How Ganesha Traveled The World
Karan and Arjun had so much fun celebrating Ganesh
Chaturthi, but they were
exhausted from the long day. Their grandma found them stretched out on
the sofa
watching TV with they eyes slowing shutting.
“Boys, do you want to hear another story or are you two too tired?” asked the grandma.
Karan and Arjun immediately sat up and Arjun said, “No, Grandma, I’m not tired at all.”
“Yeah, me either,” said Karan.
“Well then, alright, let me tell how Ganesh traveled the world in one day.”
The boys’ jaws dropped open and both of them said, “In one day? No way!”
“How come it takes us like two
days
to fly from
The grandma laughed and said, “I’m going to tell you just how.”
One day the gods gave Shiva and Parvati a special fruit. This fruit was like no other because it contained the nectar of supreme knowledge and immortality. Shiva and Parvati had two sons, Ganesha and Kartik, so they couldn't decide which one of their sons to give this fruit to.
Ganesh and Kartik saw just how
special this fruit was and each wanted
the fruit for themselves. Parvati got very
upset and did not understand why they were given only one fruit.
“How can I chose between my two sons? I love them both equally. Why weren't we given two fruits?” said Parvati.
Shiva consoled her as he could not stand to see Parvati in pain. He tried to think of a way he could decide between his two sons. Finally, after thinking long and hard, he said, “Wait, I think I may have a plan that just might work.”
Shiva called out to both of the boys and told them that in order to get the fruit they would each have to part take in a competition. Each boy would have to run three times around the world and whoever came back home first would be the winner.
Ganesha and Kartik looked at each other; both felt uneasy about this competition, but had no choice except to compete if they wanted the special fruit.
Kartik hugged his parents and immediately set off on his beautiful blue-green peacock. Meanwhile, Ganesha started to worry; he wondered how he was going to be able to beat Kartik.
Ganesha thought to himself that there was no way he could win. "Kartik has a big, fast peacock and I have my slow, little mouse. Plus I have this big belly that I have to take everywhere with me which is going to slow me down. There is just no way I can catch up to him now," thought Ganesha.
Ganesha took a moment to think and wisdom helped him to see the right path. Ganesha was happy as he finally understood what he needed to do. He walked over to his parents, who were shocked to see that he hadn’t even left yet. He took three rounds around his parents and smiled at them lovingly showing his deep devotion to them both.
“Son, you have not left yet?” asked Shiva.
“You see, my parents, Shiva and
Parvati, are my whole world and therefore I
need not go further than this.”
Shiva smiled and stood tall with pride as he realized just how smart and devoted Ganesha was. Parvati started to cry and hugged Ganesha tightly.
Shiva presented Ganesha with the fruit and said, “Ganesha, this fruit is rightfully yours. You have made both your mother and me proud with your win.”
Therefore, to this day, Ganesha is seen as a strong symbol of cleverness, which helps to overcome any obstacle one may face in life.
“WOW!” said the boys.
“Ganesha was something else; I just can’t believe it,” said Karan.
Arjun smiled and said, “Thank you so much, Grandma, for teaching us all about Ganesh. He’s just awesome!”
Karan looked at Arjun and they both smiled as if they both had the same thought. They both got up and walked around their grandma.
The grandma was so surprised
but very deeply touched. As she wiped a tear
from her eye, she pulled the boys toward her and gave each a kiss on
their
forehead.
Author's
Note:
This story of how
Ganesha got the fruit had many titles and versions. Some versions said
that
this is how it was decided who was the elder son among Ganesha and
Kartik
because it was not known which son was born first. Others described
this story
as how Ganesha gained wisdom while some said it was how he traveled the
world.
I loved the idea of Ganesha seeing his parents as his world so I chose
to tell
the story this way and gave it the title that I did. I tried to include
the
thoughts of Shiva, Parvati, and Ganesh, which were not emphasized in
the stories
I had read. Another interesting thing I found was that Kartik had many
names.
He is known by Skanda, Kartikeya, and even Murugan in
Back to Coverpage
Bibliography: "Stories about Lord
Ganesh" - no author, Website: Stories
& Myths
Image Information: Ganesha, Web
Source: My
Opera
Image Information: Shiva and Parvati receiving the fruit, Website: For U
Kids
Image Information: Kartik leaving on his peacock, Website: For U
Kids
Image Information: Ganesh receiving the special fruit from Shiva,
Website: For U
Kids