Ganesh Chaturthi 2022: Know Shubh Muhrat

“वक्रतुण्ड महाकाय सूर्यकोटि समप्रभ

निर्विघ्नं कुरु में देव सर्व कार्येषु सर्वदा”

Ganesh Chaturthi 2022 is the most revered festival of Hindus which is dedicated to Lord Ganesha. He is the son of Lord Shiva and goddess Parvati and is considered as vighnharta i.e. the remover of obstacles in Hindu religious assumptions.

Ganesh Chaturthi also known as Vinayak Chaturthi is falling on August 31 in the year 2022. It is a festival carried for continuous 10 days and it is believed that Lord Ganesha visits the Earth with Goddesss Parvati during these 10 pious days.

To attain his divine blessings, people keep idols of Ganesha in their houses, temples and various big pandals where he is worshipped for continuous 10 days before finally immersing his idol into water. While immersion, the devotees makes a wish to call him back again the next year. 

All relevant details like when is Ganesh chaturthi 2022, what is the shubh muhurata for Ganesh chaturthi, how to worship and the importance of the day is included in this write up.

हिंदी में पढ़ें - गणेश चतुर्थी 2022

When did Ganesh Chaturthi originally start?

Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated with grandeur across the country but it's difficult to mention the exact date of initiation of the festival. As per many experts, the history of Vinayak Chaturthi can be traced back to the times of Satavahana, Chalukya and Rashtrakuta dynasties.

The historians believe that the great Maratha leader Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaja started the celebrations of Ganesh Chaturthi which was later obstructed by British rulers but then again revived by freedom fighter Lokmanaya Tilak. The festival was initially started to boost the spirit of nationalism originally in the state of Maharashtra.

Also Read: Why and How the Ganesh Chaturthi Festival is Celebrated?

When is Ganesh Chaturhi 2022?

Every year, Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated on the fourth day or the chaturthi tithi in Bhadra month during the shukla paksha. It usually falls in the month of August or September as per the Gregorian calendar. In the year 2022, it will be observed on August 31, 2022.

• Vinayaka Chaturthi - 31 August 2022, Wednesday

            The tithi starts: 30 August 2022, 3:33 P.M. 

             The tithi ends: 31 August 2022, 3:23 P.M.

• The best time of puja- shubh muhurata

            August 31, 2022 - 11:04 AM to 01:37 PM 

• The day of visarjan for Ganesh Chaturthi

            September 9, 2022, Friday 

Ganesh Chaturthi is a public holiday in Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka and Maharashtra where it is celebrated with great vigor. People may call it by different names like Ganeshotsav 2022, Vinayak chaturthi 2022, Ganpati 2022, Chauthi etc.

Why do people celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi? 

Lord Ganesha is considered as the God of wisdom and intelligence. He is known to remove all obstacles from life and initiate new beginnings after removing miseries in life.

He is popularly worshipped in almost every Hindu house. He has 108 names such as Ekdant, Vikata, Vighnharta, Gajanana etc. All his names depict his unique qualities and attributes. People worship him to get wisdom, intelligence and freedom from all obstacles and miseries from life.

With his stay for 10 days in the house, he is believed to take away all the miseries along while going for immersion only to ensure happiness and prosperity behind. This is the reason; the day is celebrated with great enthusiasm. 

Also Read: Look For Every Detail of Your Marriage in Your Birth Chart

Preparations and worship of Ganesh Chaturthi

For Ganpati 2022, the whole family has to work as a team as it is the time to welcome Lord Ganesha to your home!

Bring the whole family together

It is customary to clean and organize the house before the arrival of Ganpati Bappa in your house. Get up early in the morning and take a bath. Ganesh Chaturthi is a sacred and happy occasion and should be graced by all family members. The responsibilities should be shared amongst the family members while they perform puja to seek divine blessings.

Arrival of Ganesha idol

People may either keep a picture, an idol or may worship the idol they already have in their place of worship. But generally people bring new Ganesha idol in their house to worship it for next 10 days. It is a pious occasion and Ganpati should be brought with happy moods. There should be warmth and happiness in the hearts of the family members.

Installing the idol

The arrangements to install the Lord Ganesha idol needs to be done on a raised platform in the puja room. One may also draw a rangoli in front of the platform or traditional altar. Put a red cloth on the platform. 

After bringing the idol in their home, people start the process of puja with pranpratishtha (invoke life in the idol). It is followed by shhodashopachara (16 tributes). This can be done with the help of a priest or by the family members themselves with little guidance from some scholar.

The idol is decorated with sandalwood paste, new clothes, vermilion, ornaments etc. After that offerings are made to the idol like flowers, durva, garlands, karanji, coconut, fruits, modak, jaggery and other eatables. It is believed that Lord Ganesha likes modak very much.

So, most of the people certainly make the offerings of modak to Him. The devotees then recite Ganesh strotam and other hymns in the praise of Lord Ganesha while asking for prosperity, health, wealth and happiness in life.

Some people also keep a fast this day. 

One should light a lamp with filled with coconut oil and incense sticks in front of the altar. One may chant  “ Om Gam Ganapataye Namah “ while performing puja.  

Also Read: Benefits of Worshipping Ganesha on Chaturthi

What to offer in bhog or prasadam? 

The devotees of Lord Ganesha know that he is fond of eating and thus special arrangements are made for His bhog. Following items can be included in His bhog-

Modak, Motichoor Laddoo, Puran Poli,Coconut Rice, Banana Sheera, Shrikhand, Rava Pongal etc.

These dishes are first offered as bhog and after that distributed amongst the devotees as prasadam. Burn camphor at the altar and sing some Ganesha songs. Seek the blessings of Lord Ganesha. Distribute the prasad among the family members and invitees.

The tradition of Ganpati Visarjan

The Ganesha visarjan takes place on the last day of the Ganesh Chaturthi festival. The final day after a 10-day long festival is known as Anant Chaturdashi.

The day also collides with the conclusing day of popular religious days of Jainism called “dashlakshan”, all jains celebrate anant chaturdashi by observing a strict fast wherer hey don’t even take water. The day has high religious significance and is known to put an end to all sins of the observers.

Coming back to Ganpati ji, the 'visarjan' means immersion of the idol of Lord Ganesha in a river, sea or any water body. The processions happen on both days, on the first day, the devotees welcome Ganpati ji in their homes and on the last day, they took out procession to carry Ganesha idol to the nearby water body.

Alternatively many people do this in their homes in bucket full of water as they brought organic idols in their homes. The water is then used to water the plants. 

An interesting tale about visarjan

There is an interesting tale behind the immersion of Ganesha idols. It has been mentioned in the scriptures that after the festival, Lord Ganesha returns to Mount Kailash to his parents.

He was all smeared with different worship materials, so, the parents asked Him to take bath in water. Alternatively, the immersion relates with the cycle of birth, death and re-birth.

It is believed that when Ganesha idol is taken out for immersion, it carries away all the sufferings and obstacles out of the house only to sink them along with the idol forever.

Every year, people wait eagerly to celebrate the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi with hopes that just llike other years, the vighnharta will swallow up all the miseries of life.

To know more about Ganesh Chaturthi Pooja and methodologies, consult our expert astrologers.