Many people love to remember their childhood since those days are golden days, we will never ever want to forget them. Whenever I visit my native place, I tend to remember one or the other that may be the school, places I used to play, temples I visited, or anything. This time I went to my native place Yellapur, which is a Taluk center on Karwar-Hubli highway in North Canara district. I remember the days when we all three children (myself, sister, and younger brother) used to come to see “Ganesha”. After around 15 years, again I got a chance to celebrate this in my native place. On Saturday evening I went to see “Ganesha”. During this celebration some big Ganesha idols, more than 20-feet height, will be kept in public places and worshipped. People celebrate Ganesh chaturthi with keeping a ganesh idol at home and worship him with different kinds of dishes such as “chakkuli, kadubu (karjikaayi), modaka, and pancha kajjaya. All these are offered to elephant-headed god Ganesh first and then eaten as his prasad.
Ganesh is the son of Lord Shiva and Parvati. According to Indian mythology, he got elephant’s head because Lord Shiva cut his head and later on Parvati prayed him to make her child alive. He ordered his servants to get any animal’s head which is sleeping put its head to North and they got elephant’s head and Ganesh became elephant-headed god. Lord Shiva blessed his beloved son with a boon of becoming a god who will receive “Prathama Pooja”. Hence in all festivals, temples, everywhere Ganesh is worshipped first.
This is one of the biggest festivals celebrated across India and especially in Karnataka and Maharashtra, “Ganesh Chaturthi” is a very much grand celebration. In most of the cities, big Idols of Ganesh are kept in public places and worshipped together for 3 or 9 days.
Above picture is of Ganesh kept in Yellapur K.S.R.T.C. Bus Stand. They have been keeping Ganesh idol since my childhood and most of the people who come to city to see Ganesh will definitely visit Bus stand also.
Above one is the picture of Ganesh kept near police quarters, yellapur. This one is comparatively small one and was not there earlier. I also visited “Prasanna Ganapathi” temple on the festival day. Ganesh was decorated with flowers and was looking beautiful.
In Yellapur, some places such as Tilak chowka, Vijaya stores, Bus Stand, police station, forest department office little bigger Ganesh Idols are kept and worshipped. Below is the picture of Ganesh kept at Devi Gaddige.
Yellapur is a small town surrounded by hills and forest. Now a days, lot of people migrate to cities such as Hubli, Mangalore, Bangalore, and several other cities for employment. In villages around this city people grow areca nut, coconut, and rice. I am very much proud to tell that I grew up in this place.
Ah! your post made me recall my childhood days as well. We too used to go in groups to neighboring homes to visit 108 ganesha’s on chaturti asking ‘Nimmaneli Ganesha koodsideera?’ Nostalgic days!
loooovely write up. i just look back the days i spent in yellapur, the paradise on earth- though ‘am not a kannadiga, just visited yellapur ‘coz my sister got married and settled there – lovely festival days especially Ganesh chaturthi & marikammba jathra days -simply fentabules days… thanks to the writer making me look back the golden days of my life i spent in yellapur – taking oath to visit yellapur whenever i vist India. (now living in Dubai) my Hi to my yellpur friends – Srirsh / girish / tailor viju / naresh bhatt / anil / maruthi / sameer / venkatesh / krishna nair / bovi / patil / vinayak ……and to all others…