Ganesha’s Gripe

Ganesha was lying on his bed with a splitting headache. He is none other than our beloved Elephant God, remover of all obstacles. The ten days of festivities were over and like every year, this time too his headache had started. Mother Parvathi is by his side, applying Amrutanjan on his head and massaging his head softly. This seemed to make him feel a lot better.

“Are you feeling better now?” she asks. “Aaaahhh!” he grumbles. “I don’t think I can every get rid of this pain. It’s unbearable”.

“Take it easy my son”, mom says. “The Amrutanjan and the massage should make you feel better.” She continues with the massage.

“Shall I give you a Vicks Action 500 or something?” she asked. “The ad shows that it really works well.”

“Mom, please!!!” Ganesha pleaded and continued to grunt, twist, and turn on the bed uncomfortably.

“What is it, son? You look very disturbed and tired. What’s wrong? Maybe I can help.” Parvati asked.

Ganesha slowly opened his eyes and said “It’s the noise that has made me crazy. The noise from the drums and trumpets is still blowing in my ears. And then the people make such an unwanted noise when they carry me into the pandals. And then the crackers really get on my nerves. Goodness, they are all so loud. And if that was not enough, they kept huge speakers right next to me, turned on the volume and played jarring songs. And to top it all, people were also simultaneously celebrating the victory of the twenty-twenty world cup cricket. There was noise everywhere. And I am paying the price now for all that now.”

He closed his eyes again and tried to sleep.

Parvati says “I know you must have gone through hell during these days, but that’s how life is for us. We have to get used to all this. People down there will do anything to please us. They do not realize that we really do not need all that stuff. A silent and sincere prayer is all that we require, but they think otherwise. They don’t realize that in the process of pleasing us through all this clatter, they are only disturbing their neighbors”

Ganesha was listening to her in silence. “Yes Mother. What you are saying is right. Did you see after all this hullabaloo the way my idols were dumped in the rivers and sea? I mean they blocked roads and streets just to dump me - now isn’t that weird? And then they all shout ‘Ganapati Bappa Morya’ umpteen numbers of times, as if I was hard of hearing. I felt like saying it’s not ‘Morya’, but ‘Shor ya’ for all that uproar”.

Mother Parvati continued with the massage. “I am glad that is all over for now. Your dad should be home any time now. Let me go now and get ready to greet him. You sleep tight and get some sleep now. You will feel better. You have to attend to your devotees later.”

“Sure Mother”, Ganesha told her and went back to sleep muttering “Oh!! What a God’s life this is”.