Samarpaṇam§
समर्पणम्§
Dedication§
IT WAS NOT SO LONG AGO THAT SEEKERS REQUESTED THAT WE PUBLISH MORE ABOUT this mystical God, most beloved of them all. So we did. Now, into your hands we present a lovable Loving Gaṇeśa. Why did we choose that name of all names? Because everyone, young and old, thin and hefty (especially the latter) loves Gaṇeśa. Of course, He loves us all very, very much. He is the God of unfailing laws, such as gravity, retribution and karmic responses. In matters of less gravity, He is the lover of all things sweet. He is also the Prince of Culture and Patron of the Arts. Everyone loves music, art, drama and the dance. He, in His joyous ponderousness, is the Remover of Obstacles, and that is just what He did for us—removed the obstacles we faced in publishing Loving Gaṇeśa, and in producing this third edition, and those you faced in finding it. Many months of research and effort went into this gem. Help was given by maṭhadīpatis, āchāryas, swāmīs, pandits, “Gaṇeśologists,” Sanskrit scholars, brahmachārīs, brahmachāriṇīs, housewives, husbands and children, experts in all fields of knowledge about Hinduism’s elephant-faced Lord, to be worshiped first before starting any quest. This book is lovingly dedicated to my satguru, the venerable sage of Sri Lanka, Satguru Yogaswami, whose ashram in Colombuthurai rested across the road from the Varasitthi Vinayagar Temple in the northern Tamil domain. May Loving Gaṇeśa bring to you a deeper, subtler appreciation of Hinduism—the venerable Sanātana Dharma.§
Indra Sharma captures the powerful grace of Satguru Siva Yogaswami of Jaffna, Sri Lanka (1872-1964). He is proudly bearing the three lines of holy ash that every Śaivite honors and a simple, hand-woven cloth which he always wore.§