Ganesh Chaturthi

Ganesh Chaturthi

The Hindu holiday Ganesh Chaturthi is one of India’s biggest festivals, celebrating Lord Ganesha as the god of wisdom, prosperity, and fortune. It usually begins in early September. Hindus visit the temple early in the morning and leave offerings of Ganesha’s favourite foods, seeking blessings for their families, and install a small clay statue of Ganesha in their homes for worship over the next ten days. Public celebrations of the festival are popular in India, with local authorities organising activities like yoga, singing, theatre and performances as well as community services like blood drives and charity donations. The festival celebrations can be a great way for local businesses and new performers to gain recognition. At the end of the ten days, the clay Ganesha are taken to the water in processions and immersed, symbolising his return home.

#MulticulturalBritain

Hindu populations in many cities across the U.K. like London and Liverpool will be celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi together. Southall’s Hindu culture and heritage society began hosting celebrations back in 2005, submerging their Ganesha idol in the river Thames at Putney Pier. The celebrations of a Gujarati group in Southend-On-Sea have attracted close to 18,000 attendees in the past – Ganesh Chaturthi clearly has a big U.K. audience!