Lord Ganesha is the master of wisdom and knowledge. He is the remover of obstacles, and guardian of beauty, prosperity, grace and compassion. Lord Ganesha is the first deity to be reverenced in Hindu rites. He is a guardian of doors of houses and temples. He is the God that removes the internal and external obstacles of our success, and he is the one that grants the opening of your spiritual gifts. He is also the protector of all beings.
“Om Gam Ganapataye Namaha” is one of the mantas of Lord Ganesha. I find a lot of peace and comfort with Ganesha. Also, this mantra has become one of my favorites. I always feel cleansed, clear headed, confident, and ready to face anything after saying this mantra. As Mc Yogi put it, “Ganesha is a yogi’s best friend!”
A very loose translation of this mantra:
Om = Salutations! Everyone wake up!
Gam = The secret power sound of Ganesh. It is his “seed syllable” or bija mantra.
Ganapataye = Another name of Ganesh, the breaker of obstacles.
Namaha = Yo! Ganesh! You da God!
The pronunciation is also pretty easy:
Om = ohm or aum
Gam = Somewhere between “gahm” and “gum”. In some dialects it is “guhng”.
Ganapataye = gah-nah-paht-ah-yeh
Namaha – nah-mah-hah
In my yoga classes this week we have been discussing jumping over obstacles. Sometimes this can be very hard to do, especially if your obstacle is fear. Perhaps you can try tackling smaller obstacles and then moving on to bigger ones. If you take a leap of faith, you never know what you might find just past your obstacle. I used to be very afraid of doing headstands. I did not have the confidence to hold my body weight and I was terrified of being upside down. One day a yogi friend of mine sat with me and gently guided me through the steps of the pose. She kept reassuring me and encouraging me to go at my own pace. It took several months, but when I let go of my fear of the pose, I was able to go up into it. And now I enjoy it and can balance without using the wall.
I used to be afraid to drive a a windy roads. Now that I live in the mountains, I have no choice! I am no longer fearful of these curvy roads, but I actually enjoy them. So I guess sometimes just plunging through your obstacle can help you over come it too!
Whatever path you choose to take, whether facing the obstacle head on, chanting a mantra, praying, or getting guidance from a friend, I hope that you can find ways to over come your obstacles and perhaps find joy just past them!
If you are looking to get away from it all and take a mini vacation. I have two spots left in my July 25 Independence Yoga Retreat and I have just opened up registration for my August 22 Serenity Yoga Retreat. Clink on the links below to see the fliers.
Namaste.
