Vinayaka Chavithi Date 2014: Significance of Sri Vigneswara Swamy(Lord Ganesh) Festival - Vinayaka Chaturthi.

Vinayaka Chaviti is an Indian Festival dedicated to Sri Vigneswara Swamy(Lord Ganesh). Every year the festival is being celebrated on the 4th day of  bright fortnight of the month of Bhadrapada(August/September). This festival is marked as the Birthday of Lord Ganesh."Vinayaka Chaviti", the festival of Lord Ganesh is celebrated all over the world. This festival is called with different names as "Vinayaka Chaturthi", "Ganesh Chaturthi".  

This year 2014, "Vinayaka Chaturthi" festival will be celebrated on August 29, 2014(Friday).

Lord Ganesh is called with many different names. Among them, devotees popularly called the Lord as Vigneshwara(Remover of Obstacles), Vinayaka, Ganapathi(In the name "Ga" means Intellect and "Na" means Wisdom- The Ganapati One who grants "Intellect" and confers "Wisdom").

Significance of Vinayaka Chaturthi:

On this auspicious day, devotees buy idols of Ganesha which are available with different sizes. They are installed Ganesh Idol in their Homes and in the streets and offer special poojas and prayers(Devotees recite Ganesh Dandakam, Vinayaka Vtrata Kalpam) with great devotion. It is believed that Lord Ganesh is a "God of Learning" and hence during this festival day, children keep their educational books at the Ganesh Idol in the home and offer prayers for Good Learning.

This festival is celebrated for a period of  9 to 10 days by installing Gigantic Statues of Vinayaka in the streets. During this period, every day special traditional cultural programs are conducted with great pomp. In the morning and evening prasadam are distributed to the devotees.

During this period all the people especially youth take part in this event. At the end of the festival the Idols of Ganesh are taken in procession along the streets with dancing and singing and immersed into the canal or in river or in the sea which concludes the end of the festival. 

This closing ritual is known as Ganesh Visarjan in Marathi, Ganesha Visarjane in Kannada and Vinayaka Nimarjana or Vinayaka Nimajjanam in Telugu. At individual homes the Visarjan/Nimajjanam is also done on the same day, 1st, 3rd, 5th or 7th day according to their family tradition.