Ganapati Festival

Today’s the girls first day of school! We will post later about that, but had to get up something about the amazing Ganapati Festival from yesterday. Ganapati (Ganesha) is the remover of obstacles as well as a god of wisdom/ knowledge. He’s around at the beginning of things (e.g., marriages) to help out. He’s also the only god that ever comes into people’s houses I learned. He’s likely familiar to you– it’s the got that has an elephant head.

For this day, people have a family Ganapati that they install in their houses. Many villages or other types of communities will have one as well. People spend time shopping for the perfect Ganapati for their homes.

Parag’s cousins have one in their home each year. This requires building a mandap where the Ganapati will be installed. He stays for 1 – 10 days.

Here are Acadia and Alex helping Shilpa make Ganapati’s mandap at Shilpa and Nachiket’s. This was done Sunday. In addition to creating the mandap, the girls got to go pick many of the leaves and flowers that were used. Parag was sent out on a mission too with Nachiket.

Here’s the finished mandap. So beautiful and eco friendly!! (Others have a lot of lights and glitz.)

We picked up Ganapati later Sunday night. He has to be blindfolded on the way home. He’s then welcomed at the home, unblindfolded, and placed facing east to face the rising sun, before being installed on Monday.

Monday everything was even more decorated. Here’s a bit of the ceremony.

And here’s Ganapati installed.

Here’s a couple pictures of the procession in town. There was lots of dancing and drumming. You could hear it at quite a distance!