44 -The Stotra of Ganesha 

Parvati said - Everyone in the universe knows that Durga happens to be the slave of Shiva but when the slave has no importance in the household of the lord, the same becomes of no consequence. О lord, in the abode of Shiva all the creatures from a straw to the mountain are treated equally. Then who is at fault? My son or your devotee? You are the best in those well versed in the dharma; Therefore, you kindly think over it. Virabhadra, Karttikeya and all other courtiers are witnesses to the event, though both Ganesha and Karttikeya are brothers but who can speak falsehood at the time of giving witness, because at the time of giving evidence according to dharma both friends and foes are considered to be equal. 

In the court, if a witness knowingly, influenced by passion, anger and fear, gives false evidence, he is driven to the kumbhipaka hell with his hundred generations and has to remain there till the life of the sun and moon lasts. 

Though I am unable to take a decision on both of them, still it will not be proper for me to do so when you are there, because in these circumstances any opinion of mine will be deplorable in the Vedas. 

O lord, when the king is present in the court, all the courtiers appear like fire-flies before the sun. 

I have achieved the grace of your feet after performing tapas for a long time. I am, Therefore, always apprehensive, lest I might be disowned. Therefore, О lord of the universe, whatever I have spoken in anger or out of affection of my son, you kindly forgive me for the same. Because in case you disown me, then what shall I do with the sons. Because for the chaste lad'1' the husband is more important than hundreds of sons. 

The ladies born in the low caste or those who are wicked and unwise, do not show due respect to the husband because of the defect in their approach because of their parents. 

The denounce, the fallen, foolish, poor, those suffering from ailment or the deaf and dumb husband who is always considered by a chaste lady like Vishnu. Therefore, fire and even the sun cannot compare with the one-sixteenth ray of the chaste lady. 

All the great charities, merits, vratas and fasting or the performing of tapas cannot be compared with the sixteenth part of the lady serving her husband with devotion. 

For the chaste lady, the son, father, brother and real brother cannot be equated with the husband. 

Thus speaking to the lord, Durga looked at Bhrugu who was serving at the lotus-like feet of lord Shiva and was fearless. She said to him. 

Parvati said - О lord Parashurama, you are born in a Вrahman a family and are quite well-read. You are the son of Jamadagni and are the pupil of the teacher of the yogis. 

Renuka happens to be your mother who was quite a chaste lady born out of the amsha of Kamala (Lakshmi), your maternal grandfather was a great Vaishnava and your maternal uncle happens to be superior to him in devotion. 

You are the son of the daughter of Renuka of the Manu family, your maternal uncle is quite a noble person besides being valorous and always remains devoted to the feet of lord Vishnu.

I am unable to understand the cause of your losing wisdom in such a way. The blame by which one becomes wicked and without that blame one gets purified (has to be taken into account). 

After receiving the infallible battle-axe from the teacher who happens to be extremely merciful, you used the same initially on the Kshatriyas and now you have used it on the son of the teacher. 

Giving such a type of dakshina the teacher has been well rewarded by you. Presently you have only cut off the tusk of the son of the teacher, now you serve his head also. After defeating Ganeshvara in the battle-field you will present yourself in the world as victorious and will also earn blessings from us. 

You are not aware that by getting the infallible weapons from Shiva like the battle-axe and receiving a boon from him, a jackal can kill a lion and a mouse can kill even a tiger. 

Ganesha is competent to kill lakhs and crores of persons like you but the one who has over powered his organs of senses, will never try to kill even a fly. 

The leader of the ganas is compared with lord Krishna in lustre and happens to be his amsha alone. All other gods happen to be his rays. That is why he is adored first of all. 

With the influence of vrata, the boon of Shiva and after performing great tapas I had achieved him as my husband because no one can achieve pleasure without pain. 

Thus speaking, Parvati got ready to pronounce a curse on Parashurama suffering from mental agony. Finding this, Parashurama feeling panicky at heart, started reciting the name of the lord Krishna in his mind, bowing before the teacher in reverence. 

In the meantime, Durga saw a dwarfish boy coming to her having the lustre of crores of suns, having white teeth, clad in white garment and yajnopavita, holding a staff and an umbrella in his hands. His forehead was painted with bright Tilakam and he wore the rosary of Tulasi. He had a serene smile on his face and looked quite pleasant. He was adorned with armlets of gems besides wristlets and the rosary of gems, he had anklets of gems and his feet were quite charming. He was wearing a beautiful crown on his head and gem-studded kundalas appeared in his ears. 

Не displayed Sthira-mudra with his left hand and Abhaya-mudra with his right hand to his devotees. He happens to be the lord of his devotees. 

Wearing a serene smile on his face, he was surrounded by the boys and girls of the town. All the dwellers of Kailasha, a group of young and old stared at him. 

At the sight of the lord, Shiva at once offered his salutation to him with devotion, together with his attendants and sons. Durga also prostrated before him; thereafter the boy blessed all those present there for the fulfilment of their desires. All the children of the town left the place looking at the boy with surprise. 

Lord Shiva then adored the boy with his mind filled with devotion making sixteen types of offerings to him. Getting emotional, he adored him lowering his head before him, offering prayer to him at the same time. 

Thereafter lord Shiva seated on the gem studded lion-throne spoke to the boy who possessed immense lustre. 

Shiva said - It is just a fallacy to ask about the welfare of those who always roam about in the soul because they are themselves the base of the welfare, the form of the welfare and the bestowers of the welfare. 

O Brahmana, my birth has met with success today. My life has become glorious because of your arrival here with the grace of lord Krishna. You are complete in all respects, besides being the abode of lord Krishna. 

The one who adores the guest, the gods get pleased with him. When the guest is pleased even the god is pleased. 

The merit earned by taking a bath in all the holy places, performing all the charities, performing all the vratas and yajnas and performing all other religious ceremonies and the tapas, do not compare with one sixteenth part of serving a guest. 

If a guest returns disappointed from a householder, the merit earned by him during crores of births in the past, is destroyed. 

The one who kills his wife and the cow, the ungrateful person, the killer of a Brahmana, the one enjoying the company of the wife of the teacher, one who denounces his father, mother and teacher, killer of human beings, the one who is deprived of the sandhya-vandana, the one who commits suicide, the killer of truthfulness, the denouncer of lord Hari, the killer of Brahmanas, the thief of wealth, the one who gives false evidence, the one who betrays his friend, the ungrateful one, the one who loads the bulls, the store-keeper, the one who burns the dead bodies, the one who performs puja from village to village, the Brahmana husband of a wicked woman, the one who performs sraddha of the Sudras and takes food with them, the seller of daughters, the seller of the name of god, of wax, meat, sea-same and salt, the one Who sells away the cows and horses, the Brahmana who does not perform Ekadasivrata and the one who is deprived of the devotion of lord Krishna are considered to be great sinners in the universe and are Therefore, denounced everywhere. 

All of them fall into the kalasutra hell and remain there up to the age of Brahma. The position of those who make the guest to return disappointed is much verse. 

Narayana said - On hearing the words of Shiva, the lord was pleased and thereafter, the lord of the universe spoke thundering like the clouds. 

Vishnu said - Listening to the uproar, I have arrived here from Sveta-dvipa in order to protect Parashurama the devotee of lord Krishna. 

О Shiva, the one who is devoted to lord Krishna has never to face miseries anywhere, I protect him always holding a disk in my hand, barring the one who betrays his teacher. 

Because I cannot protect a person who annoys his own teacher, the denouncing of the teacher is a terrific sin. There is no other greater sinner than the one who neglects the adoration of the teacher. 

By his grace a human is in a position to look at everything, he is adorable by all and respectable by all. 

One becomes the father because of giving birth to a human being or becomes the father because of feeding the child and with the expansion is called Prajapati. The mother is a hundred times more adorable than the father because she carries the child in her womb and feeds it. She is more adorable and respectable. Not only this, she happens to be the form of the earth. 

The giver of food is a hundred times more adorable and respectable than the mother because the body perishes without food, the giver of food actually is considered to be the form of lord Vishnu. 

The family god is more adorable than the giver of food and the teacher is a hundred times more adorable than the family god who bestows knowledge and mantra. 

A teacher provides the knowledge of lamp to a person who roams in the darkness of ignorance and makes him realise the truth; therefore, there is no other brother greater than him. 

After adoring with the mantra provided by the guru, a person achieves the desired pleasure, becomes all knowledgeable and achieves all success; there are, Therefore, no other relatives greater than the teacher.

A person becomes victorious with the use of arms from the knowledge achieved by him from his teacher, Therefore, there are no other relatives more respectable than the teacher in the universe. 

Therefore, blinded with knowledge or riches, if a foolish fellow does not serve the teacher, he earns the sin of Brahmahatya. There is no doubt about it. 

Therefore, if a person adores a teacher who has become a pauper, has fallen or becomes degraded, he cannot be purified even after taking baths in all the sacred places nor does he get entitled to performing all the religious ceremonies. 

О Shiva, he who does not maintain his own father, mother, wife, teacher, deceitfully, earns a very great sin. Because the teacher happens to be Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva besides being the eternal Brahmana and the form of Surya. Guru also is the form of the moon, Indra the wind-god, Varuna and Agni. The teacher happens to be the form of everything and the great soul. 

There is no other scripture greater than the Vedas and no other god greater than lord Krishna. There is no other holy place greater than the Ganga. There is no other leaf greater than the TulasI leaf. There is no other greater in forgiveness than the earth and there is on one else dearer than the son. There is no other strength greater than the destiny and no other vrata greater than Ekadasi. There is no other yantra greater than Salagrama and there is no other place more sacred than the land of Bharata and out of other sacred places, there is no other place more auspicious than Vrundavana. 

There is no other place providing redemption better than Kasi and among the Vaishnavas, there is no other devotee better than Shiva himself. There is no chaste lady better than Parvati on earth and there is no other god more self controlled than Ganesha. 

There is no relative greater than the learnings and there is no well-wisher greater than the teacher, the wife of the teacher and the teacher's sons are also comparable with the same. There is no doubt about it. Parashurama has insulted the wife and the son of the teacher, I have arrived here in order to remove the same. 

Narayana said - О Narada, thus speaking addressing Shiva and Durga, the lord spoke truthful and the best of the words.

Vishnu said - О goddess, I am speaking to you so auspicious words which are quite appropriate and are the essence of the Vedas and would be pleasant in result. 

O Parvati, as you had the sons like Ganesha and Karttikeya, similar is the case with Parashurama, there is no doubt about it. О all knowledgeable mother, you do not have any difference in the love for him, nor does Shiva has so. Therefore, you think over it and do whatever you consider best. 

If there has been a controversy between the two sons, it has developed due to the move of the destiny. Who can avert the mover of the destiny which is all powerful? 

О daughter, О damsel, you search in the Vedas and you will find that your son is known with the epithet of Ekadanta (single tusk). He is well known with the same epithet; Therefore, О goddess, О mother, you kindly listen to the stotra of Ganesha which has been inscribed in the Samaveda. 

Vishnu said - He is known in the Samaveda as Ganesha, Ekadanta, Heramba, Vighnanayaka, Lambodara, Surpakama (the one having the ears like winnowing basket), Gajanana, Guhagraja. These are the eight names given in the scriptures. 

О beloved of loved Shiva, О mother, you listen from me to the meaning of the eight names of Ganesha which happen to be the gist of the stotra and remove all obstructions. 

 stands for knowledge, stands for redemption. The one who is the lord of both of them is known as Ganesha. I bow in reverence to him. 

stands for principal, stands for strength. Therefore, the one who is the foremost of the valorous persons is known as Ekadanta, I bow in reverence to him. 

stands for the poor and stands for protector, Therefore, the one who protects the poor in the universe, is known as Heramba. stands for obstruction or misfortune and stands for the one who removes it. Therefore, the one who removes misfortunes is known as Vighnanayaka and I adore him. 

The one whose belly became protruding because of the excessive eating of the food provided by lord Vishnu or his own father, is known by the name of Lambodara. I bow in reverence to him. 

The one whose ears are as large as the winnowing baskets for the removal of obstructions, he has been designated as Surpakarna and also bestows riches and learning. I bow in reverence to the god. 

The one on whose head the garland of Vishnu was placed by Indra, I bow in reverence to the same Gajendara having the face of an elephant. 

He was born in the house of Shiva earlier than Skanda. Therefore, he is known as the elder brother of Skanda and I adore him as such. 

О Durga, these eight verses comprise of many saktis and different meanings and is a devotional stotra for Ganesha. 

The one who recites this stotra thrice a day, enjoys all the worldly pleasures and becomes victorious in the universe like Garuda who always overcomes the serpents. 

With the grace of Ganesvara he attains all knowledge and learning, the person desirous of a son gets the son, a person desirous of a wife gets a virtuous wife. 

The immensely foolish person becomes a great poet and achieves all the learnings; Therefore, О daughter, you look into the Vedas and shed away your anger.