Ganapatya is a denomination of

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

that worships

Ganesha Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu d ...

(also called Ganapati) as the Saguna Brahman.Ganapatyas
Article from PHILTAR, Division of Religion and Philosophy, St Martin's College

Beliefs

The worship of

is considered complementary with the worship of other deities. Hindus of all sects begin prayers, important undertakings, and religious ceremonies with an invocation of Ganesha, because of Ganesha's role as the god of beginnings. But although most Hindu sects do revere Ganesha, the Ganapatya sect goes further than that, and declares Ganesha to be the supreme being. Ganapatya is one of the five principal Hindu sects which focus on a particular deity, alongside

Shaivism Shaivism (; sa, शैवसम्प्रदायः, Śaivasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the Supreme Being. One of the largest Hindu denominations, it incorporates many sub-traditions rangi ...

, focussed on

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

Shaktism Shaktism ( sa, शाक्त, , ) is one of several major Hindu denominations, wherein the metaphysical reality is considered metaphorically a woman and Shakti ( Mahadevi) is regarded as the supreme godhead. It includes many goddesses, al ...

, focussed on

Shakti In Hinduism, especially Shaktism (a theological tradition of Hinduism), Shakti (Devanagari: शक्ति, IAST: Śakti; lit. "Energy, ability, strength, effort, power, capability") is the primordial cosmic energy, female in aspect, and rep ...

Vaishnavism Vaishnavism ( sa, वैष्णवसम्प्रदायः, Vaiṣṇavasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu denominations along with Shaivism, Shaktism, and Smartism. It is also called Vishnuism since it considers Vishnu as the ...

, focused on

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within t ...

, and

Saura Saura may refer to: * Saura (Hinduism), a Hindu denomination * Saura calendar, the Vedic and medieval Indian solar calendar People * Antonio Saura, Spanish surrealist artist * Carlos Saura, Spanish film director * Enrique Saura, Spanish footb ...

, focussed on

Surya Surya (; sa, सूर्य, ) is the sun as well as the solar deity in Hinduism. He is traditionally one of the major five deities in the Smarta tradition, all of whom are considered as equivalent deities in the Panchayatana puja and a m ...

. While Ganapatya is not as large a sect as the other four, it still has been influential. There is also the

Smartism The ''Smarta'' tradition ( sa, स्मार्त), also called Smartism, is a movement in Hinduism that developed and expanded with the Puranas genre of literature. It reflects a synthesis of four philosophical strands, namely Mimamsa, A ...

sect, which follows

Advaita ''Advaita Vedanta'' (; sa, अद्वैत वेदान्त, ) is a Hindu sādhanā, a path of spiritual discipline and experience, and the oldest extant tradition of the orthodox Hindu school Vedānta. The term ''Advaita'' (lit ...

philosophy and practices the "worship of the five forms" ( ) system, popularized by . In this system, the five deities Ganesha,

, Shiva,

Devī Devī (; Sanskrit: देवी) is the Sanskrit word for ' goddess'; the masculine form is ''deva''. ''Devi'' and ''deva'' mean 'heavenly, divine, anything of excellence', and are also gender-specific terms for a deity in Hinduism. The con ...

, and Sūrya are viewed as five equal forms of one

Nirguna Brahman ''Para Brahman'' ( sa, परब्रह्म, translit=parabrahma, translit-std=IAST) in Hindu philosophy is the "Supreme Brahman" that which is beyond all descriptions and conceptualisations. It is described as the formless (in the sense th ...

.Grimes, John A. Ganapati: Song of the Self. (State University of New York Press: Albany, 1995) p. 162.

History

Ganapati has been worshipped as part of Shaivism since at least the fifth century. A specific Ganapatya sect probably began to appear between the sixth and ninth centuries: six sects are mentioned in the Sankara digvijaya (life of Adi Shankara) by Anandigiri. It reached a high point about the tenth century, and built temples dedicated to Ganesha, the largest of which is the

Ucchi Pillayar Koil Ucchi Pillayar Temple is a 7th-century Hindu temple, one dedicated to Lord Ganesha located a top of ''Tiruchirapalli Rock Fort, Rockfort'', Trichy, Tamil Nadu, India. According to legend, this rock is the place where Lord Ganesha ran from King ...

(the Columns Hall of a Thousand Pillars), on the Rock Fort of Tiruchirapalli in

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...

. Ganesha is worshipped as the Supreme Being (

Para Brahman ''Para Brahman'' ( sa, परब्रह्म, translit=parabrahma, translit-std=IAST) in Hindu philosophy is the "Supreme Brahman" that which is beyond all descriptions and conceptualisations. It is described as the formless (in the sense th ...

) in this sect. Being the chief deity in this form of Hinduism, he is known by the epithet Parameshwara (Supreme God), which is normally reserved for Shiva.

Moraya Gosavi

Later, the sect was popularized by

Morya Gosavi Morya Gosavi or Moraya Gosavi () alias Moroba Gosavi was a prominent saint of the Hindu Ganapatya sect, which considers Ganesha as the Supreme God. Morya Gosavi is considered the chief spiritual progenitor of the Ganapatyas and has been descri ...

. According to one source, he found an idol of Ganapati not made by human hands, and built the Moragao temple near Pune in the 14th century. According to another, he experienced visions of Ganapati at the Morgaon shrine, and was entombed alive (jeeva samadhi) in 1651, in a Ganesha temple at his birthplace in Chinchwad.
Article from BookRags.com Following him, the Ganapatya sect became prominent between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries in

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...

in south western India, centering on Cinchwad. Its centre is still among high-caste Hindus in the Marathi-speaking Maharashtra, and it is important in the rest of South India. Devotees hold an annual pilgrimage between

Chinchwad Chinchwad is an upscale, affluent locality in the city of Pune, India. The neighbourhood is home to extensive industry and is well known for its automotive, pharmaceutical, electrical, cons. products, electronics & hardware, aerospace and manuf ...

and Moragao. Sect marks include a red circle on the forehead, or the brands of an elephant face and tusk on the shoulders.

References

External links

Article from BookRags.com
Ganapatya
Encyclopædia Britannica article {{Ganesha Ganesha Hindu denominations

Beliefs

History

Moraya Gosavi

See also

References

External links