Ganesha Meaning
Ganesha is one of the most well-known and popular deities in the Hindu pantheon. He is also known as Ganapati or Lord Ganesh. He is the colorful and memorable elephant-headed son of Shiva and Parvati. This deity is commonly believed to be the ruler of new beginnings, success, wisdom, removing obstacles, letters, and learning. This article covers Ganesha’s origins, his connection to the root chakra, stories of his life, Ganesha’s mantras, and the meaning of his many symbols. Includes multiple videos.
The Origin of Ganesha Meaning
Ganesha meaning primarily centers around his role as the lord of new beginnings and the overcomer of obstacles. He is thought to bring good luck. Mantras and prayers to Ganesha are often used at the beginning of an undertaking. Ganesha is an unusual and beloved part of Hindu tradition.
Tales of Ganesha’s origins differ widely. In some stories, Parvati created him from clay. Another legend says that Parvati created Ganesha from the soap suds in her bath. Another myth claims that Shiva’s laughter created him. In yet another tale, Ganesha simply appeared mysteriously and was found by Shiva and Parvati. Ganesha also has a brother named Kartikeya, the god of war.
In a simple version of the story, Ganesha was born from Malini. Malini is an elephant-headed goddess. She drank bath water that Parvati had thrown into a river. Subsequently, Ganesha was born. These stories do not necessarily explain Ganesha meaning completely. The longer version of Ganesha’s origins below involves the separation and eventual reunion of the goddess Parvati and Shiva.
Parents of Ganesha: Shiva and Parvati
Ganesha’s mother Parvati and his father Shiva have very different personalities. Parvati is loving and devoted. Shiva is austere and fierce. Some legends suggest that they had a disagreement about whether or not to have children. As a result of this disagreement, Shiva and Parvati separated.
During their long separation, Parvati realized that she could create a child for herself without Shiva’s assistance. After all, she is a goddess. In this version of the story, Parvati breathed into the foam in her bath. Her son Ganesha appeared. As Ganesha grew up, he became his mother’s defender. Shiva had been absent a long time and many suitors were coming to the palace door.
One day Shiva himself appeared. Not knowing his son (clearly his paternity can be debated), he thought that someone had taken his place. He immediately challenged Ganesha, attacked him and cut off his head. This reckless murder was a huge obstacle interfering with Shiva’s quest to reunite with Parvati.
Realizing his horrendous error, Shiva ran into the forest. He saw an old elephant. Fortunately, the elephant was a Shiva devotee. The elderly elephant offered to assist him. When Shiva explained the situation, the elephant allowed himself to be sacrificed. Shiva rushed back to the palace and magically joined the elephant’s head to the body of his son.
Ganesha Meaning and Overcoming Obstacles
The story of Parvati and Shiva’s separation and reunion explains why Ganesha is viewed as the overcomer of obstacles. By magically fusing the elephant head to his son’s body, Shiva brought his son back to life. In this way, Shiva overcame the seemingly insurmountable obstacle to his reunion with Parvati.
This was a new beginning for the entire family. In fact, Ganesha received his new name after undergoing this ordeal and transformation. Interestingly, although he is known for removing obstacles, Ganesha sometimes places obstacles in the path of those who need to be checked.
Ganesha Meaning and the Root Chakra
Ganesha is associated with the root chakra at the base of the spine. The heaviness of an elephant connects them to the earth. This chakra is the foundation for the other energy centers located further along the spine.
This chakra establishes a connection to your physical body, the earth, and the environment. The base chakra is associated with survival instincts for food, shelter, safety, comfort, and belonging. “Lam” (lum) is the seed syllable for the base chakra. The base chakra is said to support all of the other chakras.
Most sources say that the base chakra governs the lower part of the body, including the legs, hips, lower back, and lower spine. These generally provide a strong foundation for physical health and a platform for our presence in the world.
Ganesha Meaning and Mantras
There are a number of mantras to Ganesha. This video is a variation of one of the more common ones.
Ganesha Sharanam, Sharanam Ganesha (2x)
Sayisha Sharanam Sharanam Ganesha Sharanam (2x)
Meaning: I take refuge (sayisha) in Ganesha. I surrender (sharanam) to Ganesha.
Another common mantra is the following: Om Gam Ganapataye Namaha. This mantra means, “I give honor to Ganesha.”
Ganesha as Mentor and Teacher
Ganesha is associated with success, wisdom, learning and writing. Ganesha is a patron of the arts and sciences. In the natural world, elephants are known for high intelligence. In fact, they have the largest brain of any land animal. In addition, elephants are artistic, can use tools and mimic human speech. In keeping with these things, Ganesha is a very curious and intellectual god. Thus, he holds great meaning in Hinduism as the god of intellect and wisdom.
In contrast with his reputation as the remover of obstacles, Ganesha is occasionally thought to place obstacles in the path of those who need to be checked to establish a stronger foundation before moving further forward. Obstacles help the student to stay focused on immediate challenges in life. This is sometimes the role of an archetypical guru: to place obstacles along the path of the student to help them gain mastery. Thus, Ganesha meaning can include both help and hindrance.
Ganesha Meaning in Symbols
Ganesha, also known as Ganapati or Lord Ganesh, is the elephant-headed son of Shiva and Parvati in the Hindu tradition. He is a deity known for assisting devotees in the overcoming of obstacles. Therefore, Ganesha is often invoked at the beginning of an activity, journey or other undertaking.
Ganesha is a joyful being associated with extensive symbolism. The many symbols in deity art featuring Ganesha help the viewer to understand the significance of this unusual deity. Brief definitions are given below for selected symbols in this deity art.
Depictions of Ganesha have multiple symbolic meanings. Explanations for the more common symbols are included below. These symbols are based on artwork and statues depicting Ganesha.
Meaning of Ganesha’s Large Belly
Ganesha’s large stomach indicates that he contains all of the universes (cosmic eggs) of the past, present, and future. Ganesha’s belly also represents the ability to digest all experiences in life. Finally, the large belly of Ganesh symbolizes prosperity and abundance. This includes an abundance of food and all material possessions.
Meaning of Ganesha’s Elephant Head
Elephants use their heads to break paths through the forest. This symbolizes breaking through obstacles on every level. In addition, elephants have small eyes in proportion to their large heads. This symbolizes the ability to focus and concentrate. In addition, elephants are purported to see things bigger than they actually are. This is connected with the psychological symbolism of humility and the surrendering of pride. On the other hand, the mouth of an elephant is proportionately large. This represents the natural desire to enjoy food and life.
Meaning of Ganesha’s Large Ears
Ganesha’s large elephant ears represent willingness to listen and bring together ideas. This creates success in human affairs. Ganesha’s large ears also indicate the wisdom of hearing all sides of an issue. In the natural world, the large ears of the elephant help to keep them cool in a hot desert environment. The blood vessels of the ears are close to the skin and release heat.
Ganesha’s Trunk Meaning
Ganesha’s trunk is able to hold anything in the universe. This symbolizes the idea that successful people hold whatever life brings. The trunk of an elephant has the ability to uproot large trees or to pick up a small needle. This signifies mastery in both the physical world and in the world of more subtle energy and vibrations. Next to the trunk are two tusks.
Sometimes one of the tusks (the left one) is depicted as broken. Ganesha’s two tusks represent wisdom and emotion – the right being wisdom and the broken left representing emotion. His broken tusk tells people that they must overcome their emotions with wisdom to attain perfection.
Meaning of Ganesha’s Four Arms
Ganesha’s four-armed form represents the inner attributes of the subtle body: mind, intellect, ego, and conscience. In addition, Ganesha’s four arms possess four different symbolic objects: an axe, a lotus, a plate of sweets and a symbol of OM in his palm. The hand with the OM symbol is held in a traditional gesture of blessing. Ganesha can be pictured with anything from two to 16 arms. The four-armed version is the most common.
Meaning of Ganesha’s Axe
Ganesha’s axe symbolizes cutting off desires. He can also destroy obstacles or move a person to the right path with his axe. The axe also symbolizes the power to cut the bonds of ignorance. Sometimes a pen is depicted in place of the axe. In this case, the pen represents knowledge that can remove ignorance as effectively as the power of an axe.
Meaning of Ganesha’s Yellow Clothing
Ganesha wears yellow as a reminder to all to cultivate purity, peace, auspiciousness, self-control, and truthfulness. Yellow is Ganesha’s favorite color. Yellow is the color of tumeric, a spice that has symbolic meaning associated with the sun, abundance and wisdom. Tumeric is used in Hindu weddings and other significant rituals.
Meaning of Ganesha’s Blessing Hand
One of Ganesha’s hands is typically turned towards the viewer in a gesture of blessing, refuge, and protection. This hand position is called the Abhaya mudra. A mudra is a symbolic gesture said to send energy out from the body for a specific purpose. The OM symbol inscribed on Ganesha’s palm represents the sound of all of creation.
Why Ganesha Holds a Lotus Flower
One of Ganesha’s hands holds a lotus flower. This symbolizes the realized inner self. The color red indicates activity in the world. The lotus flower is one of the most heavily used symbols in the East. Many deities are depicted sitting on a lotus flower. The lotus symbolizes attaining enlightenment as the ultimate fulfillment of life.
Meaning of Ganesha’s Sweets
Sometimes Ganesha is pictured with common Indian sweets in his hand. He is known to have a fondness for sweets. However, Ganesha’s treats are not merely for the pleasure of taste. Instead, these treats symbolize the rewards for a life of service and the eternal sweetness that is available following many lifetimes of right living.
Ganesha Mouse Symbolism
The mouse or rat represents ego and the wandering of the human mind. Ganesha stands over the mouse or rat, meaning that he has complete control over ego and the mind. The mouse finds food in the darkness. This food is like negative mental traits that dominate during times or darkness or ignorance. Ganesha has used wisdom to conquer all negative mental traits.
Ganesha Yantra Meaning
Yantras are ancient geometric symbols that represent deities and forces or vibrations of God in a concrete way. The Ganesha Yantra utilizes many of the same basic shapes as the well-known Sri Yantra. The six-pointed star in the center of the yantra is a simplified version of the nine interlocking triangles of the Sri Yantra. The six-pointed star symbolizes balance and harmony.
The mantra associated with this symbol is “Om Gam Ganapataye Namaha” and means “Salutations to the remover of obstacles!” Ganesha is the master of both inner and outer journeys. Ganesha is known for knowledge, patience, preparation and grounding. To learn more about yantras, see Yantra Meaning.
Sweetest Ganesha Story Ever
There was an argument among the gods in heaven: which of the sons of Shiva and Parvati was the wisest? Shiva and Parvati have two sons and one daughter. One son is Kartikeya. Kartikeya has a normal human form. The other son is Ganesha, who has an elephant’s head and an enormous body. (They also have a daughter, Akosha Sundari, but she is not part of this story.)
Shiva and Parvati went to Brahma, the creator god, for the answer to the question on their sons’ relative intelligence. Brahma does not answer the question but sends his own son Narad to offer a golden mango to Shiva and Parvati. He also sends the message that whoever eats the mango will be granted immortality and supreme knowledge.
Shiva and Parvati set up a contest for one of their sons to win the mango as a prize. The son who circles the world three times first will prove himself and gain immortality. Each of the gods and goddesses have typical animals that they ride. ironically, Ganesha rides a mouse (or rat) while the slim Kartikeya rides a mythical animal similar to a peacock. Ganesha realizes that he has no chance to win by conventional means. He comes up with an alternate plan.
The starting gun goes off and the race begins. Kartikeya takes off at top speed. Ganesha begins to ride his mouse around where his parents are standing. They look at him in confused concern. He continues to ride around them three times. At the end, he announces, “You, my parents, are my entire world. I have just ridden around my world three times.”
They are touched with his sentiment and impressed with his ingenuity. Ganesha wins the race, the golden mango, his parent’s appreciation, and his own immortality. Ganesha has proven himself to be the wisest son of Shiva and Parvati.
Author Kathleen Karlsen
Kathleen Karlsen is a musician, artist, writer and speaker. She is the author of two books (Flower Symbols and Vocal Medicine) and over 200 articles. Kathleen, her husband Andrew and their five children live in Bozeman, Montana. More about Kathleen Karlsen.
GANESHA MEANING ARTICLE SUMMARY
Ganesha is well-known in the East as an aspect of God to appeal to at the beginning of new endeavors. He is the Hindu god of overcoming, a fusion of an elephant head and a human body, something like Western superheroes (think of Batman, Spiderman and Catwoman). This article covers the origins of Ganesha, his mantras, his elephant head and the connection between Ganesha meaning and the root chakra.
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