How Ganesha Broke His Tusk
Karan and Arjun were both sleepy as
it was their
bedtime. However, they were too excited to hear another story to even
think
about going to bed. The boys rested their heads on their grandma’s lap
and
looked up at her with their big brown eyes.
As she stroked their heads
she said,
“Have you boys ever noticed that when you look at a statue or picture
of
Ganesha, he has one broken tusk?”
The boys took a moment to think and
Karan
said, “No, I never even noticed that!”
The grandma smiled and said, “Well,
let me tell
you how Ganesha broke his tusk.”
When Ganesha was a young boy, he
went on a
journey to visit the great sage Kaudinya. Kaudinya was very skilled and
knowledgeable in the art of weaponry and fighting. Ganesha was now
of age
where he was ready to learn how to battle. He stayed with sage Kaudinya
for one
year, learning all kinds of skills and gaining valuable knowledge. 
The time had come for Ganesha to
return back
home, as his days with Kaudinya had come to an end. While making the
long
journey
back to
As Ganesha laid his head against the
rosewood
tree, he couldn't help but think of his parents. Ganesha was excited
to
return
back home and see his mom and dad. He had missed them so much over the
past
year and could not wait to show his dad Shiva everything he had
learned.
Ganesha's eyes had just begun to close when he heard the noise of
rustling leaves.
Ganesha
immediately stood up and shouted, “Who’s there? Do not hide from me!
Come forth!”
From behind a bush of yellow
blossoms appeared
an elephant-headed demon. His skin was as deep green as the trees in
the forest
and his teeth were sharp fangs. He stood there with his big, black,
scary
eyes staring down at Ganesha like he was ready to eat him.
Ganesha stood there calmly and said, “I am Ganesha, son of the great Lord Shiva and Parvati.”
The demon snarled at Ganesha and
roared, “HAH,
you are the son of Shiva? Then I should have no problem getting rid of
you. You
see, I am the great Gajamukhasura and this forest belongs to me! Either
you will
leave from here or I will make you leave at once!"
Ganesha smiled and simply stated, “I
have just
spent the last year with the great sage Kaudinya who has taught me how
to
battle.
I don’t think you want to fight me, and instead it would be better if
you were
to turn around and leave. I am here only for the night and I will be
gone
before you wake up tomorrow morning.”
Gajamukhasura was
surprised that
Ganesha did not
seem the least bit affected by his stature and appearance. This angered
Gajamukhasura and he screamed, “I have spent my time with the Asura
god,
Shukracharya, who helped me gain unconquerable powers from your father,
the
great Lord Shiva himself.”
Hearing this, Ganesha was slightly
taken aback,
but remained calm in front of this horrible demon. Seeing how calm
Ganesha
remained made Gajamukhasura lash out at Ganesha. However, Ganesha was
too quick
for Gajamukhasura and before he knew it, Ganesha had disappeared.
Now even more angry than before and
slightly
more confused, Gajamukhasura turned around to see Ganesha standing as
quietly
as ever behind him. This time Gajamukhasura’s eyes were burning like
fire and
he ran toward Ganesha with a spear in his hand.
Ganesha knew the time had come to
use everything
he had learned from the sage Kaudinya. Gajamukhasura and Ganesha were
engaged in
an intense battle and the end seemed impossible.
Gajamukhasura was amazed at
Ganesha’s strength.
Even though Ganesha was so young and only half the size of
Gajamukhasura, he was stronger.
Ganesha realized during the battle that Gajamukhasura could not be defeated because of the powers he had gained from Shiva. He needed a way to stop Gajamukhasura as fast as possible; so, using his quick wits Ganesha broke off one of his tusks and threw it at Gajamukhasura. Gajamukhasura shouted in pain and fell to the ground. Ganesha knew he could not kill him so instead Ganesha used the opportunity to turn Gajamukhasura into a mouse.
From then on Ganesha used that mouse
as his vehicle and rode it
anywhere
he went. It is said that Ganesha's mouse can gnaw through anything
therefore making Ganesha the Remover of All Obstacles.
The grandma looked down at the boys
and said,
“So you see, whenever you look at a statue or picture of Ganesha, you
will
always see one broken tusk and a mouse standing beside him.”
Karan and Arjun were extremely
sleepy but they
could not hide the amazement on their faces. Arjun turned to Karan and
said,
“Wow, can you believe how strong and smart Ganesha was?”
Karan replied by
saying, “He’s just
awesome; no
wonder everyone loves him so much!”
“Grandma, you tell the most
wonderful stories.
Please promise to tell us more tomorrow,” said Karan.
“I’m so glad you are enjoying my
stories of
Ganesha. Tomorrow I will tell you how Ganesha banished the moon, but
now it is
time for bed. Remember, tomorrow is Ganesha’s birthday so it’s going to
be a
busy day for us.”
Karan and Arjun both hugged their
grandma and
said goodnight. She gave them both a kiss on their foreheads and said,
“Goodnight Karan! Goodnight Arjun!”
Author's Note: Just as there were
many versions of how Ganesha got his head, there are many different
versions of how Ganesha broke his tusk. One of the most common versions
I came across was that Ganesha broke his tusk while trying to prevent
one of Shiva's disciples, Parashurama, from entering their home. A
fight between the two ensued, and during the battle Parashurama broke
Ganesha's tusk. Another version I read was that while Ganesha was
writing the Mahabharata, his pen broke, and therefore to continue
writing, Ganesha broke off his tusk and used it as his pen. The version
that interested me the most was the fight between Ganesha and
Gajamukhasura. I liked how Ganesha used his tusk to stop Gajamukhasura
and then turned him into a mouse, which became his vehicle. I decided
to make Ganesha learn the art of fighting and weaponry from a sage kind
of like Rama and Lakshmana had learned from Vishwamitra. Also, I made
the battle take place in a forest that he comes upon during his journey
back home just to create a setting. The next story I plan to tell is
how Ganesha banished the moon as well as make it so that the grandma
and
the boys celebrate Ganesha's birthday, Ganesh Chaturthi.
Back to Coverpage
Bibliography: "Myths and legends about Ganesh" - no author, Webiste: Ganesh
Image Information: Ganesha, Web Source: Flickr
Image Information: Statue of Ganesha holding his broken tusk, Web Source: Flickr
Image Information: Ganesha's mouse, Web Source: Sacred Symbols
Image Information: Ganesha riding his mouse, Web Source: Ganesh Guyatri