Ganesh

Ganesh is a deity that has grown popular over a long period of time and worship of him has truly blossomed in the past century. Known by the names of Ganesh, Ganpati, Vinayaka, Ekadanta, he is unmistakable by most due to his characteristic elephant head and pot-bellied body1. He is widely revered as the Lord of Obstacles, hence called Vighneshvara, Patron Deity of Letters and the Arts, Lord of Beginings, hence called Vighnesha and the God of intellect and wisdom. The Ganesh cult is one that has intrigued scholars the world over, to understand the reason for the prevalence of a deformed deity as being considered within the 5 main cults within Hinduism today. He is described as having an elephant head with only 1 tusk, being pot-bellied, riding a rat/mouse, and having a yellowish skin tone. Being the Lord of Obstacles he is always invoked before any undertaking to make sure it is completed without any problems2. There is a lot of speculation as to the origin of this elephant-headed deity. There is believed to be a connection to Ganesh as an agricultural deity related to the harvest season. Since his mount is a rat, there is the connection made that Ganesh is the Mushhak Vahan, the Rider on the Rat, insinuating his control and subjugation of a major pest in crop fields3. Additionally, Ganesh is also known as Surpakarna, which means winnowing basket, while the name Ekdanta means one-toothed. The Ekdanta is said to represent a plough, and since both the winnowing basket and plough are crucial for harvesting, some scholars have pushed forth the idea of an agricultural connection to Ganesh's origins. There is also the matter of his yellowish skin tone that is said to be representative of corn sheaf, hence representing a bountiful harvest after conquering the rat menace4. Further proof for this theory stems from certain rituals conducted during the famous Ganesh Chaturthi. The statue of Ganesh is submerged in a river, lake or tank, after which a handful of its clay of sand is thrown into the grain storage facilities and the barn to prevent a rat infestation. In other rituals, the water within which the Ganapati has been submerged in is released into the fields and is meant to bring rains with it. Numerous other rituals have Ganapati worshipped in symbolic ways, such as the placing of a beetle nut on a seat of grain during a wedding5. In another theory, Ganesh is believed to be a non-Aryan deity. The name Vinayaka, is traced back to a very early period where he was considered to be some form of a demon who caused mischief and chaos and along with many other spirits was said to haunt forests and mountains. All the spirits were then fused into the elephant-headed god, who, through the influence of the Brahmanical Hindus was converted into the Remover of Obstacles6. Yet another theory supports the claim of Ganesh's origin from an animal cult. The elephant head might have been a totem of one Dravidian tribe or, a deity created to be worshipped by the ancient inhabitants of India who revered the strength of the elephants7. However, the above

Elephants and Lotus have been depicted in mythology, symbolism and popular culture. They are both revered in religion and one is respected for their prowess in war. They also have negative connotations such as being a symbol for an unnecessary burden. Even if the elephant denotes the God Ganesha, the Lotus is the vehicle of his wife Saraswati. Saraswati – the Goddess of knowledge is mostly associated with the color white which signifies the purity of knowledge. In most of her images, she wears white sari and seats on a white Nelumbo nucifera lotus. White sari shows the she is the embodiment of pure knowledge. As lotus in Hinduism is a symbol of Supreme Reality, the white lotus denotes to Supreme Reality. Sitting on the white lotus, Saraswati is rooted in the Supreme Reality thus represents the Supreme Knowledge. Also, just like lotus that roots in mud but blooms with purity, Saraswati with her lotus seat suggests her transcendence of physical world. It inspires people to transcend physical limitations to receive true knowledge. To understand the roles of both God and Goddess let us study their Histo cosmology.

Following Papers
CHAPTER I,GANESH IN JAPAN PAGE 6
CHAPTER II-Ganges in CHINA page 31
The Brahmaputra - Yarlung Tsangpo PAGE 42
MYTHOLOGY PAGE 52
CHAPTER III-The Lands of SHIVA Part I
Hindu Cultural highway  of S.E. Asian Rivers
Hindu Cultural highway  of the  Irrawady  इरावती PAGE 55
Chapter iv-the Lands of SHIVA Part II-Hindu Cultural highway  of S.E. Asia
Hindu Cultural highway  of the Phillipines  PAGE 73
Chapter v- (Padma and Meghna Rivers) Hindu Cultural highway  of Ganga in Bangladesh,The Lands of SHIVA Part III- page 97
CHAPTER VI-Holy Cities on the Rivers of Hindu India-an Integration of Cultures page 132
CHAPTER VII
The Khmer Civilization as an Integration of Cultures page 153
CHAPTER VIII-The Temple Mountain of  Baphuon page 177
CHAPTER IX-THE CONCEPT of a LOST CONTINENT page 200

CHAPTER X-The Tamil LOST Continent Kumari Kandam page 218
CHAPTER XI-15 facts about the Kumari Kandam page 235
ARTICLES ON THIS TAMIL CONTINENT page 238

The Gaṇeśa episode from the Mahābhārata, widely regarded as a late addition, narrates the mythical circumstances that led to the first written record of the poem: Vyāsa asks Gaṇeśa to write down the whole epic at his dictation. In the past, the episode was claimed to represent an attempt to promote the figure of Gaṇeśa, a god on the rise. Nevertheless, this explanation fails to account for the connection between the god and the act of writing an original work. A closer examination of the episode is therefore needed, with a view to reaching a more satisfactory interpretation. Our assumption is that the passage should be read as a realistic staging of the questions raised by the relationship between author, symbolised by Vyāsa, and scribe, symbolised by Gaṇeśa. In this context, the figure of Gaṇeśa serves to emphasize the relevance of the technology of writing and its professionals.

“The sacred in architecture reveals itself beside a roadside stall, while you watch your batch of hot jalebis being made. The jalebi is a fabrication of the ubiquitous spiral, hence when you sink your teeth into one, with the juice exploding in your mouth; you know what spirals taste like…”

A month before my daughter Zahra was born, I was commissioned to write on the sacred in the architecture of all religions. I had turned down the commission arguing my expertise did not extend beyond Muslim Civilizations.

When Zahra was born, my father suggested we have jalebis to celebrate! (Jalebi is a dessert made by deep frying circular shapes of maida flour batter in a cauldron of boiling oil, and then soaked in sugar syrup). While biting into a hot jalebi, with its juice bursting in my mouth, in a flash my mind connected the movement of the chef’s hand while making jalebis with rituals of movement in the practice of several religions.

“Jalebi & The Knot of Sacred Architecture” was born at that instant; one of my quickest essays, it was written in a single draft (apologies for any unintended lapses and inadvertent faux pas).

In retrospect, growing up in multicultural India, the crossroad of world religions had sufficiently exposed me to multiple religious practices..

Published as "Contorurs of the Sacred" International Gallerie Vol.11 No.1 2008 pg.44-46
Final iteration forthcoming that restores its original title "Jalebi & The Knot of Sacred Architecture."

Cross Reference. See also:
"The Kaaba: Guarding The Centre, Generating The Circumference" in Articles Section
"Three Shores Of The Cube"  in Articles Section
"Medina Highway" in Poetry Section

This Mystery Ganesha statue in Dantewada district Chhatisgarh, India is atop a mountain with a razor peak that can only house ths 1 giant statute.
How did it get there and who built it. It takes 13 hours to climb to the summit and the place is 400 knm away fromthe city of Raipur
This amazing story explained

Nella società contemporanea assistiamo a nuove e multiformi modalità di vivere il rapporto con la fede, con
il sacro e con le loro manifestazioni rituali, soprattutto alla luce dei cambiamenti sopraggiunti con l’arrivo di
cittadini portatori di differenti culture, tradizioni e religioni. In questo contesto è utile guardare alla portata
culturale di determinati momenti di condivisione come quelli delle “feste religiose”, in quanto nel tempo e
nello spazio della festa si aprono scenari sempre nuovi e in continua evoluzione. Lo spostamento dal contesto
di origine a quello migratorio, genera una lenta metamorfosi con un forte impatto non solo sui fedeli che
praticano il culto, ma anche sul culto stesso. Questo discorso trova terreno fertile se si considerano le
pratiche religiose festive che da secoli caratterizzano il substrato culturale e antropologico italiano, in
particolare nella città di Catania, in cui il costrutto della festa ha da sempre scandito la vita e le attività sociali
dei cittadini. Il “caso catanese” in particolare la festa del Ganesha Caturthi dedicata al dio Gaṇesh “patrono”
dei Mauriziani, è tra gli eventi più importanti e rappresentativi per gli induisti della città. Protagoniste di
questo evento sono le due comunità induiste mauriziane rappresentate dalle associazioni “Catania Ganesh
Association” e “Geetanjali Circle” che, con le loro manifestazioni rituali producono una serie di significati
che vanno a reinterpretare il senso stesso della festa. Esponendosi difronte all’intera comunità, infatti,
divengono interpreti di un rituale atto non solo a celebrare la divinità, ma anche a sancire la loro presenza nel
contesto urbano di approdo. Le due comunità induiste, differenti per tradizioni e provenienze culturali, per
due giorni festeggiano ognuna nel proprio “spazio sacro” il Ganesha Caturthi, ma nel momento della
processione si unisco per diventare un unico grande corteo sotto la statua del liotru, il “terzo elefante”
simbolo della città di Catania. Il tempo della festa appare pertanto come momento topico per il
riconoscimento e la riaffermazione della propria appartenenza religiosa e culturale, in un delicato processo di costruzione e trasformazione dell’identità religiosa, territoriale e sociale dei migranti, nella società plurale
contemporanea.

Veicolo di comunicazione con l'Aldilà, fedele compagna nella meditazione, l'uso cerimoniale della canapa è attestato fin dall'Egitto faraonico come risulta da una tavoletta di Assurbanipal dell'VIII secolo, dove la pianta è denominata Qunnapu. Ad avvalorare questa testimonianza, c'è il fatto che Seshat, dea egizia della scrittura e degli annali faraonici, è rappresentata con una foglia sopra il capo intenta a scrivere. Sembrerebbe proprio una fogliolina di canapa. Ma le tesi, come sempre, sono controverse. Infatti, alcuni studiosi ritengono che si tratti di un fiore stilizzato o di una stella a sette punte. Guarda caso. Il bhang, che è una bevanda lattiginosa ricavata dalle foglie e dalle cime della canapa; il charas, che è un tipo di hashish fatto dalla resina di canapa; e la ganja, ossia le cime da fumare. Bere il latte di bhang per pulire e purificare il corpo durante una festa religiosa è considerato un atto sacro. In India e in Nepal la pianta ha svolto e continua a svolgere un significativo ruolo religioso.

Dans ce volume 4, je me suis penché sur les datations de 25 candi situés entre Magelang et Jogjakarta et autour de Jogja comme les candi Retno, Ngawen, Gunung Wukir, Losari, Gebang, etc. Et je date aussi les célèbres statues du candi Banon.

This is the fourth article I made about the javanese temples (candi). A new study and new datations of these mysterious constructions.
In this vol. 4, I speak about a serie of temples along a line since Magelang to Yogyakarta and around Yogya in central java. Among them candi Retno, candi Ngawen, candi Sendi, candi Gunung Wukir, candi Losari, candi Gebang, candi Kimpulan, candi Mantup, candi Gembirowati and many others.
The study of these temples brings many revelations for a better comprehension for the story of the Javanese history.