Ganneru
Ganneru, “the oleander”
Grammar: noun; the Telugu name of the karavīra (oleander), as the text prints it.
Meaning: the oleander, whose red and white flowers are offered to Bhagavān Sūrya.
In the scriptures: Sumantu tells Śatānīka the signs of one who has neglected Gaṇapati. One who sees himself in a dream in a deformed shape, wearing a garland of ganneru flowers, will not regain the kingdom he has lost (Bhavishya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva, Chapter 23).
Brahmā, answering Dindi, gives the Jayā Saptamī: in its first pāraṇa Bhāskara Deva is worshipped with ganneru flowers, red sandal, guggulu dhūpa and a naivedya of kaṃsāra (Bhavishya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva, Chapter 96). In the fourth pāraṇa of the Jayantī Saptamī, in Mārgaśira, Pushya and Māgha, Sūrya receives red ganneru flowers, raktacandana, the Amṛta dhūpa and pāyasa (Bhavishya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva, Chapter 97). In the Aparājitā Saptamī of Bhādrapada, the first pāraṇa uses ganneru flowers with raktacandana, guggulu and sweets of jaggery, and the second, from Mārgaśira, white ganneru flowers with white sandal, ghee dhūpa and pāyasa (Bhavishya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva, Chapter 98).
Teaching Bhagavān Vishṇu the flowers approved for Sūrya’s pūjā, Brahmā names red ganneru among those usually within reach, with jāji, malle, cēmanti, aḍavimolla and dāsanamu (Bhavishya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva, Chapter 115).
Related terms: Karavīra · Raktacandana · Saptamī
Sources
- Bhavishya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva, Chapters 23, 96–98, 115