Why is Ganesha immersed in water?: Ganesh devotees, you devotedly followed the Scriptures while serving Shri Ganesh during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival. Now, instead of immersing the Ganesh idol, are you going to give it to atheists who want cheap publicity by saying they want to protect the environment?
Why is Ganesha immersed in water?
Do not fall for the lies of people who are against Hinduism. This is a very bad thing to do. Follow the scriptures and make the Ganesh idol out of clay. This will not only help the environment but also earn you the blessings of Shri Ganesh for following the right path.
Why should the Ganesh and Nirmalya idols be put in water that is moving?
According to the study of spirituality, large amounts of Chaitanya (Divine Consciousness) are drawn to the Idol of Shri Ganapati when it is worshipped in a very strict way during the Ganesh Chaturthi event. Soaking the idol in moving water makes Chaitanya reach far and wide, and the moving water helps many people. Also, this water disappears, which makes the air sattvic and spreads through it. Since Chaitanya is also in Nirmalya, it should be put in running water to spread it all over the world.
What do we do if we don’t have water for Ganesh Visarjan?
Rivers and tiny lakes dry up in many places because it doesn’t rain enough. Because of this, it might be hard to put a Ganesh idol in water that is floating. When things are bad, religious acts that follow the Principles of Spirituality are still by the Word of God. So, if you live in an area that is suffering from drought, try the following options to immerse Ganesh idols.
Using a small Idol for ritualistic worship
A. It is normal to worship a big idol, but during a drought, it is better to worship a small idol that is only 6 to 7 inches tall. This will make the soaking process easier.
B. After performing Uttarpuja (Ritualistic worship before immersion), put the idol in a container with water and place it near a tulsi (Holy basil) plant outside the house or in the garden. If you live in a city apartment, do the same thing at home.
After all the clay has been broken down in the water, give that water to sattvik trees like Apta (Mountain Ebony), Vad (Banyan), Pimpal (Bo), and others, making sure they don’t step on it.
Put bigger idols in the water later
If a big idol for worship is chosen, it should be kept in a sattvic place in the home after Uttarpuja, near the temple. There is no need to worship it religiously. It can be kept in a box so that dust doesn’t build up on it. In the future, when there is enough moving water, immersion can be done in that water. As per the code of conduct set by Dharma for bad times, the immersion process explained above is only for drought conditions.
How come immersing a Ganesh idol shouldn’t be done in an artificial tank?
Some municipal corporations build fake water tanks in different places so that the environment doesn’t get dirty when Ganesh idols are immersed. It’s not right to put Ganesh idols in these kinds of tanks for the reasons below:
- According to spiritual science, putting a holy idol in moving water helps the idol’s divine consciousness spread far and wide through the water. Since water in a tank doesn’t move, followers don’t get this spiritual benefit.
- After putting the Idols in such a tank, workers from the company take them out of the tank before they completely break down and throw them outside the tank. This goes against what the dharma says.
- Idols that are submerged in the tank are moved around in garbage trucks owned by the Corporation, and workers throw them around like trash. Often, these idols are submerged in dirty water that builds up in mines.
- When the immersion process is over, the Corporation lets the water that was charged with the Ganesh Principle from the idols flow into the drain before destroying the fake tank. This is the same thing as putting down Shri Ganesh.
Nirmalya should also be immersed in moving water as part of the traditional worship. Since flowers and leaves are made of biological matter, there is no way that they could pollute water.
Don’t fall for fake “eco-friendly” Ganesh idols.
Paper mache is used to make “eco-friendly” Ganesh idols these days. This is not only against the Word of God, but it is also bad for the earth because paper mache takes oxygen from water and turns it into methane, a poisonous gas. Sculpting idols out of clay, as Scripture says to do, is very good for the earth.
Problems with getting idols for prayer during Shri Ganesh Chaturthi that were based on the scriptures and how to solve them
- It says in the scriptures that mud clay statues of Shri Ganesh should be put up. It costs a lot for these clay idols.
The money spent on the idol is very small compared to the other things that every family buys during Ganesh Chaturthi, like modern decorations, clothes for the family, and so on. The main reason a family worships a Shri Ganesh idol is to learn the Ganesh Principle from it. An idol made of plaster of Paris can’t give you this benefit. You should not buy a plaster of paris idol just because it is cheaper. Instead, you should buy a smaller clay idol. Buying a plaster of paris idol is against the Dharma.
- Every year, Ganesh idols of a different vague shape are put up in some homes just to make the kids happy. The parents are confused because they feel like they should be giving their kids what they want.
An Idol isn’t a toy that you can change every year. People worship a Ganesh idol at home to feel more spiritual and dedicated, to take in Divine Consciousness and other things. There should never be any agreement with the rules set out in dharma. Take advantage of this chance to teach the children about Dharma instead.
