The archetype of Mahaganapathi is famous all over the world, yet everyone wonders about the purpose, the point of that specific form and name of divinity with an elephants head and pot belly riding a mouse, what is Ganesha’s attraction and why is Ganesha so popular in many cultures across the world and what is allegory and symbolism of Ganesha?
Proto and Neo languages:
Taking religious ideas as literally true, causes superstitions and perverted religious ideas. It's interesting to note that even among those who are illiterate, there is a vague conviction that there are hidden realities behind the apparently absurd stories.
If we look at the various (neo) languages developed by humans, there is no natural relationship between the words, letters and the objects they signify, except in the Chinese or ancient hieroglyphics where the letter graphically shows/symbolizes the actual object. It is the structure of the language into which we put our thoughts that creates differences between the actual things themselves. However if we see the image of a smiling face or a beautiful woman with multiple hands, we can intuitively understand the meaning behind it without the use of the left brain, as the right brain can process the information directly and more intimately. We get that the person is friendly and the woman is very capable!
There is greater depth in using such visual, proto-linguistic language to directly communicate spiritual and relative ideals as well as in the use of stories and myths to pass on wisdom allegorically. This is utilised by the advertisement industry everyday of our current lives.
The ancients had also tried to use that very same technique to send “coded “messages of sublime truths to the literate as well as the illiterate masses. The beauty of embedding wisdom in art forms is that it can be endlessly interpreted by everyone depending on where they are mentally and how rich their imagination is- very similar to the appeal of Monalisa! In the case of the figures of the Gods and Goddess, every culture used universal archetypes that talks to our subconscious directly and either provides us solace, peace or strength, depending on what the person needs. The power of these symbols are not limited to the domain of the logical and rational scientific truths but also capture that part of life that is wiggly and has not yet been rationalised!
Ganesha’s Appeal:
The purpose of the human body embedded with an elephant head is an allegorical and visual symbol of decisiveness and fearlessness. Ganesha’s importance in our daily lives is that simple and powerful. People all over the world enjoy the innocence, the fun loving and food loving Ganesha’s body and the fearless and decisive elephant's head. Depending too much on the written alphabet/word has made us lose sight of this symbolic language which directly speaks to everyone's psyche..
Ganesha is the “Janus” of India, who is a two headed God of beginnings and transitions and the month January signifies the God Janus. Janus had two heads, one looking toward the future and one toward the past. Janus was the protector of the gates by facing his heads in opposite directions.
The gatekeeper to inner sciences:
Ganesha is called the gatekeeper of intuitive wisdom and clarity of mind, because unless we find the strength to neutralise the duality of daily pains and pleasures and likes and dislikes, we tend to have a low ability to learn new things, as we can get stuck in the rut of melodrama and roller coaster emotional life. The ability to calm down the inner space is the first step to having a stable external life. The posture of Ganesha shows the stability and strength in standing with both feet on the ground and looking straight at our problems. The story of Ganesha fighting his dad is a prime example of that clarity of what one needs to do even at the cost of one's head! Sticking to his gund gave Ganesha a double win- a new learning plus a new life, while people who doubt have a double loss- feeling stuck and unable to learn anything new!
The point of Form Meditation:
The whole idea of building a physical architecture, temple and idl is to provide some strong image for the mind to hold onto and receive solace and strength in life. In addition if we use them for meditation it can reveal sublime truths in the course of one's life over time.
For example,if we meditate on the “stable” and “centered” posture of Ganesha also signifies - satisfaction and contentment. The ability to retrospect the major experiences of life comes when we have some stability, satisfaction with our lives and some level of consistency. The bright moments take us to a high while the low ones bring us down to despair and this extreme pendulum like emotional swaying does not give us a chance to reflect on what we are doing and how to adapt our responses to life’s challenges. Intelligence grows only when we can think outside the box, and for that we need a rock solid ground of inner strength represented by Ganesha!
A mind that's confused is always doubting all the good thats happening around and worried about all the catastrophes that's waiting round the corner, instead if we can slowly focus on the form and connect with the essence of Ganesha( using Ganesha’s name/mantra), we can start to feel fearless, decisive and ready to face the challenges with a cheerful attitude.
If we look at the Ganesha’s physical structure, combining the human and elephant body represents the point of our growth where we come to establish our basic priorities and face our fears, and control the forces of memory that define us. Ganesha’s huge body signifies the force of gravity which is the primary force in the universe that binds energy to a specific form. Also it's a coming together of all extreme opposites forming a most lovable and cute structure which includes all aspects that cannot be logically and rationally included- like the mouse carrying the elephant head, and huge heavy body. The purpose of life is accomplished somewhere between the two extremes.
Specific chants, worship and fire sacrifice are recommended to bring our entire attention to the best qualities and invoke the wonderful qualities of strength, clarity, fearlessness and determination from within us. We all get doubts and worry about the worst case scenario and get cold feet or freeze ourselves sometimes in front of small or big tasks. With this understanding, if we focus on Ganesha, the higher achievements of life will not be a distant dream, but become easier and nearer than ever. That's why we say worshipping and focusing on Ganesha - the fearless leader(Vinayaka) is a prerequisite before we start any activity, with the assumption that we want to feel invincible and confident for the task at hand.
God of Dialectics:
If we look at the Ganesha yantra - the geometrical representation of ganesha, there are various dialectical opposites that's required to balance the functions of the universe like the worldly and spiritual prosperity(Riddhi/Amoda), Worldly and spiritual enjoyment (Samriddhi /Pramoda), dynamic and static power of intoxication (Madadrava and Avignesha), dynamic and static power of desire and intelligence (Madanavati and durmukha), dynamic and static power of liquefaction (Dravini and Vighnakartha), dynamic and static power of beautification Kanti and Sumukha)
These are great pairs of forces that need to work together for success in every aspect of life.
Ordinarily one of these pairs dominates the others, and we pass through the roller coaster of poverty and poverty, compassion and cruelty, overindulgence and repression. We are tossed back and forth between these pairs of opposites until we find respite in a stable outlook in life symbolised by Ganesha. Reflecting such iconography can be a great panacea for many mental issues and stress that has become the bane of modern life- because these images can speak to the heart more than the pills!
Hopefully more people will study this art of symbolism and benefit from more outlooks and insights about the working of the natural world inside and outside of us in the future. May we all learn how to Imbibe Ganesha's qualities and live well like Lord Ganesha would on earth - wisely and merrily!
3.45 AM
Pravin Vijay
07/10/2010
