DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.75620#0042
8
INDIA: ORIGIN OF GANESA
cutting off the head, he flew back again and placed it on the headless child (Bala-
Ganesa), who sprang into life, to the great joy of Siva, Parvati, and the host of gods.
The devotees of the Krisna-Ganesa cult represented Bala-Ganesa in the attitude
of the child Krisna crawling with one hand raised and the other posed on the ground,1
but with this difference—that the child Ganesa was represented elephant-faced and
with four arms.2 In their religious ardour, they took over the Bhagavad-gitd, insert-
ing the name of Ganesa wherever occurred that of Krisna, and called it Ganesa-gita?
According to certain accounts, the elephant, whose head was cut off by Visnu, was
the son of Indra's vdhana, while other legends give Indra's mount itself, the elephant
Airavata ; but this seems improbable since the vdhana of Indra, according to puranic
myth, was represented with three trunks.
There is, however, still another puranic legend which describes Siva as explaining
to Ganesa why he is Gajdnana or elephant-faced, in the following terms: 'I, in
company with Parvati once retired to the forest on the slopes of the Himalaya to
enjoy each other's company, when we saw a female elephant making herself happy
with a male elephant. This excited our passion and we decided to enjoy ourselves
in the form of elephants. I became a male elephant and Parvati, a female elephant
and we pleased ourselves; as a result you were born with the face of an elephant.'4
Here, we have Ganesa, the son of both Siva and Parvati ; and this seems to have
been the popularly accepted version of his creation.
Ganesa figured not only in the above puranic myths but in many mystic and magic
texts, both Brahmanic and Buddhist, from the fifth century onwards. Stotras were
offered in his praise such as the hymn found in the Tandjur5 where he is addressed
as the great hero, conqueror of Mara, without equal, incomparable, great magician,
king of incantations, master of secret formulas. 'To the Lord with the trunk of an
Elephant, homage!'
He was invoked in tantric sadhanas or mystic formulas for the invocation of a
deity when he was to be visualized with three eyes and many arms, and in forms
unknown in paintings or sculptures, such as in the Sarvadurgatiparisodhwhere,
as Vajra-Ganapati, he is described as holding a vajra and a sword; and as seated on
a toad instead of his usual rat. He is often found in dharanis, that is, magic charms
or spells where, as in the Sdraddtilaka-tantra,7 he is associated with triangles and
circles. Unfortunately most of the dharanis in this tantra are not suitable for
publication. There are other dharanis where he is referred to as being ignominiously
trodden under foot by the goddess Aparajita8 or by other gods or goddesses.
Mantras, or short hymns of invocation believed to have mystic or magic virtues,
were addressed to him ; and like the other Tantric gods, he was allotted a vija, that
is, a mystic syllable by which he might be invoked. The Tantric vija of Ganesa was:
gan (Q.
1 v. Pl. 15 (b). 5 83, 94v. Kindly translated by Mr. Sylvain
2 v. Pl. 15 (c). Kindness of Mr. Campbell of the Levi.
India Museum, London. 6 Mss. in the Bibliotheque Nationale, Sanskrit
3 v. Classical Dictionary of Hindu Mythology, 59, p. 75. Kindly translated by Mr. S. Levi.
Dawson. 7 Kindly translated by Mr. Bhattasali.
4 H.I., Rao, vol. i, part i. 8 v. p. 43.
INDIA: ORIGIN OF GANESA
cutting off the head, he flew back again and placed it on the headless child (Bala-
Ganesa), who sprang into life, to the great joy of Siva, Parvati, and the host of gods.
The devotees of the Krisna-Ganesa cult represented Bala-Ganesa in the attitude
of the child Krisna crawling with one hand raised and the other posed on the ground,1
but with this difference—that the child Ganesa was represented elephant-faced and
with four arms.2 In their religious ardour, they took over the Bhagavad-gitd, insert-
ing the name of Ganesa wherever occurred that of Krisna, and called it Ganesa-gita?
According to certain accounts, the elephant, whose head was cut off by Visnu, was
the son of Indra's vdhana, while other legends give Indra's mount itself, the elephant
Airavata ; but this seems improbable since the vdhana of Indra, according to puranic
myth, was represented with three trunks.
There is, however, still another puranic legend which describes Siva as explaining
to Ganesa why he is Gajdnana or elephant-faced, in the following terms: 'I, in
company with Parvati once retired to the forest on the slopes of the Himalaya to
enjoy each other's company, when we saw a female elephant making herself happy
with a male elephant. This excited our passion and we decided to enjoy ourselves
in the form of elephants. I became a male elephant and Parvati, a female elephant
and we pleased ourselves; as a result you were born with the face of an elephant.'4
Here, we have Ganesa, the son of both Siva and Parvati ; and this seems to have
been the popularly accepted version of his creation.
Ganesa figured not only in the above puranic myths but in many mystic and magic
texts, both Brahmanic and Buddhist, from the fifth century onwards. Stotras were
offered in his praise such as the hymn found in the Tandjur5 where he is addressed
as the great hero, conqueror of Mara, without equal, incomparable, great magician,
king of incantations, master of secret formulas. 'To the Lord with the trunk of an
Elephant, homage!'
He was invoked in tantric sadhanas or mystic formulas for the invocation of a
deity when he was to be visualized with three eyes and many arms, and in forms
unknown in paintings or sculptures, such as in the Sarvadurgatiparisodhwhere,
as Vajra-Ganapati, he is described as holding a vajra and a sword; and as seated on
a toad instead of his usual rat. He is often found in dharanis, that is, magic charms
or spells where, as in the Sdraddtilaka-tantra,7 he is associated with triangles and
circles. Unfortunately most of the dharanis in this tantra are not suitable for
publication. There are other dharanis where he is referred to as being ignominiously
trodden under foot by the goddess Aparajita8 or by other gods or goddesses.
Mantras, or short hymns of invocation believed to have mystic or magic virtues,
were addressed to him ; and like the other Tantric gods, he was allotted a vija, that
is, a mystic syllable by which he might be invoked. The Tantric vija of Ganesa was:
gan (Q.
1 v. Pl. 15 (b). 5 83, 94v. Kindly translated by Mr. Sylvain
2 v. Pl. 15 (c). Kindness of Mr. Campbell of the Levi.
India Museum, London. 6 Mss. in the Bibliotheque Nationale, Sanskrit
3 v. Classical Dictionary of Hindu Mythology, 59, p. 75. Kindly translated by Mr. S. Levi.
Dawson. 7 Kindly translated by Mr. Bhattasali.
4 H.I., Rao, vol. i, part i. 8 v. p. 43.