Ganesha – The Remover of Obstacles

Lord Ganesha is also called Vighnahara and Vignaharta. ‘Vighna’ in Sanskrit means hurdles and impediments and ‘hara’ or ‘harta’ means the remover of obstacles.

Why Ganesha is called the remover of obstacles?

Obstacles occur when we find unable to act and come out of a situation due to limitation of thoughts or ideas. Frustration, anxiety, depression at that point of time can further clog our mind. Ganesha, called as the God of wisdom and intelligence, gives us the acumen to handle such situations. There is an interesting story that narrates how Ganesha handled a tricky situation with his wit and intelligence. Once, Shiva and Parvati decided to test the skill and intelligence of their children Ganesha and Kartikeya by setting up a competition. They asked Ganesha and Kartikeya to take 3 rounds around the world and offer prayer at all the sacred spots on their way. The one who finishes the task first will win a miracle fruit. As soon as the challenge was announced, Kartikeya mounted on His peacock and went to obey His parents’ order. He was delighted as He knew that His brother Ganesha, who is slow and fat, will not be able to win the competition. Ganesha too realized that His vehicle, the mouse, will not be able to compete with Kartikeya’s peacock. He thought for a while and came up with a solution.

Ganesha circumambulated His parents three times with devotion. When Shiva asked Him the reason, He said that His parents pervade the whole universe and so circling around them is equivalent to circling the whole world. Pleased with Ganesha, Shiva and Parvati declared Him the winner of the competition. Thus, Ganesha could overcome the obstacle and win the challenge with His sheer intelligence.

Obstacle obliterating powers of Ganesha

The elephant head of Ganesha is also an important aspect of His obstacle-obliterating powers. Elephants have the bulk and strength to push aside hindrances in their way. They are viewed as a symbol of strength, wisdom and intelligence. Elephant’s extraordinary memory is also well acknowledged by humans. In addition, Ganesha chose rat as His vehicle as it can make its way through the tiniest cracks to reach even the most secret corners. This is symbolic of Ganesha’s abilities to penetrate all barriers and overcome all obstacles. Thus, Ganesha, the lord of intelligence is rightly called the remover of obstacles, the ‘Vignaharta’. He can see the obstacles even before we become aware of them.

How Ganesha frees you from obstacles?

There are two technologies through which Ganesha absolves the negative karma responsible for creating obstacles in our lives. 4th Waning Moon: Smash hit your obstacles As per ancient holy texts of Narasimha Purana and Bhavishya Purana, a 4th Waning Moon is a special time to access the energies of Lord Ganesha. The day is observed as Sankathara Chaturthi or Sankasti. On this day one can seek the blessings of Ganesha to remove all deep-rooted obstacles with regard to finance, health, relationships etc. Ganesha represents the Supreme intelligence. He can even remove obstacles that have not yet come. Smashing coconuts is a powerful ritual performed on Sankathara Chaturthi day. A coconut represents three elements of a human being. The hard outer shell stands for the physical composition of the human body. The white fruit inside represents human’s psychological element and the coconut water signifies the nectar of spiritual purity. When you smash the coconut, the negative energy creating obstacles also get destroyed. Clay Ganesha: Dissolve your karmas causing obstacles On the day of Ganesha Chaturthi, vast numbers of clay statues of the lord are made. These statues have the ability to absorb your negative karma into the clay medium. After the rituals when these clay statues are immersed in the water bodies, the karma also gets dissolved along with the clay.

Ganesha – The Lord of Beginnings

The blessings of Lord Ganesha are sought at the start of any activity, be it a journey, new business, even before going for an examination. This is done to invoke His energies that will provide us with the strength and skills to surmount our difficulties and achieve success in our endeavors. Read our related articles Ganesha: The Lord of Success and the Destroyer