Ganesh Chaturthi

Ganesh Chaturthi (ISO: Gaṇeśa Caturthī) (transl. Ganesh Festival or the Festival of Ganesha on the Fourth Day), also known as Vinayaka Chaturthi (Vināyaka Caturthī), Vinayaka Chavithi (Vināyaka Cavithī), or Vinayagar Chaturthi (Vināyagar Caturthī), is a Hindu festival celebrating the birthday of the Hindu deity Ganesha. The festival is marked with the installation of Ganesha's murtis (devotional representations of a deity), privately in homes and publicly on elaborate pandals (temporary stages). Observances include chanting of Vedic hymns and Hindu texts, such as prayers and vrata (fasting). Offerings and prasada from the daily prayers, which are distributed from the pandal to the community, include sweets such as modak, as it is believed to be a favourite of Ganesha. The festival ends on the tenth day after its start, when the murti is carried in a public procession with music and group chanting, and then immersed in a nearby body of water such as a river or sea, called visarjana on the day of Ananta Chaturdashi. In Mumbai alone, around 150,000 murtis are immersed annually. It is a state festival of Indian state Maharashtra.