It is that time of the year again. Ganesha Chaturthi, the festival where we celebrate the elephant god of wisdom. All of us love to celebrate this one festival with much gusto. Those huge pandals, the whole community getting together and 9 days of non-stop celebration is something we all look forward to. At the end of these days we take out the idol of Ganapathi on a grand procession around the city before the final nimarjan, all the while chanting, "Ganapathi Bappa Morya"! Do you know how this chant came into being?
There are several explanations as to how this chant came into being. The most popular one is that, the 'Morya' in the chant refers to Morya Gosavi, a famous Marathi saint who was an ardent devotee of lord Ganesha. It is said that Ganesha, pleased with Morya's devotion, appeared in his dreams and granted him a boon. Morya refused any material wealth and asked that his name be forever attached with the lord himself. This is said to signify the inseparable bond between God and devotee.
There is another completely plausible explanation as well. If you remember well, the actual chant is
"Ganapathi Bappa Morya, Putacchya Varsha Loukarya"
This chant is in Marathi. Literally translated, this means 'O Lord Ganapathi, our father, go ahead. Please come back again the next year'. Additionally, Morya is said to be the literal amalgamation of two Marathi words, 'Mhor' and 'Ya' which translates to come forward and bless us with wisdom. It is unclear which is the actual explanation but be sure to chant "Ganapathi Bappa Morya" with Gusto in the procession!
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