GSB Ganpati
Gaud Saraswat Brahmin community organises a Ganpati at King's Circle and Ram Mandir, Wadala. Its a close knit community which has business people and educated people. I go for darshan to both the places. Am sharing about the GSB Sewa Mandal, King's Circle/ Sion.The festival is celebrated with lot of Puja, Seva and Archana. People assiting take five to seven days leave to be at the venue/ Pandal full time. The food is cooked there all meals for the community. The Gan Hom is the Ganesh Yajna which happens during the day and all people who register for it can participate with their spouse . The Tula -Bhaar is a daan, one does when a mannat is accomplished. Mannat is a wish asked from the Lord. There are huge weighing scales at the Pandal facing the Ganpati. A person can donate coconuts, bananas or grains worth his weight. He/she sits on one side of the scale and they fill the other side with the donation of your choice. Equal to your weight , the stuff is donated and used by the GSB Seva mandal for the devotees. The huge place is clean. Since there is live cooking and all the community devotees spend the full day at the Pandal, there is provision for them to sit, eat, cook, make floral malas, make prasad, pack the different prasad packets, manage the donations pouring in, manage the different Puja rituals. The entire Vedic way is followed here including pure vegetarian food. Other than the Security arrangements, nothing is outsourced. No loud music, no noise, just prayers and bliss.
The idol is adorned with a lot of Gold but there is no gun totting security guards anywhere. The guards are there just to ensure the crowds who come for Darshan, move in a line. Prasad is given to all devotees, I mean, all the people who walk in for Darshan. At 4 am, when there were hardly any crowds, we each got a prasad of a bowl of khoi with gur and dry fruits. It was delicious even at that hour. The donations are all taken on the computer and receipts are given. Every transaction is above board. This year someone has donated Gold hands for the Ganesha worth two kgs. Only the priests are near the idol. The assisting devotees all have an orange south cotton towel with green woven border. They drape themselves with it or wear or like an apron.
The Visarjan is on the fifth day of Ganpati. The idol is put on a cart and is pulled by ropes by devotees. No loud chants and no music. Two devotees were carrying the traditional bells which consisted of a brass Thali and a wooden gong. The Visarjan happens with a lot of grace and dignity. People walk ahead of the idol. The ropes keep all the devotees safe and is pulled by the devotees. The Lord Ganpati moves in a suave fashion with a lot of élan. People come from far just to do darshan of the Lord and walk with the Lord. All this sounds like a whole lot of information. I am trying to write in a dispassionate manner. I am feeling anything but that. I experienced travelling and being with the GSB Ganpati for full ninety minutes from Tilak Bridge to Shiv Sena Bhawan. It was a transformational experience. It has nothing to do with religion or idol worship. This was all about the energy around. All peace and calm and so nurturing. Looking at the Divine eyes was breathtaking. I remember on a visit to Tirupati temple, the security in-charge telling me to keep my eyes open as I closed my eyes to pray. He said you just get a glimpse of Lord Venkateshwara, so look at Him. People gathered all over Dadar from 10pm waiting for the Ganpati to arrive. No one was getting impatient as the procession inched its way through all the traffic and crowds. At one point, the cart carrying the Idol could not move ahead, because the silver throne was getting stuck on the tree branch. In Mumbai, the trees are pruned after the first rains to prevent them from damaging the cars and people walking. During Ganpati, the monsoons are over and the trees have grown back. The trees are pruned to make way for large idols. Idols usually go in open trucks for immersion to the sea. The priests had a small sickle to prune a wayward branch. In this case, the branch was adamant. All the devotees did was pulled the cart back and realigned the cart. The process took half an hour because of the slope of the road, angle of the tree, weight of the idol and the incoming traffic. It was managed so beautifully by the devotees. We were fortunate to get to do Darshan for that much longer. The Ganpati knew his devotees will take care and do the needful to move the procession ahead. I wish even we could trust Him like that.
A friend gave lot of inputs on GSB. That how Shiv Sena serves Vada Pav to devotees at radar. People give water and food throughout the 12 hour journey of Ganpati. The 'Bhaiyya' community as North Indians are referred to give Sukha Bhel without onions. The Sindhi colony gives hot tea and bread butter at 4am. The Parsi colony serves water and biscuits at 5 am. What is Ganpati without food and sweets? The men and women in orange gamchhas keep walking peacefully oblivious to the visarjan chaos around. Ganesh Arti happens at frequent intervals by devotees. The Kapur, the marshal, the diya all move in the cart along with 10 priests in red/ orange robes. The extra long floral malas/ garlands are offered to Ganesha. The same are cut into pieces are flowers are given to all the passerbys. The gold is removed post the final Arti and the Bank van is there to take it away. The Lord leaves it all behind for us. The Modaks, the gold, the joy and the festivities.
Ganpati Bappa Morya
The idol is adorned with a lot of Gold but there is no gun totting security guards anywhere. The guards are there just to ensure the crowds who come for Darshan, move in a line. Prasad is given to all devotees, I mean, all the people who walk in for Darshan. At 4 am, when there were hardly any crowds, we each got a prasad of a bowl of khoi with gur and dry fruits. It was delicious even at that hour. The donations are all taken on the computer and receipts are given. Every transaction is above board. This year someone has donated Gold hands for the Ganesha worth two kgs. Only the priests are near the idol. The assisting devotees all have an orange south cotton towel with green woven border. They drape themselves with it or wear or like an apron.
The Visarjan is on the fifth day of Ganpati. The idol is put on a cart and is pulled by ropes by devotees. No loud chants and no music. Two devotees were carrying the traditional bells which consisted of a brass Thali and a wooden gong. The Visarjan happens with a lot of grace and dignity. People walk ahead of the idol. The ropes keep all the devotees safe and is pulled by the devotees. The Lord Ganpati moves in a suave fashion with a lot of élan. People come from far just to do darshan of the Lord and walk with the Lord. All this sounds like a whole lot of information. I am trying to write in a dispassionate manner. I am feeling anything but that. I experienced travelling and being with the GSB Ganpati for full ninety minutes from Tilak Bridge to Shiv Sena Bhawan. It was a transformational experience. It has nothing to do with religion or idol worship. This was all about the energy around. All peace and calm and so nurturing. Looking at the Divine eyes was breathtaking. I remember on a visit to Tirupati temple, the security in-charge telling me to keep my eyes open as I closed my eyes to pray. He said you just get a glimpse of Lord Venkateshwara, so look at Him. People gathered all over Dadar from 10pm waiting for the Ganpati to arrive. No one was getting impatient as the procession inched its way through all the traffic and crowds. At one point, the cart carrying the Idol could not move ahead, because the silver throne was getting stuck on the tree branch. In Mumbai, the trees are pruned after the first rains to prevent them from damaging the cars and people walking. During Ganpati, the monsoons are over and the trees have grown back. The trees are pruned to make way for large idols. Idols usually go in open trucks for immersion to the sea. The priests had a small sickle to prune a wayward branch. In this case, the branch was adamant. All the devotees did was pulled the cart back and realigned the cart. The process took half an hour because of the slope of the road, angle of the tree, weight of the idol and the incoming traffic. It was managed so beautifully by the devotees. We were fortunate to get to do Darshan for that much longer. The Ganpati knew his devotees will take care and do the needful to move the procession ahead. I wish even we could trust Him like that.
A friend gave lot of inputs on GSB. That how Shiv Sena serves Vada Pav to devotees at radar. People give water and food throughout the 12 hour journey of Ganpati. The 'Bhaiyya' community as North Indians are referred to give Sukha Bhel without onions. The Sindhi colony gives hot tea and bread butter at 4am. The Parsi colony serves water and biscuits at 5 am. What is Ganpati without food and sweets? The men and women in orange gamchhas keep walking peacefully oblivious to the visarjan chaos around. Ganesh Arti happens at frequent intervals by devotees. The Kapur, the marshal, the diya all move in the cart along with 10 priests in red/ orange robes. The extra long floral malas/ garlands are offered to Ganesha. The same are cut into pieces are flowers are given to all the passerbys. The gold is removed post the final Arti and the Bank van is there to take it away. The Lord leaves it all behind for us. The Modaks, the gold, the joy and the festivities.
Ganpati Bappa Morya
That’s some information there…let the joy continue…
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