A Ganesha Puja The following is provided as an example of a Ganesha Puja. There is much more which can be put

into the rite, such as installation of a yantra, etc., but this version is suitable for general use.

Requirements:

Votive image (such as a small statuette of Ganesha, a picture, or an image created for the rite)

3 small bowls - one contains water, the other 2 are empty

Incense or joss sticks

Perfume

Freshly cut red flowers

Red Candle

Pot of Red Paste

Mala (for counting repetitions of mantra)

Food Offering

Instrument for making music (i.e. drum, rattle, bells)

Preliminaries:

Set up place of ritual. The above items may be tastefully arranged around a small altar, if desired.

Participants may wish to begin with a relaxation exercise, followed by any preferred opening or

banishing ritual. Obviously, all participants should have some knowledge of the shape, attributes and

qualities associated with Ganesha. As part of the preliminary opening rite, participants may have

ritual marks placed on them using the red paste.

The Sequence:

Internal Installation of Ganesha

External Installation of Ganesha

Offerings to the god indwelling the image

The 108 Salutations to Ganesha

108 repetitions of the chosen Mantra

Reading of the Ganesha Upanishad

Closing

Internal Installation of Ganesha

The aim of this part of the puja is to meditate upon an image of Ganesha within, and to identify with

the qualities associated with the god.

"Feel your belly to be a void within you. As you breathe, see this void beginning to fill with a scarlet

mist. Gradually, the mist begins to form a shape - the shape of the Elephant-headed one, Ganesha."

"Ganesha, vermillion-coloured, with the head of an elephant and the body of a man, whose vehicle is

a mouse.

Big of belly, with ears like winnowing baskets, he holds a pomegranate in his trunk, and the crescent

moon is upon his forehead. In his four hands he holds a tusk, an elephant goad, a noose, and gives

the gesture of granting boons."

"The tusk he holds represents service

The goad prods us along our path

The noose reminds us of that which binds us

To his favoured he grants all boons

His ears, like winnowing baskets, sift truth from non-truth

His twisting trunk shows us the power of strength and discrimination

His vehicle, the Mouse, is for cunning, and subtlety."

"Meditate upon the qualities of the Ganesha within you - he has the strength and wisdom of an

elephant; the intelligence of man; the cunning and subtlety of a mouse. He is the Lord of the Gannas,

the demon-horde of Shiva. He is the bringer of luck, the remover of obstacles. Son of Shiva and

Parvati, beloved of gods and men alike."

This internal meditation may last for as long as is deemed desirable by the ritual leaders. The litanies

above are given as examples only.

External Installation of Ganesha

The next step is for all participants to externalise their internal Ganeshas into the image which has

been chosen as a receptacle for worship. In a small group, this may be done by passing the image to

each person who, upon receiving it, takes a deep in-breath and breathes out their internal Ganesha

into the form. In a large group however, an alternative approach is for all participants to focus

attention upon the chosen form, and, at a signal from the ritual leader, all simultaneously project

their internal Ganesha into the form.

Offerings to the Image

The next phase of the puja is to make offerings to the form which contains the power of Ganesha.

Gam, Obesiance to Ganapati (pour water from 1st bowl into other two)

Gam this water. Gam Gam Gam Hum Hum Om Gam Ganapati Namah

[Offer first bowl to Ganesha] - Gam, this is for sipping

[Offer second bowl to Ganesha] - Gam, this is for bathing

[Dab perfume on head of Ganesha] - Gam, this is perfume

[Cense Image around Ganesha] - Gam, this is incense, this is for prayer

[Offer Candle to Ganesha] - Gam, this is flame, this is for sacrifice

[Offer Food to Ganesha] - Gam, this is food, this is for sustenance

[Offer Flower to Ganesha] - Gam, this is flower, this is for experience

[Make music to Ganesha] - Gam, this is music, this is for enjoyment

Take these offerings O Sri Mahaganapati, bestow siddhi upon us!

Following this formalised sequence of offerings, we often like to relate one or two of the adventures

of Ganesha. This provides a further opportunity for meditation on the God for the participants, also

giving a further exposition of the gods various attributes and qualities.

The 108 Salutations to Ganesha

The 108 Salutations is a call-and-response sequence, i.e. one person calls out the Salutation and the

other participants repeat it back.

Salutations to him who is our refuge

Salutations to the one with the wondrous form

Salutations to the foremost presider

Salutations to him who is the fire within

Salutations to the first born

Salutations to the unborn one

Salutations to him who is without impurity

Salutations to him who is worshipped by all

Salutations to the manifestation of the unmanifest

Salutations to the inexhaustible one

Salutations to the inexhaustible one

Salutations to the granter of devotees desires

Salutations to the destroyer of devotees obstacles

Salutations to the one who loves pomegranates

Salutations to him who is celibate

Salutations to him who is free from aversion to the Divine

Salutations to the foremost knower of Brahman

Salutations to him whom intelligence is dear

Salutations to him who is powerful

Salutations to him who wields the discus

Salutations to the wearer of the moon on his head

Salutations to the ingenious one

Salutations to the one with four arms

Salutations to the skilful one

Salutations to the self-controlled one

Salutations to the compassionate one

Salutations to the resplendent one

Salutations to the courageous one

Salutations to him who is fond of durva (grass) and bilva (tree)

Salutations to him who has two mothers

Salutations to him who is fond of the twice-born

Salutations to the one with a single tusk

Salutations to the lord of the multitudes

Salutations to him who has an elephants face

Salutations to him who wields the mace

Salutations to the son of Gauri

Salutations to the lord of planets

Salutations to him who transcends all qualities

Salutations to him who is lion-like

Salutations to the rapturous one

Salutations to him who hold the sugarcane bow

Salutations to the bestower of Indras power

Salutations to the one with matted locks

Salutations to the embodiment of wisdom

Salutations to him who works incessantly

Salutations to the bestower of absolute happiness

Salutations to the destroyer of Kalis impurity

Salutations to the embodiment of time

Salutations to him who is love

Salutations to the beloved one

Salutations to him who upholds the mountains

Salutations to the one with the big belly

Salutations to the source of all illusory power

Salutations to him who is praised by sages

Salutations to him whose vehicle is the mouse

Salutations to he who wears a cobra as a sacred thread

Salutations to him who is without blemish

Salutations to the destroyer of wickedness

Salutations to him for whom there is no other

Salutations to the wielder of the noose and goad

Salutations to him who is feared by ambitious men

Salutations to the blissful one

Salutations to the pure one

Salutations to the God worshipped by Rama

Salutations to the creator

Salutations to him whose form is existence/ knowledge/bliss

Salutations to him who is fond of playing with his mother Parvati, daughter of the mountain lord

Salutations to the powerful one

Salutations to him who is fond of the Sama Veda

Salutations to the attentive one

Salutations to the supporter of the worlds

Salutations to the dearest son so Shivas spouse

Salutations to the bestower of all perfections

Salutations to the bestower of all fulfilment

Salutations to the son of Siva

Salutations to the omnipresent Self

Salutations to the peaceful one

Salutations to the peaceful one

Salutations to the unchanging one

Salutations to him whose lotus feet sage worship

Salutations to the bestower of fulfilment

Salutations to the auspicious one

Salutations to the first-born, Skandas brother

Salutations to him whose eyes are the sun and moon

Salutations to the bestower of prosperity

Salutations to him with the beautiful throat

Salutations to him who manifests prosperity

Salutations to the lord of Lakshmi

Salutations to him who has a stout neck

Salutations to he who is pleased with praise

Salutations to the pure one

Salutations to him with ears like winnowing fans

Salutations to him who is a vast ocean of sweetness

more charming than the god of love

Salutations to him who acts independently

Salutations to the self-established one

Salutations to the content one

Salutations to him who holds the blue lotus

Salutations to the lord of speech

Salutations to the bestower of boons

Salutations to the bestower of speech

Salutations to the lord of the wise

Salutations to the controller of destiny

Salutations to the lord of obstacles

Salutations to the remover of obstacles

Salutations to him who is free from fear

Note

"Gam" is the Seed-Mantra sacred to Ganesha. All of these offerings can be infused with power

through meditation on their subtle levels and significance.

Repetition of Mantra

Participants then begin the chosen mantra, such as "Om Ganapati Namah" which is repeated 108

times. During the mantra, each participant may, if desired, approach the altar or image in order to

perform individual devotions to the God (making personal requests for granting boons or removing

obstacles from their path, for example), afterwards returning to their place and continuing the

mantra.

The Ganesha Upanishad

A reading of the Ganesha Upanishad closes the formal proceedings of the Puja.

Om Lam I bow to Ganesha

You are clearly the Tattva. You alone are the Creator. You alone are the Maintainer. You alone are

the Destroyer. Of all this you are certainly Brahma.

You plainly are the essence.

Always I speak Amrita. The Truth I speak.

Protect me. Protect the speakers. Protect the hearers. Protect the givers. Protect the holders. Protect

the disciple that repeats. Protect that in the East. Protect that in the South. Protect that in the West.

Protect that in the North. Protect that above. Protect that below. Everywhere protect. Protect me

everywhere!

You are Speech. You are Consciousness. You are Bliss. You are Brahma. You are Being-Consciousness-

Bliss. You are the Non-Dual. You are plainly Brahma. You are Knowledge. You are Intelligence.

You create this world. You maintain this world. All this world is seen in you. You are Earth, water,

Fire, Air, Aethyr. You are beyond the four measures of speech. You are beyond the Three Gunas. You

are beyond the three bodies. You are beyond the three times. You are always situated in the

Muladhara. You are the being of the three Shaktis. You are always meditated upon by Yogins. You are

Brahma, you are Vishnu, you are Rudra, You are Agni, You are Vayu, You are the Moon, You are the

Sun, You are Brahma, Bhur-Bhuvah-Svar.

'Ga' the first syllable, after that the first letter, beyond that 'm', then the half-moon all together.

Joined with "Om" this is the mantra-form.

letter Ga the first form, letter a the middle form, m the last form. Bindu the higher form, Nada the

joining together, Samhita the junction. This is the Vidya of Lord Ganesha.

Ganaka is the seer, Nricad-Gayatri the metre, Sri Mahaganapati the God. "Om Ganapataye Namah."

Let us think of the one-toothed, let us meditate on the crooked trunk, may that tusk direct us.

One tusk, four arms, carrying noose and goad, with His hands dispelling fear and granting boons, with

a mouse as his banner.

Red, with a big belly, with ears like winnowing baskets, wearing red, with limbs smeared in red scent,

truly worshipped with red flowers.

To the devoted a merciful Deva, the Maker of the World, the Prime Cause, who at the beginning of

creation was greater than gods and men.

He who always meditates thus is a Yogin above Yogins.

Hail to the Lord of Vows, hail to Ganapati, hail to the First Lord, hail unto you, to the Big-Bellied, One-

tusked, Obstacle-destroyer, the Son of Shiva, to the Boon-Giver, Hail, hail.

He who studies this Atharva Shira moves towards Brahma. He is always blissful. He is not bound by

any obstacles. He is liberated from the five greater and the five lesser sins. Evening meditation

destroys the unmeritorious actions of the night. At both evening and morning he is liberated from

the bad and he attains Dharma-Artha -Kama and Moksha.

He who wants something may accomplish it by 1000 recitations of this. He who sprinkles Ganapati

with this becomes eloquent. He who recites this on a 4th day becomes a knower of Vidya. This an

Artharva saying "He who moves towards Brahma Vidya is never afraid." He who worships with fried

grains becomes famous and becomes intelligent. He who worships with sweet-meat (modaka) gains

the desired fruit. He who worships with samit and ghee by him all is attained, all is gained by him. He

who makes eight Brahmanas understand this becomes like the suns rays. In a solar eclipse, in a great

river, or in front of an image having recited this he gets accomplished in the mantra. He becomes

liberated from great obstacles. He is freed from great misfortunes.

Closing

We like to close a puja by moving into diverse feasting and revels. Following the puja, any image

created specifically for the rite may be immersed in ones local stream or river. Making this a

processional the following day can be a nice way of rounding off the puja.