Ganpati Visarjan
The colorful and profoundly religious Ganesh Utsav ends on Anant Chaturdashi with Ganesh Visarjan, during which worshippers immerse their idol in water to bid farewell to Lord Ganesha. This auspicious day is widely celebrated with grandeur in different locations and has its roots in Hindu history. Worshippers will celebrate Ganesh Visarjan on September 17, 2024, during Anant Chaturdashi.
Anant Chaturdashi, also known as Anant Chaudas, is a significant festival in Hinduism. On this day, people worship Lord Vishnu, who is known for his many avatars. According to the Hindu calendar, this day promotes the values of brotherhood and togetherness and falls on the fourteenth day of the Shukla Paksha in the month of Bhadrapada.On Anant Chaturdashi, devotees attach a thread to Lord Vishnu’s arm after offering prayers to him.
The Visarjan Shubh Muhurat
Determining the Shubh Muhurat for Ganesh Visarjan is an important part of the event. Worshippers perform the Visarjan ceremony at the muhurat, a precisely defined period of auspicious time. Performing the Visarjan at this time attracts blessings and good energies. Ganesh Utsav ends on September 17, 2024, which is also known as Anant Chaturdashi. The most auspicious time to perform the Visarjan is ideally during the midday Muhurat. However, the actual timing may vary according to regional astrological estimates.
History of Ganesh Visarjan
Shivaji extended the festivities for Ganesh Chaturthi. In the eighteenth century, the Peshwas organized public celebrations in Pune during the month of Bhadrapada. However, during the British administration, people celebrated these events only at home. In 1893, Bal Gangadhar Tilak revived the tradition of neighborhood meetings to organize attacks on the British with other freedom fighters. These community events were called Sarvajanik Utsav. He also encouraged interaction between Brahmins and non-Brahmins during these celebrations.
During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, people made and submerged idols on the same day, every single day throughout the month. Community feasts and festivities would culminate these daily activities.Later, some continued this custom for an entire month, but privileged people preferred to retain the idol for one, three, five, or ten days.
The importance of Ganesh Visarjan
Ganesh Visarjan, symbolizing Lord Ganesha’s return to Mount Kailash, brings Ganesh Navratri to an end.Ganesh Visarjan reflects the eternal truth that everything that comes from the earth eventually returns to it, symbolizing the cycle of birth, life, and dissolution.Visarjana,a sanskrit word which means immersion and letting go. The Alore festival is held amid other Hindu holidays to showcase its cultural representation, which serves as proof of this.
Ganesh Visarjan Mantras:
“Mushikavaahana modaka hastha
Chaamara karna vilambitha sutra
Vaamana rupa maheshwara putra
Vighna vinaayaka paada namasthe”
Translation:
“O Lord! the son of Lord Shiva and the One Who Eliminates All Barriers, I bowed at Thy lotus-like Feet, with Sweet Pudding in Hand, Wide Ears, and Long Hanging Trunk!””It’s recommended to do out a Ganesh Puja under the supervision of pundits with right methods. It will remove barriers and enable you to live a happy and blessed life.
Customs Carried Out During Ganesh Visarjan
Lord Ganesha devotees perform the Puja Vidhi to bid farewell to their beloved god. People do Lord Ganesha Puja for Ganesh Visarjan by doing the following steps:
1. The puja starts early in the morning with Lord Ganesha’s aarti, attended by all the family members and relatives. On Prasad devotees offer flowers to Lord Ganesha, and the consumption of modak which is a sweet preparation at home is a speciality.
2. The process continues till the placing and immersing of the idol, known as Visarjan, is over signaling the end of the Aarti. The devotees should ensure they make a move towards the idol before they can pick it up. It means that Visarjan time has arrived, and Bappa had to let the 10-day celebration end.
3. Pray to Lord Ganesha and thank him for visiting your home and providing solutions to all of your troubles. Give some raw rice, or akshat, to Lord Ganesha. Moreover, give his hands a dahi rub for prosperity
4. As Lord Ganesha goes, they bind crimson cloths with grains, coconuts, and jaggery on Visarjan Day.it, as Lord Ganesha goes. Lord Ganesha will be satisfied with this meal during the tiring process of coming back home.
5. In the course of the Puja Vidhi being done for Ganapati Visarjan, the person conducting it gets splashed with water.
6. On the final day of Visarjan, take Lord Ganesha on a round of the house one more time before stepping out.
7. Chant mantras and the name of Ganpati Bappa Morya to boost your vitality. With your Lord Ganesha idol in hand, go outside and have someone hold a coconut so you can offer it to Ganpati Bappa and break it all simultaneously.
8. After that, immerse the coconut in bappa. Give one final Ganesh Aarti at the Visarjan site. Take off the Lord Ganesha statue’s decorations, dispose of it properly, and carry out Ganesh Visarjan in the body of water.
Why does India celebrate Anant Chaturdashi?
On Ganesh Chaturthi, Lord Ganesha is invited to houses by his devotees in an attempt to draw prosperity, money, and good health. For ten days, people worship Lord Ganesha with great devotion and an abundance of prayers.On the eleventh day, Anant Chaturdashi marks the end of Lord Ganesh’s journey. On this day, people bid Ganeshji farewell and express their gratitude for the blessings he has provided. For ten days, Lord Ganesh stays at his devotees’ homes during Ganesh Chaturthi. According to this tradition, the idol is immersed in water, so Lord Ganesh can go back to his heavenly world at the conclusion of the Visarjan.
Symbolism of Immersion
Therefore, Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated for 10 days and on the last day, which is Anant Chaturdashi, the idols of Lord Ganesha are immersed in water. The essence of this ceremony is to remind people that life is a temporary phenomenon and everything exists in a process of creation and dissolution. It depicts Ganesha’s return to the divine abode after providing devotees deliverance from problems and troubles in their lives by washing them off.
Environmental Aspects
The effects of idol immersion on the environment have gained more attention recently. Traditional idols made of non-biodegradable materials have contaminated water bodies. To counter this, the following strategies have been employed. In an attempt to change this, many communities have adopted natural colors and organic clay idols. Also, artificial tanks are being built so as to help avoid negative impacts on ecology, and also to maintain the environmental and cultural values of the festival too.
Trends such as regional ethnicity variations influencing the celebrations also come to light.
Ganesh Visarjan is also a festival, which has correlations to the religious aspect and varies significantly from state to state in India. Each region enjoys this important event in a unique manner, and thus, everyone gets to experience different cultural aspects of the country.
1. Ganpati Visarjan is the most important, and grand festival of Maharashtra which is celebrated by people from almost all corners of the state due to the Ganesh pandals like Lalbaugcha Raja and Ganesh Galli.
2. While Gujarat celebrates it with effervescent processions including dance performances Garba.
3. Goa people celebrate the occasion with local Goan music, songs and dance.