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Newburgh Hindu temple to install deity this weekend

Source: The Courier Press

Tri-State Hindu Temple in Newburgh will have a three-day worship program this weekend to celebrate the installation of a deity.

Over the weekend, the temple will install a five-foot statue of Ganesha in a shrine located inside the temple. Ganesha, also known as Ganesh, is an elephant-faced being who is one of Hinduism’s most well-known representations of God. Believers revere Ganesha for his wisdom, and he is also considered the remover of obstacles.

The program begins Friday and runs through Sunday. The public is invited to attend from 4-6 p.m. Sunday.

The temple is located at 6044 Vann Road.

For details, visit www.tristatehindutemple.org.

—Susan Orr

Shri Mahaganapati, Ranjangaon

Fifty kilometers from Pune, in tranquil Ranjangaon , lies the last Ashtavinayak, Shri Mahaganapati. The architectural style of the old temple’s pillars suggests that this was a 9th century structure; the present temple was built in 1768.

Mahaganapati is the most awe-inspiring representation of Ganesha. Locals have it that an earlier idol named Mahotkat, with 10 trunks and 20 hands, lies buried beneath the temple. The present Ganesha sits on a lotus, flanked by his consorts, Riddhi and Siddhi.

Mahaganapati manifested here in response to Shiva’s plea for help in killing the demon Tripurasura. Tripurasura, once a staunch Ganesha worshipper, was granted a boon of invincibility by the god, with a rider that none but Shiva the Destroyer could kill him. As demons are wont , power went to Tripurasura’s head and he ravaged the heavens and earth. Shiva too was helpless, until he invoked Ganesha who taught him how to vanquish Tripurasura.

With mind and soul steeped in Ganesha lore, the Ashtavinayak pilgrim must finally make his way back to the Mayureshwar temple in Moregaon, where his journey began.  In seeking the Lord, will he discover both the Ganesha and the demons within?

Shri Vighneshwar Temple, Ozhar

How often have we been thwarted in  an enterprise by an unforeseen obstacle?  Vighna, in Sanskrit, is the term for such unfortunate occurrences. In order to block King Abhinandan's ambitions of conquering the heavens, the god Indra brought into existence, the demonic Vighnasura, creator of obstacles. Vighnasura  successfully stopped Abhinandan in his tracks, but then proceeded to spread havoc on earth. The gods prayed to Ganesha for deliverance. In the fight that ensued, Vighnasura surrendered to Ganesha, pleading for mercy. The Lord agreed to spare his life, on the condition that he would never appear where Ganesha was worshipped. Vighnasura agreed, with another request, that Ganesha incorporate the demon’s name with his own.  Thus, Vighneswara, or "Conqueror of Obstacles".

Ozhar, the site of this temple, is a small town located off the Pune-Nashik highway. The temple stands on the banks of the River Kukdi and possibly dates back to 1785 AD.  A high stone wall protects the shrine; from here, it is possible to view the Lenyadri Mountain, the site of the Girijatmaj Temple.

Shri Girijatmaj Temple, Lenyadri

"Girija" is another name for Parvati, mother of Ganesha, and "atmaj" means son. In the cave where this temple exists, a lonely Parvati undertook a long, severe penance to fulfill her desire for a child.  Her wish was granted when, on the fourth day of Bhadrapad (August-September), Parvati wiped dirt off her body and with it, created an idol into which she invoked Ganesha.

Lenyadri Mountain, some distance from the town of Narayangaon (Maharashtra, North India), has a clutch of Buddhist caves, the eighth of which is the Girijatmaj temple. The temple is carved out of a monolithic rock and has no supporting pillars. This Ashtavinayak shrine does not have an idol; rather the god is a fresco carved on rock with somewhat indistinguishable features. Unlike the practice in most temples, worshippers can enter right into the sanctum sanctorum and offer prayers. The temple is reached by climbing 307 steps up the mountain. Aged or infirm pilgrims can reach the top by palanquin.

Chintamani Temple, Theur

The Chintamani is a stone imbued with the power to realize any wish made by its owner. Once the sage Kapil, who had the Chintamani, invited a prince, Prince Guna, to his forest home and entertained him lavishly with the help of the stone. But the aggressive Guna, impressed with its powers, snatched it forcibly from Kapil. The great sage prayed for help to Ganesha, who fought Guna and successfully retrieved the stone. Kapil though, no longer desired it and placed it around Ganesha’s neck in gratitude, giving Ganesha the name Chintamani Vinayak.

Approximately 22 km from Pune, the temple is located close to where the Mula, Mutha and Bhima rivers meet. A lake surrounding it on three sides is called Kadambateertha, after the Kadamb tree beneath which Ganesha battled the greedy Guna.

Chinta means worry and anxiety. It is believed that those who seek peace of mind should worship Chintamani Vinayak for relief from their woes.

Varadavinayak Temple, Mahad

Grutsamad, a Vedic scholar, grew up believing he was the son of Sage Vachaknavi and Mukunda. Little did he know that once, his mother had been tricked into an illicit relationship by the god Indra, and that he was the result of their union. The sage Atri informed Grutsamad that not being a true Brahmin, he was ineligible to participate in their philosophical debates. Grutsamad confronted his mother and cursed her, transforming her into a thorny, fruit-bearing tree. He then undertook a rigorous penance in Pushpak forest, praying to Ganesha to live in the forest and also grant him the status of a Brahmin. Vinayaka, the one who grants all wishes, agreed to both requests and took up residence at the Varadavinayak Temple consecrated by Grutsamad.

About 80 km from Mumbai, Varadavinayaka Temple has elephant statues facing four directions. A new marble statue has been installed here, but devotees can also worship the older vermilion-coated idol outside the sanctum.

Ballaleshwar Temple, Pali

Ballal, a child, was an ardent devotee of Ganesha. His father, unable to accept his son's extreme piety, once beat up the boy who was deep in prayer in the forest, and left him tied to a tree. Ganesha heard his devotee's pleas for help and appearing in the guise of a Brahmin, released him from his bonds. He granted Ballal a wish; all that the boy wanted was for his beloved Ganesha to take up residence right there. The Ganesha-shaped stone idol found at this spot is thus named Ballaleshwar Vinayaka – the only temple to be known by a devotee's name.

Located in picturesque Pali, off the Mumbai-Pune highway, Ballaleshwar has two lakes close by. On the days of the equinoxes, the sun’s rays fall precisely upon the idol.

Ballaleshwar's navel and eyes are diamond-studded; his squat form is dressed in a Brahmin’s clothes. It is believed that impressions of Ganesha’s fingers appear on the sacred offerings prepared for festivals.

Siddhivinayak Temple, Siddhatek

 Atop a hillock in the tiny village of Siddhatek, off the Pune-Solapur highway, sits Siddhivinayak. The power of Siddhi (which loosely translates from Sanskrit as “accomplishment” or “perfection” ) is Ganesha’s domain. Vishnu, who unsuccessfully battled the demons Madhu and Kaitabh for 5000 years, was reminded of this by Brahma, who advised Vishnu to propitiate Ganesha if he wished to fulfill his purpose. Upon invoking the elephant-god, Vishnu is said to have attained siddhi on the Siddhatek hill and vanquished the baddies.

While most Ganesha idols have left-turning trunks, the Siddhivinayak idol, with its right-facing trunk is rare and therefore, special. Such idols require rigorously implemented rules of worship. This arises from the Hindu school of thought in which invisible “channels” of energy govern our well-being. While the left side of our bodies symbolizes the moon, femininity, coolness and relaxation, the channel on our right side corresponds with the sun, masculinity, aggression and energy. A Ganesha with a right-facing trunk is extraordinarily powerful, to be worshipped with care and restraint, in much the same way that one would handle fire!

Shree Mayureshwar Temple, Moregaon

This 14th century temple, about 60 km from Pune, takes its name from the legend attached to it.

Ganesha was once approached for help by the gods, who were being terrorized by Sindhu, a power drunk demon prince. The sun god had granted a boon to Sindhu in the form of nectar which would give him immortality as long as it remained near his navel. Mounted on a mayur or peacock, Ganesha waged war on Sindhu, removed the nectar and decapitated him. His head fell upon the village now known as Moregaon.

The black stone temple is situated in the heart of the village, which too, fans out into a peacock shape! From a distance, the temple’s four minarets give the impression of a mosque, perhaps a ploy to keep away Mughal attacks. The vermilion-coated idol is flanked by those of Ganesha’s consorts Siddhi (Capability) and Buddhi(Intellect). A cobra head is poised gracefully over Ganesha.
 

Above the temple entrance  is inscribed a Sanskrit verse, describing this shrine as Bhuswanand, a place of limitless bliss, equivalent to the abode of the gods.

The Ashtavinayak Pilgrimage

For the ardent devotee of Ganesha, there can be no greater means of attaining spiritual bliss than undertaking the Ashtavinayak pilgrimage. Ashta in Sanskrit means “eight”; the term Ashtavinayak refers to the eight Ganesha temples around Pune, in India’s western state of Maharashtra. What’s special about these eight shrines? None of the idols worshipped in them are man-made. Rather, they are monolithic chunks of stone, naturally bearing Ganesha’s distinctive, elephantine features and hence termed as swayambh or “self-created”.

Let’s begin our pilgrimage here, visiting one Ashtavinayak temple every week in their prescribed sequence.