Ganesh Chaturthi History

Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated by Hindus all over India, as the birthday of the god of wisdom, knowledge and prosperity, Lord Ganesha. The celebrations continue from five to ten days, depending upon family traditions.

It is believed that praying to Lord Ganesha leads to fulfilment of wishes and desires. His blessing removes all the obstacles from life. Although it is not known when this festival was first celebrated, but it is alleged to have been celebrated in Pune initially. Celebrations were started during the reign of Chhatrapati Shivaji to promote nationalism and give a feeling of unity. 

Though the festival is being celebrated since times immemorial, the present kind of celebrations of Ganesha Chaturthi came in fashion in 1893, Lokmanya Tilak, an Indian freedom fighter and social reformer reshaped the annual Ganesh festival from a private family celebration into a community event. The day was conceived to be the National Festival in order to bridge the gap between the Brahmins and the non-Brahmins in the society. Tilak chose this festival for this purpose because Lord Ganesh was considered to be the ' God of Everyman'. It then served as a meeting ground for people of all community and religion on a public platform. Since then the festival has served its cause of existence. Even now people irrespective of caste and community barriers celebrate this festival with great joy.