The people in India come in the mood of festivity for Ganesh
Chaturthi much before the event. Skilled artists across the region make
clay statues of Lord Ganesh a 1 or 2 months in advance. These statues
vary in size as per the requirement of the devotees. Some idols are as
small as ¾ an inch and some as huge as crossing 70ft height
Each home or locality which keeps these idols makes special
preparations. Homes are decorated and a platform for the idol is
specially installed. Localities which keep the idol erect pandals or
mandaps which are beautifully decorated by monetary contributions from
all. People use articles like flowers, theme based tents, garlands
artificial lights, mirrors and numerous other things to make the set
more attractive and colorful.
The idol once placed in its position is invoked with life by the
priest. They dress up wearing a white or red dhoti and a shawl locally
called the Uttariyam. He chants pious hymns from the religious books
such as the Rig Veda and invokes life in the statue. The ritual is named
as Pranapratishhtha and is preceded by the Shhodashopacharain which
Lord Ganesh a is praised in 16 different ways. Jaggery, coconut, 21
durva, red flowers and 21 Modaks are offered to god in this ritual.
Through the entire ceremony people repeat the mantras and hymns from
various granthas like those from Narada Purana, Upanishad, Ganesh a
stotra etc.
In this lunar month Bhadrapada the festival lasts for 10 continuous
days. As per the Hindu calendar these days fall from Shudha Chaturthi
and the last day is called Ananta Chaturdashi. A pious see off ceremony
takes place on the 11th day of this festival when the deity
is immersed in water and bid farewell. The idol is mounted on chariots
and taken through the city to the nearest water body. Throughout the way
people dance, sing and rejoice in the devotional feeling of Ganpati.
People have a strong belief that god moves to his home kailasha and
takes away all the evil on earth with him blessing all people with
positivity, prosperity and happiness in life. People in different states
acknowledge this ritual by different names. Those living in Maharashtra
called this immersion ritual by Ganesh a Visarjan, in Telegu the
procession is named as Vinayak Nimajjanam while the people of Karnataka
call it Ganesh a Visarjane. The names might be different in different
lingual but the devotional spirit is same throughout the country. Those
who put the statue in their homes might not keep it for 10 long days
necessarily. People also immerse the idol in 3, 5 or 7 days as per their
customs and convenience. The entire country dances on the words of
"Ganpati Bappa Morya, Pudhachya Varshi Laukar ya" by which they request
the God of wisdom and prosperity to come back to them with the same
blessings over and over again. Before taking the idol to the nearest
water body people offer coconuts, camphor and flowers to the deity.
The most loved sweets of Ganesh a, the Modaks are the main attraction
throughout the festival. These are simple homemade sweets which are
prepared from wheat or rice flour as desired. These dumplings are filled
with coconut which may either be dry or fresh but has to be grated
well, Jaggery, rich dry fruits and other things as per different
traditions. There is an option to either steam cook the sweet or prepare
it by deep frying in oil or ghee. Modaks too are famous by different
names in different states like in Telegu language people know them as
kudumu or modakam, the Tamil people call it modagam whereas the Marathis
modak. Apart from Modaks some people also make Karanji or karjikai by
the Kannada population. It is another sweet loved by Ganpati but has a
shape different from Modaks. It is semi circular in shape but
composition of the Modaks.
The people of Andhra Pradesh offer much more than just the Modaks.
They prepare kudumu which are small dumplings made of rice flour and
stuffed with a mixture of Jaggery and coconut, Vundrallu which are balls
of rice flour which is grounded coarse and are made by steaming,
Panakam a drink made up of black pepper, cardamom and Jaggery, Vadapappu
made of moong lentil, Chalividi a sweet preparation of rice and Jaggery
along with the Modaks. The offerings in Telegu are called by the name
Naivedyam.
In Andhra Pradesh the culture is to worship Ganpati made of clay
called Matti Vinayakudu and turmeric called Siddhi Vinayakudu together
with the Ganpati made of Plaster of Paris.
Local people of the region hugely celebrate the festival in public by
competing with each other over a better pandal or idol. The 10 days are
celebrated with cultural performances by people like singing, dancing
orchestra performance, theater works along with social deeds like blood
donation drive, free health checkups, and charity fund raising for the
deprived class.
The festival does not have a restriction to any by caste or creed all
come together and enjoy the vibes of god throughout the region.