Ganesh Pujan - Prayer of Lord Ganesha

Diwali celebration calls for Diwali Ganesh puja as well as Lakshmi puja (link to Diwali Lakshmi puja). In fact, worshipping Lord Ganesh, the God of wisdom is mandatory before worshipping any other gods and goddesses. Therefore, for Diwali puja, people purchase the idol of Lord Ganesha and Goddess Lakshmi. Diwali Ganesh puja is a vital part of the Diwali celebrations. In fact, Diwali is essentially the festival of worshipping both Ganesh and Lakshmi. Traditionally, it has come down from Hindu mythology that Lord Ganesh shares the puja space with Goddess Lakshmi. In fact, Lord Ganesha is the most revered Indian god.

Since time immemorial we have seen that any puja or auspicious work begins with the name of Ganeshji. And it is considered auspicious The son of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati (God of Destruction and Restoration; Goddess of Plenty, respectively), Lord Ganesha is the elephant headed God. He is worshipped on almost all the occasions. People call Him by varied names like Ganpati, Mangal Murti, Ek Dant etc. He is the God of good luck and fortune. People believe that this God helps us overcoming our obstacles or hurdles and lead us to the path of success. Thereby, He is also known as 'Vighneswara' i.e. the end of obstacles.

On the dark night of Deepavali (link to the index page of Diwali), Ganesh puja is performed with different Diwali puja traditions and customs for success, good luck and to overcome the problems and to pray that upcoming year should be filled with happiness. For the Diwali Ganesh puja, He is placed on the right and Goddess Lakshmi is kept at the left side. Hindus believe that Ganesha should always be kept happy in order to ensure smooth accomplishments. Since, Lakshmi is the Goddess of Wealth and Prosperity, both are worshipped together that while Lakshmiji brings fortune, Ganeshji helps removing the obstruction. He is also the Lord of Wisdom.