Gaṇeśa Caturthī Vrata
Gaṇeśa Caturthi Vrata, simply known as Ganesha Chaturthi Vrata, Sanskrit: गणेश चतुर्थि व्रत, Telugu: గణేశ చతుర్థి వ్రతం, Hindi: गणेश चतुर्थी व्रत.
The Gaṇeśa Caturthī Vrata is the monthly fast and pūjā kept on Caturthī, the fourth lunar day, in honour of Bhagavān Gaṇeśa. The Kumāra Khaṇḍa of the Śiva Purāṇa (Rudra Saṃhitā, Chapter 18) tells how Bhagavān Śiva himself taught the full vidhi. The main observance is on Bhādrapada Kṛshṇa Caturthī, and a variant is kept on Mārgaśīrsha Kṛshṇa Caturthī. After a year of monthly observances, an udyāpana (concluding rite) is done.
When Bhagavān Śiva taught it
Bhagavān Gaṇeśa had been revived with the head of an elephant, and the Trimūrtis had declared his primacy over all. After this, Bhagavān Śiva taught the full procedure of the Gaṇeśa Caturthī Vrata. Through this vrata, devotees honour Gaṇeśa on his holy lunar day each month. It is especially powerful on Bhādrapada Kṛshṇa Caturthī, the fourth day of the dark fortnight of Bhādrapada. (Śiva Purāṇa, Rudra Saṃhitā, Kumāra Khaṇḍa, Chapter 18)
The main observance on Bhādrapada Kṛshṇa Caturthī
This is the main vidhi as Bhagavān Śiva taught it:
- Upavāsa (fasting) on the Caturthī tithi.
- Dūrvā pūjā. Offer 101 blades of dūrvā grass to Bhagavān Gaṇeśa. Dūrvā is the offering he loves most.
- Patra. Offer 21 particular sacred leaves in the pūjā.
- Dhūpa (incense), dīpa (lamps), naivedya (food offering) and tāmbūla (betel).
- Bālacandra pūjā. Worship Bālacandra, the young crescent moon, as part of the vrata.
- Brāhmaṇa bhojana. Feed brāhmaṇas as a part of the day’s rites.
The Mārgaśīrsha Caturthī variant
The Kumāra Khaṇḍa also gives the observance for Mārgaśīrsha Kṛshṇa Caturthī, the fourth day of the dark fortnight of Mārgaśīrsha. It has rules of its own for that month.
The udyāpana
After a full year of monthly Caturthī observances, twelve months in a row, the devotee should do the udyāpana. This is the formal concluding rite that closes the cycle of the vrata and offers up its stored puṇya. Its worship is fuller, and it is the completion of the vow.
The phalaśruti
Bhagavān Śiva taught that the devotee who keeps this vrata faithfully receives what he truly desires: moksha (freedom), health, children, wealth, the removal of all obstacles, and the grace of Bhagavān Gaṇeśa in all undertakings.
The puṇya of the vrata is especially great for those who are beginning any important work, such as study, a journey, a marriage or any kind of sādhana, because it calls on Gaṇeśa’s primacy directly. (Śiva Purāṇa, Rudra Saṃhitā, Kumāra Khaṇḍa, Chapter 18)
Other Gaṇeśa Caturthī observances
The Gaṇeśa Purāṇa (Upāsanā Khaṇḍa, Chapters 58–59 and 68–71) tells the Saṅkashṭa Caturthī Vrata. This is the monthly Kṛshṇa Caturthī fast, with arghya to Candra at moonrise and a pūjā of twenty-one names, with particular leaves. The Aṅgāraka Caturthī Vrata is kept when Caturthī falls on a Tuesday. It is a variant with greater grace.
The Kumāra Khaṇḍa gives the Śaiva transmission of the Gaṇeśa Caturthī procedure: Bhagavān Śiva himself taught it right after the declaration of Gaṇeśa’s primacy. The Gaṇeśa Purāṇa gives the Gāṇapatya tradition’s own teaching on the same observance.
Sources
- Śiva Purāṇa, Rudra Saṃhitā, Kumāra Khaṇḍa, Chapter 18
- Gaṇeśa Purāṇa, Upāsanā Khaṇḍa, Chapters 58–59 and 68–71