Ganesh Chaturthi

Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated as the birthday of Lord Ganesha.The festival is also know as Vinayaka Chaturthi and Ganeshotsav.According to Hindu calendar it it celebrated on the fourth day of the bright half of Bhadrapad. During the Ganesh Chaturthi festivals,idols are made in great numbers. These are usually made out of clay or metal in all sixes;some of them are even as big as 20 feet. People purchase deities of Lord Ganesha and put them in their homes and worship them for one days to ten days.After this the deities are taken out majestically, through the streets and are immersed into a river, sea or a well{especially in Maharastra}. cultural feasts are also organised with main features like classical music and dance performances, folk dances, poetry recitations and film festivals.

Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated with huge enthusiasm in most parts of the country especially in Maharastra and parts of South India. Preparations start two to three months before the festival. Idols of Ganesha are prepared by skilled artisans and are decorated and painted beautifully.These atatues vary in size and are installed in houses and temporary erected special structures called Mandapas or Pandals are decorated with items like lights, flower garlands, etc.some of the decorations are based on themes.

The priest is then called in to invoke life into the statue by chanting mantras and performing rituals. The deity of Lord Ganesha is worshipped foe ten days and on the eleventh day the statue is taken in a procession through the streets escorted wuth a fanfare of singing and dancing. It is finally immersed in the sea or a river symbolizing a ritual in which Lord Ganesha takes a journey his abode, taking along the troubles of his devotees. This ritual is known as Ganesh visarjan in Marathi.