Mangalore: 'Ganapathi Bappa Morya'— Ganeshotsav Celebrated With Fervour Across City

Daijiworld Media Network—Mangalore (MM/CN)
Pics: Prajwal Ukkuda

Mangalore, Sep 3: Ganesh Chaturthi, the birthday of lord Ganesh, son of lord Shiva and Parvati, was grandly celebrated in and around the city on Wednesday September 3. The  elephant-headed God is widely worshipped as a harbinger of wisdom, prosperity, and good fortune.

Idols of Lord Ganesh have been placed at various public places like Nehru Maidan, KSRTC bus stand, Gokarn Math, Karangalpadi market, police lane, Sangha Niketan, near Bejai church, Kalpane, Attavar, Bokkapatna, KMC Hospital premises and Bunts Hostel, amongst others. Devotees visited these places in large numbers and offered their prayers to the Lord on Wednesday.

Some of these idols will be immersed into water bodies on Wednesday night. Others will be kept for worship for three or five days. Simultaneously, many households in the city also worship the idol of Lord Ganesh in their homes.
 
In 1893, freedom fighter Balagangadhar Tilak, reshaped the annual Ganesh festival from private family celebrations into a grand public event. The festival was not celebrated in a public manner until this time. Tilak visualized the cultural importance of this deity and popularised Ganesh Chaturthi as a national festival.

Tilak chose Lord Ganesh as a rallying point for the Indian protest against British rule because of the deity's wide appeal as 'the god for every man'. It was an important festival under the Peshwa rule in Maharashtra, but acquired a more organized form all over India during the  freedom struggle.

Ganeshostav at Nehru Maidan:

N R Seth, manager, Corporation Bank, inaugurated the seven-day long Ganeshostava celebration organised by the Hindu Yuva Sena at Shivaji Mantap, Nehru Maidan, on Wednesday. 

The idol was worshipped at Gollarakeri Hanuman Temple at 6 am before it was brought to Nehru Maidan in a procession from Radakrishna Temple near Sharavu Mahaganapathi Temple.

Entrepreneur Naveen Kumar, was the chief guest. Ganesh Rao S, chairman, Karavali Group of Colleges, presided over the function.