The elephant in the room

[mousme]

A bronze statuette representing Ganesh sits on one of the small shelves in my kitchen.

I've had this little Ganesh since 1993, when my father brought it back from India. My parents also have a wooden bas-relief carving of Ganesh hanging on a wall at their home, from that trip. I am very fond of him, and he has accompanied me through four moves. He invariably sits on a shelf, and watches patiently as my life unfolds. Whenever I'm home, my gaze invariably strays to him, and sometimes I'll reach out and touch him. My father told me at the time that he was a divinity of Luck, something which appealed to me greatly at the time, but which further reading has led me to doubt.

The Wikipedia article I linked to has this to say:

Ganesha is widely revered as the Remover of Obstacles and more generally as Lord of Beginnings and Lord of Obstacles (Vighnesha, Vighneshvara), patron of arts and sciences, and the deva of intellect and wisdom. He is honoured at the start of rituals and ceremonies and invoked as Patron of Letters during writing sessions.

I think my attraction/fascination is explained much better by this. In spite of this apparent affinity, I'm still kind of perplexed by it.

I have never identified as a pagan. I don't believe in the gods of any pantheon. If I believe in any God at all, it's the Christian God, or rather my own version of a Divinity present in all things. I don't understand my attachment to this god who isn't my own, who belongs to a religion that I have never studied and never belonged to, that I really know nothing about. I wouldn't know what to do with a deva if it came and smacked me upside the head.

Yet this little statuette has followed me faithfully for more than fifteen years. I can't imagine my home without Ganesh, sitting cross-legged and pot-bellied on a shelf, two arms folded down, the other two held aloft, a mouse creeping along at his feet. I can truthfully say that I have spent more time with this deity than with any other in my whole lifetime.

I'm not sure what it means, if anything.

Comments

[bodhifox.livejournal.com]

I'd know exactly what to do with a deva. ;)

I read that you'd had this since 1939. *facepalm*

Ganesha is a god for luck. Maybe some of the energy comes from the fact that even though *you* don't necessarily revere Ganesh, millions of people do, cause he isn't a *pagan* god... All that worship has to do something.

Ganesha's head symbolizes the Atman or the soul, which is the ultimate supreme reality of human existence, and his human body signifies Maya or the earthly existence of human beings. The elephant head denotes wisdom and its trunk represents Om, the sound symbol of cosmic reality. In his upper right hand Ganesha holds a goad, which helps him propel mankind forward on the eternal path and remove obstacles from the way. The noose in Ganesha's left hand is a gentle implement to capture all difficulties.

The broken tusk that Ganesha holds like a pen in his lower right hand is a symbol of sacrifice, which he broke for writing the Mahabharata. The rosary in his other hand suggests that the pursuit of knowledge should be continuous. The laddoo (sweet) he holds in his trunk indicates that one must discover the sweetness of the Atman. His fan-like ears convey that he is all ears to our petition. The snake that runs round his waist represents energy in all forms. And he is humble enough to ride the lowest of creatures, a mouse.

Or a mousme, perhaps.

[mousme.livejournal.com]

What *would* you do with a deva?

[silly-imp.livejournal.com]

I never noticed that you had a statue of Ganesha! He's also the god of the written word, credited (I believe) by some accounts with creating writing, which is why he is also often depicted with a scroll. It doesn't surprise me that he found you. (Ps. Ganesha is remover of obstacles, but also placer of obstacles.)

[mousme.livejournal.com]

In your defense, he's only about four or five inches tall. :)

So what does one do with a deity once they've found you? It seems churlish of me to ignore him, but I know nothing of Hinduism...

[silly-imp.livejournal.com]

In this case, feed him milk and ladoos.

[heartofawarrior.livejournal.com]

Fascinating! And a very lovely statue :-)

[mousme.livejournal.com]

That one is actually snagged from Google. It's the closest to the one I have, since my camera is still in a box somewhere. :)

My statue is even nicer. ;)

[heartofawarrior.livejournal.com]

Shiny!

[miseri.livejournal.com]

Well, I've heard (this is complete hearsay, please take with several grains of salt) that if one truly understood Hinduism, one would realise that it is really monotheistic in nature. I don't understand Hinduism, so I don't know how to explain such a claim. Anyway, from any monotheistic religion, it is usually just a short step to the Judeo-Christian God.

An interesting note: apparently when C S Lewis converted out of atheism, he went looking around at a whole lot of different world religions to find Just The Right One; and at the end he'd narrowed it down to a choice between Hinduism and Christianity. Just think, if he'd been in a slightly different mood that one day, the Chronicles of Narnia could have featured sacred cows instead.

[mousme.livejournal.com]

Just think, if he'd been in a slightly different mood that one day, the Chronicles of Narnia could have featured sacred cows instead.

Somehow "She's not a tame cow!" just doesn't have the same ring to it. ;)

[luvenditti.livejournal.com]

I am certainly more Christian than anything else, but, like you, I have my own version of divinity. But you've seen my room. African masks. Hindu masks. Happy Dancing Buddha Statuette. Animal Totems. Just because we have one main belief system doesn't mean we can't see the divine in something else.

[owldaughter.livejournal.com]

Just because we have one main belief system doesn't mean we can't see the divine in something else.

Hear hear!