Ganesha (clay) Idol @ Home

Ganesha is a celebrated idol in India and Vinayakar Chaturthi is one of the grand festivals celebrated here on the belief of Ganesha’s Birthday. Despite being an atheist, Ganesha Idols are my favorites from childhood and I had been an ardent of Ganesha when I wasn't conscious about my belief, but I still like the idols of Ganesha that comes out in various and unique shapes. I know a friend in Flickr who has been a passionate collector of Ganesha idols and every year he used to arrange Golu (display of dolls) from the huge collection of Ganesha idols he had been collecting for years. Take a look at his Golu set (here) to wonder how huge is collection of Ganesha idols.

Above (and beneath) is the picture of a clay Ganesha idol we bought for the festival at home. Parents purchased the idol a day before to the festival and placed under the Puja cupboard. We made vada, sweet pongal and chickpeas along with usual meals, and I spent most of the day watching special movies on television.

Mom has decided to dissolve the clay idol into a bucket or tub water tomorrow, which we have been practicing for past half a decade, instead dropping the idol at sea or river. The dissolved clay water is later watered to the plants. It is also believed the idol must be immersed at the end of the day of worship or three days later from then.