Table of Contents
Understand the Position of Lord Ganesh:
Learn more about Lord Ganesha so that you can worship him with faith and Love. Only with your sincerity shall Lord Ganesh bless you. read His stories and Pastimes
Stand in front of your Ganesh Deity:
If you don’t have Lord Ganesha installed in your temple, prepare to bring him home! Create a small altar place in your house. If possible, dedicate a worship-room for puja.
Give Him a Bath
Depending on the material of Sri Ganesha, clean him with a cloth, or give him a bath with normal-room temperature water. Wipe the water with a clean cloth.
Do not use that cloth for other household purposes.
Arrange the material for your daily worship
Ensure that you make prior preparations for your worship. Keep the Lord in your mind always and care for Him , because He lives with you. So, preparations have to be done just as the way you do for a newborn child.
Step-by-Step Process for Worship of Lord Ganesh
Blow the Conch before deity worship
This will ensure that your prayers reach Lord Ganesha without any obstacles. All negative vibrations disappear by blowing the conch. Make this an everyday habit.
Light the Pancha Pradeep or even mud lamp
Use Ghee lamps if possible. Many people cannot afford Ghee lamps for daily worship. In that case, use sesame or til oil. This oil is an equivalent of Ghee for Pujas.
Do Aarati
Now hold the diya in your hands and move it in a circular motion from right to left and then from left to right.
Repeat this process 5 times in each direction.
Recite the popular Ganesh Mantra
Om Gam Ganapataye Namaha (ओम गं गणपतये नमः).You can easily invoke the grace of Lord Ganesha with this Vedic Mantra.
Additionally you can chant Ganesh stotram till complete the arati.
Offer Dhoop or Incense
You can use any flavour of dhoop for Ganesh Puja. Dhoop or incense eradicate inauspicious vibrations in the house. They radiate positivity in the hearts of the chanter.
Offer Red Flowers
Red or saffron colored flowers are very dear to lord Ganesha.
However, Marigold is an ideal choice for worship on auspicious occasions like Ganesha Chaturthi. If you cannot find them, offer normal flowers. But, do not offer paper flowers.
Lord Ganesh: Points to Remember
Cover your head
If you are a female, cover your head while doing the puja. Similarly, if you are a male, wear traditional red colored dhoti while doing the puja. This is the traditional custom while doing Arti for Ganeshji.
Apply Kumkum Chandan
This you should do after doing Ganesh Aarti.
Tulsi or Pomegranete leaves
Now, place 3 Tulsi or Pomegranete leaves near the feet of Lord Ganesha. Tulsi can only be offered to Lord Ganesha only on Ganesh Chathurthi day and never on any other day of the year. This, you should remember.
Do Namaskar to Lord Ganesh
Males should do Namaskar like a stick while women should do Namaskar in a crouched manner with only their toes, knees, elbow, head and palm should touch the ground.
Offer Bhoga
Ideally Lord Ganesha temples offer Modak. It is the favorite sweet dish of Ganeshji. However, if it is not possible for you to make Modaks everyday, you can offer any other sweet pudding to your Ganesh deity.
Lord Ganesha has a sweet-tooth. He loves sweet dishes. Ensure you offer something sweet in every meal.
Test your Alignment with the Spiritual Subject Matter (only 7 Questions)
The scores generated in this Quiz are relative. There are no right or wrong answers. A percentage towards 100 indicates that you are more aligned to the overall subject matter.
When should we do Ganesh Aarti?
Mangala (Auspicious) Arti: Starts at 4:30 AM.
This is the Most auspicious time for arti. This is the arti observed to wake up your deity from sleep and adorning him. It increases attachment for the deity and is a blissful state to be in.
In Brahma Muhurta, the most auspicious time of the day, devotees perform Mangala Arti. It is said that even Devatas attend the Arti done during this hour of the day. It showers immense grace on the devotee.
Praatah (Main Morning) Arti: Starts at 7:00 AM.
This is the main morning arti, done after splendid deity decoration or seva. In temples, this is the regular darshan arti for devotees visiting the temple. At home, you can do this art, with the process mentioned above for Ganesh ji.
Bhog ( Lunch) Aarti: Starts at 12:30 PM.
In temples an elaborate chhapan bhog is prepared for deities. Hence, pujaris prepare for the Bhog arati where they rejoice worshipping their deities having the elaborate Lunch prepared by devotees in the temple.
You can perform this arti on a small scale at home with whatever dishes you cook for lunch. Chant a simple mantra for the deity and you can fan the deity during this process.
It lasts for about 10-15 minutes. Then you can close the altar to put the deity to sleep, an afternoon nap.
Sandhya (Evening) Arti: Starts at 7:00 PM.
This is the most grand arti of the day, in most temples. Devotees sing, play instruments, dance, devotees flock into the temples, and grow ecstatic. You can perform a similar arti at home with your family members or even alone, with the process you followed for Praatah arti.
You can use other paraphernalia like chamara and decorated fans for Ganesh ji.
Shayan (Bed Time) Aarti: Starts at 8:30 PM.
This is the smallest Arti of the day, when you put the Lord to sleep. Do not use any instruments or bells. Instead you can sing some bhajan or mantra to put Ganesh ji to sleep.
Sing or chant it in a low volume such that it does not disturb Sri Ganesh ji’s sleep. Ganesh Arti at home should start at 6:15 AM. Follow the entire process and chant the mantra throughout.
Also, You can change the timings according to the Panchang’s sunrise and sunset timings.
Family History and Interesting facts about Lord Ganesh
Lord Ganesha is also known as Ganapathy.
He has many other names like Vigneshwara (remover of obstacles), Ekadanta (The Lord with a single tusk) or Lambodara which means the Lord with a large belly.
Lord Ganesha rides a mouse. The mouse represents the mind which is unstable.
On the other hand, Lord Ganesha represents steadfastness or steady intelligence, represented by His large belly and stout appearance.
When Lord Ganesha rides the mouse, it signifies that the mind should be under the guidance of wisdom or pure intelligence.
Lord Ganesh is the Lord of Prosperity and Intelligence
Within Sanatana Dharma, He is sometimes worshipped with Mother Laxmi which signifies that intelligence and prosperity go-hand-in-hand. Having wealth without intelligence is dangerous. Similarly, just having intelligence without wealth is also useless.
However a devotee of Lord Ganesha, automatically possesses wealth and intelligence.
Lord Ganesh: Parents
Lord Shiva represents faith in the Supreme, while Mother Parvati represents Power. So if someone has total faith in the Lord, the vital energies that control the universe also go along with that person.
Guided by universal power and faith, that person shall automatically possess high intelligence.
Thus, Lord Ganapathy is of great symbolic importance, born out of faith and power.
Lord Ganapathy has a sibling known as Lord Kartikeya or Lord Murugan, who is the metaphysical representation of work or activity. Work done in the world can only be fruitful, if it is guided by intelligence (Lord Ganesha) and born out of faith (Lord Shiva) and Power (mother Parvati.)
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