விநாயகரின் 32 வடிவங்கள் - 8 - உச்சிஷ்ட கணபதி .. Uchishta Ganapati

[Vanakkam Subbu]

8. Ucchhishta Ganapati

Ucchhishta Ganapati is called the 'Lord of Blessed Offerings' and is the guardian of culture. 'Shakti' of creativity sits on His laps and His hands carry the veena, a blue lotus, pomegranate, meditation beads, and a stalk of paddy.

 

Blessings of Worshipping Ucchista Ganapati

Ucchista Ganapati is considered a superior aspect of Lord Ganesha. It is firmly believed by his devotees that worshipping this Lord shall help gain his abundant blessings and bestow with success in endeavors, advancement in career, betterment in life and a predominant position in society.

Iconography

The elephant-headed god is described to be reddish in colour in the Mantra-maharnava, while mentioned as dark in the Uttara-kamikagama. Another description describes him to be blue in complexion. The deity is described to have four or six arms. He is described to be seated, sometimes specifically noted on padmasana (a lotus pedestal). The Uttara-kamikagama elaborates that he wears a Ratna mukuta (jeweled crown) and has a third eye on his forehead.

 

The Kriyakramadyoti mentions that the god carries in his six hands: a lotus (in some descriptions, a blue lotus), a pomegranate, the veena, an akshamala (rosary), and a rice sprig. As per the Mantra-maharnava, he carries a bana (arrow), a dhanus (bow), a pasha (noose), and an ankusha (elephant goad). The Uttara-kamikagama says that the god has four arms and holds a pasha, an ankusha, and sugarcane in three hands.

  

Uchchhishta Ganapati, Nageswaraswamy Temple, Kumbakonam. The deities touch each other's genitalia.

Rao classifies Uchchhishta Ganapati as one of the five Shakti-Ganesha icons, where Ganesha is depicted with a shakti, that is, a female consort. The large figure of Ganesha is accompanied by the smaller figure of the consort. The nude devi (goddess) sits on his left lap. She has two arms and wears various ornaments. In the Uttara-kamikagama, she is called Vighneshvari and is prescribed to be sculpted as a beautiful, young maiden. The fourth hand of Uchchhishta Ganapati touches the genitalia of the naked goddess. The Mantra-maharnava prescribes that the god should be depicted as though he is trying to have intercourse.

 

The textual descriptions generally do not correspond to the sculptures of the deity. Uchchhishta Ganapati is always shown with a naked consort, who is seated on his left lap. The god is generally depicted with four arms and holds a pasha, an ankusha and a ladoo or a modak (a sweet), while the fourth arm hugs the nude goddess around her hip. She holds a lotus or another flower in the left hand. Instead of his hands, the tip of his elephant trunk touches the yoni (vagina) of the goddess. Occasionally, the goddess touches the śiśnaḥ (phallus) of the god with her right hand. The god is depicted ithyphallic in the latter icon. Such erotic imagery is restricted to his four-armed form.

Cohen notes that many Ganesha icons are depicted with a shakti, seated on his left hip. She holds a plate of modaks in her lap and the god's trunk reaches into it, to fetch the sweet. The trunk is taken as a symbol of an "erotic bond" between Ganesha and the goddess. The Uchchhishta Ganapati takes the idea a step further, by eliminating the bowl of sweets and allowing the trunk to reach the goddess' yoni. This erotic iconography reflects the influence of the Tantric Ganapatya (the sect that considered Ganesha as the Supreme Being) sects. The pomegranate is also a symbol of fertility, often represented in the icons of the sects.

 

Worship

 

Uchchhishta Ganapati, folio from the 19th-century Sritattvanidhi. A rare depiction of the deity with a clothed goddess.

As per the Kriyakramadyoti, Uchchhishta Ganapati is worshipped as a giver of great boons. Rao notes that he is worshipped by "many" to gain the desired from the deity. He is also regarded as the guardian of the country. Meditating over his form is said to impart control over the five sensory organs. A temple dedicated to Uchchhishta Ganapati exists in Tirunelveli, where he is worshipped as a giver of progeny.

 

Uchchhishta Ganapati is the patron of the Uchchhishta Ganapatya sect, one of the six major schools of the Ganapatya sect. They follow Tantric Vamachara ("left-handed") practices. The sect may have been influenced by the Kaula worship of Shaktism (Goddess-oriented sect). The iconography of the deity bears Kaula Tantric's character. The erotic iconography is interpreted to convey the oneness of Ganesha and Devi ("The Hindu Divine Mother"). The sect also worships a Ganesha, who is depicted drinking wine and also its use in worship, a taboo in classical Hinduism (see Panchamakara). Adherents of this sect wear red marks on their foreheads. This sect does not believe in caste and varna distinctions, disregards the orthodox Hindu rules of sexual intercourse and marriage and leaves the adherence of traditional Hindu rituals to the follower's own will.

 

As per Vamachara practices, the deity is worshipped when the devotee is in the Uchchhishta ("ritually impure") state, that is, nude or with remnants of food (Uchchhishta) in his mouth.

 

Uchchhishta Ganapati is also associated with six rituals of abhichara (uses of spells for malevolent purposes) by which the adept can cause the target to suffer delusions, be overcome with irresistible attraction or envy, or to be enslaved, paralysed, or killed.

 

The Kanchi Ganesh shrine within the Jagannath Temple, Puri houses the icon of Uchchhishta Ganapati, also called Bhanda Ganapati and Kamada Ganapati, which was originally the patron icon of Kanchipuram (Kanchi), but was brought to Puri as war booty when the Gajapati king Purushottama Deva (1470–97) of Puri defeated Kanchi. A temple in Tirunelveli is described as the largest temple in Asia dedicated to him.

Mantra for Ucchista Ganapati

 

Neelaabja dhaadimeeveena shaleepunjaaksha soothrakaha

Dadhad ucchishtanaamaayam ganeshahapaatu mechakha

 

Meaning: ‘The one, who devours the remnants of food,’ describes his form and prays for his grace and blessings.

(The Ganesa who has left remnants)

Chanting the Ucchista Ganapati mantra with faith can be an effective means of propitiating this powerful Lord.

नीलाब्जं दाडिमी वीणा शाली गुंजाक्ष सूत्रकम् ।

दधदुच्छिष्ट नामाऽयं गणेशः पातु मोक्षदः ॥

நீலாப்ஜம் தாடிமீ வீணா ஸாலீ குஞ்ஜாக்ஷ ஸூத்ரகம்

தததுச்சிஷ்ட நாமாயம் கணேஷ: பாது மோக்ஷத:

சதுர்புஜம் ரக்ததநும் த்ரிநேத்ரம் பாஸாங்குசம்

மோதகபாத்ர தந்தகம்

கரை: ததாநம் ஸரஸீருஹஸ்தம் உந்மத்த-முச்சிஷ்ட

கணேசமீடே

நீலோற்பலம், மாதுளை, வீணை, நெற்கதிர், ருத்ராக்ஷமாலை இவற்றைத் தரித்தவரும், முத்தியளித்துக் காப்பவருமான உச்சிஷ்ட கணபதியின் பாதம் பணிகிறேன்.

நான்கு கரங்களை உடையவராகவும், அவற்றில் பாசம், அங்குசம், மோதக பாத்ரம், தந்தம் இவற்றைத் தரித்திருப்பவராகவும், செந்நிறமானத் திருமேனியும், முக்கண்ணும் உடையவராகவும், செந்தாமரைப் பூவிலே எழுந்தருளி இருப்பவராகவும், உந்மத்தராகவும் உள்ள உச்சிஷ்ட கணபதியை த்யானிக்கிறேன்.


Let The Ganapathi called the Ganapathi who gives the leftover. Who holds a blue lotus, Pomegranate, Veena, the rosary.

வாழிய செந்தமிழ்! வாழ்க நற்றமிழர்! 

வாழிய பாரதமணித் திருநாடு!   

வணக்கம் சுப்பு