Ganesha: the Lord of Beginnings: Meeting Divine - Book One

Everywhere in the world - before a wedding, a journey, a new venture, or the first page of a ledger - one face of the divine is honored before all others: the elephant-faced Lord of beginnings, Ganesha. Why does an entire tradition pause, at the threshold of nearly everything it does, to remember him first? Ganesha: The Lord of Beginnings is a warm, clear, and faithful answer - the opening book of the Meeting the Divine series, and a doorway into one of the best-loved figures in all of Sanatan Dharma. Written for the complete newcomer and the lifelong devotee alike, it meets Ganesha from every side: his beloved birth stories and the wisdom of his broken tusk; the meaning hidden in every curve of his form - the great ears, the discerning trunk, the ample belly, the four hands, and the small mouse at his feet; the profound teaching of the remover - and placer - of obstacles; his thousand names and his sacred temples; the joy of Ganesha Chaturthi; and simple, practical ways to invoke him in daily life. Every mantra is given in Sanskrit (Devanagari), transliteration, and clear English, with a pronunciation guide and a glossary, so no prior knowledge - and not a word of Sanskrit - is required. Inside this book: - The birth stories, the wisdom race, and the broken tusk that wrote an epic - Ganesha's form read as a scripture, feature by feature - Obstacles as teachers - the deep meaning of Vighnaharta - The festival of arrival and farewell, and what immersion teaches > The Sanatan Dharma Wisdom Series - timeless teachings, warmly and clearly retold.