Description

Ganesha is one of the deities best-known and most widely worshiped in the
Hindu pantheon. His image is found throughout India and Nepal. Hindu sects
worship him regardless of affiliations. Devotion to Ganesha is widely
diffused and extends to Jains, Buddhists, and beyond India.
Although he is known for many other attributes, Ganesha’s elephant head
makes him particularly easy to identify. Ganesha is widely revered as
the Remover of Obstacles and more generally as Lord of Beginnings and Lord
of Obstacles, patron of arts and sciences, and the deva of intellect and
wisdom. He is honored at the beginning of rituals and ceremonies and
invoked as Patron of Letters during writing sessions. Several texts relate
mythological anecdotes associated with his birth and exploits and explain
his distinct iconography.