‘Lunch?’ they both said, ‘What’s the occasion?

Kubera was lost for words. He said ‘Nothing at all, just that I feel I am so blessed…’

In a flash, both Shiva and Pârvatî  realised that there was no occasion, Kubera just wanted to show off his wealth and possessions.

Very politely, Pârvatî declined the invitation,
‘Kubera, thank you but we will be unable to come’

Then Pârvatî, saw the anguish in Kubera’s eyes, his desire to show off and she said,
’But Ganesha our son would love to go, wouldn’t you like it
Ganesh?’ 

‘Oooh yes,’ said little Ganesha, ‘will there be sweets?’ He asked

‘You bet the best of sweets this side of Kailash’ muttered Kubera

After a while, a clean little Ganesha, walked into Kubera’s sumptuous palace.
Although Ganesha was well dressed, his red silk dhoti freshly pressed, his broad flat feet carried a trail of wet sticky mud inside the opulent palace and left muddy prints all over the pristine marble floor.
Kauberi looked at her floor in utter disgust. 
Had Ganesha not been the son of Shiva and Pârvatî she would have dragged him by his broad ears and flung him out.

Ganesha, sniffed the air delicately, and smiled broadly,
‘Food Ummm’ he said,
Ganesha loved food and sweets, his mouth watered, his little trunk quivered in anticipation.

Very politely Kubera and his wife Kauberi served him.
Hardly had they turned their backs, Ganesha had finished a heaped thali of puris, vegetables, ghee rice, lentil curry, papads, pickles and a bowl of kheer.

One happy little burp and little Ganesha said very politely
‘Oh that was lovely’ Kubera and Kauberi beamed broadly…

‘But I am still hungry…’
Another huge thali, this time with additional helpings of modaks, and kheer...

Burp…  ‘I am still hungry…’

Now, large tears brimmed in little Ganesha’s deep brown eyes threatening to roll down his chubby cheeks.

More food...

 Little Ganesha still hungry, still unhappy. ..

This went on for a long time, little Ganesha continued to be hungry, and very unhappy. What could have been the matter?

Now Kubera and Kauberi were at their wit’s end, desperately screaming at their cooks and servants,
‘You lazy so#$@& ches, what do you think you are doing, slothful monsters, Can’t you realize in that dim-witted, pea brain of yours that Ganesha is still hungry?
Can you louts imagine what my reputation will be like? I who had told everyone that my cooks were the best on Kailash' 'Cook more, you retards, just keep on cooking and serving...’
Frantic servants running to the market, buying whatever was available...
There was no way, they could please little Ganesha. ..
He was still hungry, and very unhappy...

Hasty consultation, between Kubera and his wife Kauberi,
‘What are we to do?’ ‘He is unhappy.’

‘And whose wonderful idea was it?’ asked Kubera sarcastically

‘And who was so happy that he rushed off to Shiva and Pârvatîs abode immediately?’ retorted Kauberi equally sarcastically.

But when they went into their vast hall, there was Little Ganesha reclining on a mound of cushions, not resting happily as they thought he would be after a huge meal, replete and satiated, but weeping silently, huge tears rolling down his plump cheeks, his trunk curled into a tight little loop. 

Oh yes, Little Ganesha was truly an unhappy little God and he was their guest, they had invited him.

Kubera rushed to Shiva and Pârvatî’s abode and entered meekly.

There were Shiva and Pârvatî happily chatting and playing cards.

Kubera rushed to Shiva and Pârvatî and threw himself at their feet; Shiva bent down to pick him up.
Shiva looked deep into Kubera’s eyes, no words were spoken, there was no need, Lord Shiva’s glance said it all.

In that instant Kubera understood that it was his pride, his vanity, his desire to show off his beautiful house, his jewelry and his possessions that was at the root of Little Ganesha’s unhappiness, not the food but his immense pride.

Kubera felt so small, so miserable, so unworthy.

Pârvatî went inside and got a handful of puffed rice.

Kubera realised that when he had served Little Ganesha a huge, sumptuous meal, all he had wanted to do was to show off, there was no love in that meal, there was no desire to please a guest, there was only the aspiration to show-off his enormous wealth.

Humbly he took the handful of puffed rice and knelt down besides Little Ganesha and said full of sorrow and deep love and consideration, 

‘Eat Little Ganesha, eat my Honoured guest’

Ganesha opened his tear filled eyes, rubbed them, looked deep into Kubera’s eyes and popped the puffed rice into his mouth, savoured the rice, chewed it slowly, then he smiled at Kubera a huge radiant smile of love and tenderness patted Kubera’s head with his curly trunk, 

‘What a wonderful meal Kubera, truly a beautiful repast, thank you ever so much’

Little Ganesha got up, slowly bowed to Kubera and his wife Kauberi and happily with a bounce in his plump body and a swing to his little trunk went home. 


Thanking the inputs from http://mailerindia.com/god/hindu/index.php?ganesha
http://hindumythologyforgennext.blogspot.in/2012/02/ganesha-and-kubera.html



Comments

  1. Thank you for sharing your memories and this inspirational story about vanity. Ganesh Chaturthi!

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    1. Kevin, thank you. I am glad that as a child I lived with my Grandparents. My Grandfather never imposed on me any kind of meaningless strictures.
      Ganesh was one of them, not being too particular about Mass was another. Religion was a part of life but that I should pray only to Jesus was definitely not on. I am glad I was with him for some years. Kevin muchas gracias.

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  2. Lovely writing, Sonia, as always. You have a vivid memory. Now, we know how it was in the olden days. Keep on sharing !

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    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    2. Hi Mr. Dange, thank you ever so much for reading my blog. Somebody wrote to me saying, that there are no fugdeos and nine-yard saris during the festival any longer. My memories are all the more precious, the matollis were simple made with love, the women did not have much jewelry and Ganesh was devoid of all that goes now.
      There were of course no 'Sarvajanik Ganesh' and the pomp that accompanies it now, but times change!
      Strangely, Ganesh Chaturthi is the beloved of Catholics in Goa, I have heard so much about the good times had. Thanks once again!

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  3. Lovely writing. I cannot stop wondering how beautifully life events are woven into Hindu religious practises and festivals. And the pleasure this gives to kids and also adults.
    Thanks for sharing. Regards.

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  4. Sorry for the mess. Antonio Nazareth.

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    1. Antonio thank you ever so much for reading my Blog. It truly means a great deal to me. Forget about the 'mess' I had my own moment a little ahead of you.
      Hindu religion is replete with occasions when Gods as well as Goddesses are shown with a great many human failings, anger, jealousy, pride.
      So what we understand is we are all Good and Evil too. As you mentioned it gives pleasure to realise I am not good and not too bad either. Thanks once again, Regards

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