What were Ganesha's teachings?

Answer 1

Ganesha teaches us through his life experiences how to be humble, caring and giving. Ganesha has a mouse as his friend. This teaches us how to not discriminate because of size and to value others without judging them. The mouse is also interpreted as our ego. One who has controlled the ego has Ganesha consciousness or God-consciousnesswide. Ganesha's wide ears are to convey that one should listen and understand what life teaches us. His large head is to convey that one should acquire enough knowledge or wisdom that he is capable of. Ganesha's big stomach represents that one should absorb all the experiences that he has undergone.

Lord Ganesha is the God of the evolutionary, creative energy. This energy is coiled up like a snake when dormant, as shown by the snake around Lord Ganesha's belly.

When activated, this energy is said to result in an expansion of consciousness and the enlightenment of man. The snake around Lord Ganesha's belly reminds us that we have to awaken this energy to reach the state of expanded consciousness. The snake around the belly also shows that everything in nature (the pot-belly) is supported by energy.

Ganesha's trunk is shown to be curled and takes the form of the holy Hindu symbol, OM. The trunk of an elephant has the unique capacity of performing both gross and subtle activities. A trunk can uproot a tree. It can pick up a needle from the ground. Likewise, the human mind must be strong enough to face the ups and downs of the external world and yet delicate enough to explore the subtle realms of the inner world. The trunk hangs between the two tusks signifying discrimination between the worldly and spirituality. Ganesha, beyond all dualities, is attached to neither.

The two tusks denote the two aspects of the human personality, wisdom and emotion. The right tusk represents wisdom and the left tusk represents emotion. Ganesha's right tusk is broken. This broken tusk is symbolic of knowledge, as it is with this tusk that he wrote the Hindu epic, Mahabharata. The broken represents the fact that we should not be trapped between pairs of opposites like pleasures and pains but that we should make conscious efforts to break its grip on us. Ganesha uses the broken tusk as a writing instrument. This shows that one who see's past the pair of opposites becomes creative. Our right side represents Shiva (spiritual) and the left is Shakti (material). The broken right tusk indicates that one must break-off the ego for spiritual fulfilment.

Lord Ganesha has four arms. The four arms represent the four inner equipment of the subtle body; mind, intellect, ego and conditioned consciousness. Lord Ganesha represents the pure consciousness which enables these four equipment to function in us. In one hand he holds an axe. The axe symbolizes the destruction of all desires and attachments. The other hand is shown in a blessing pose, which signifies that Ganesha always blesses his devotees. In the third hand he holds a rice ball. This represents the joyous rewards of spiritual seeking. A seeker gains joy of satisfaction as he progresses on the path of spiritual evolution. This Ladoo is a sweet cake. The Ladoo consists of an outer flour portion and an inner sweet portion. The inner sweet portion represents the supreme. The message is that man must dive within himself and transcend the outer, in order to find the inner treasure. In the fourth hand he holds a lotus. The lotus represents the supreme goal of human evolution. By holding the lotus in his hand, he draws the attention of all seekers to that supreme state that each one of them can aspire for and reach through proper spiritual practices.

Lord Ganesha sits with one leg folded up and the other leg resting on the ground. Ganesa's posture indicates that one of his tasks is to deal with the world while the other is ever-rooted in single pointed concentration upon the Supreme Reality.

Ganesha is usually portrayed wearing red and yellow clothes. Yellow symbolizes purity, peace and truthfulness. Red symbolizes the activity in the world. These are the qualities of a perfect person who performs all the duties in the world, with purity, peace and truthfulness.