Back again is the festive season of Ganesh Chaturthi. A much awaited carnival in India which is observed for eleven days with immense enthusiasm in the western region of the nation.

Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated as a tribute to Lord Ganesh (The Elephant God) with much fun and frolic for eleven days. People bring home their beloved Ganesh in the form of idols. Massive mandaps (tent-forms) are setup and Lord Ganesh is worshipped and praised by the devotees while we hear chants of Ganpati Bappa Morya.

One of the traditions followed with this festival is visiting friends and neighbors to seek blessings from the lord and ask for his love and forgiveness. Lord  Ganesh is the son of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati and is widely worshipped as the God of Wisdom and the Remover of Obstacles.

While I look forward to this festival every year, I love to visit the various mandaps setup at street corners  and residential complexes and friends and neighbors.

This year too I visited two of my friends.

I was mesmerized with the simplicity and beauty of the cute idols of  the Lord placed in their homes. They seemed so real to me and radiated such warmth that was impossible to believe them to be just idols.
Whoever said you cannot find God? I felt him sitting there right in front of me. Smiling at me. Promising me well-being and success.

It was like a moment of truth and I suddenly had this feeling that he was waiting to grant whatever my heart wished for.  It was a moment of pure joy.

I prayed for my friends, their families, and all those who put their faith in Lord. May Lord Ganesh always bless us all with his divine presence in our lives. Asking Lord to grant immense wealth in the form of Wisdom and Love to all my blog-mates and friends. Happy Ganesh Chaturthi.

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Asha Seth