Ganesha, or Ganesh, also known as Ganapati and Vinayaka, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon. His image is found throughout India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bali and Bangladesh and in countries with large ethnic Indian populations including Fiji, Mauritius and Trinidad and Tobago. Devotion to Ganesha is widely diffused and extends to Jains and Buddhists.
About Ganesha in brief
Ganesha, or Ganesh, also known as Ganapati and Vinayaka, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon. His image is found throughout India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bali and Bangladesh and in countries with large ethnic Indian populations including Fiji, Mauritius and Trinidad and Tobago. Devotion to Ganesha is widely diffused and extends to Jains and Buddhists. He is widely revered, more specifically, as the remover of obstacles; the patron of arts and sciences; and the deva of intellect and wisdom. As the god of beginnings, he is honoured at the start of rites and ceremonies. In the Ganapatya tradition of Hinduism, Ganes Ha is the supreme deity. A prominent name for Ganeha in the Tamil language is Pillai or Pillaiyar. In the Burmese language, the elephant is known as Maha Peinne ( derived from Mahā Wināyaka ), derived from Pali Winne (derived from Palā Peyaka). The earliest mention of Ganesh as a major deity is in the Phraetan and Phraikan images of Maha Winne, which are present in Thailand and Sri Lanka. The name Ganeshe is a Sanskrit compound, joining the words gana, meaning a ‘group, multitude, or categorical system’ and isha, meaning ‘lord or master’ The word gaṇa is often taken to refer to the troop of semi-divine beings that form part of the retinue of Shiva.
Some commentators interpret the name to mean ‘Lord of the Gaṇas’ or ‘lord of created categories’ The name Vighnesha and Vghneshvara refers to his primary function in Hinduism as the master and removerof obstacles. He has been ascribed many other titles and epithets, including Ganapatis, Vighnarāja, and VighneshVara. The Hindu title of respect Shri, often added before his name, is often added to his name. The word Pillai means a ‘child’ or a ‘noble child’ in the Dravidian family of languages, and the word pille means ‘tooth or tusk’ in Thai. He also has the name Gajanana, having the face of an elephant, which is also a common name for him in the Purāñas and in Buddhist Tantras. He was the restored son of Parvati and Shiva of the Shaivism tradition, but he is a pan-Hindu god found in its various traditions. He may have emerged as a deity as early as the 1st century BCE, but most certainly by the 4th and 5th centuries CE, during the Gupta period, though he inherited traits from Vedic and pre-Vedic precursors. His name is reflected in the naming of the eight famous Ganesham temples in Maharashtra known as the Ashtavinayak.
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This page is based on the article Ganesha published in Wikipedia (as of Dec. 08, 2020) and was automatically summarized using artificial intelligence.
