Ganesh Chaturthi (ISO: Gaṇeśa Caturthī), also known as Vinayaka Chaturthi (Vināyaka Caturthī), or Vinayaka Chaviti (Vināyaka Cavitī) is a Hindu festival celebrating the arrival of Lord Ganesh to earth from Kailash Parvat with his mother Goddess Parvati/Gauri
The festival is marked with the installation of Lord Ganesh’s clay murtis privately in homes and publicly by Shri Bal Gangadhar Tilak popularly known as Lokmanya Tilak in Pune in the year 1893 on elaborate pandals (temporary stages)
Observations include chanting of Vedic hymns and Hindu texts such as, prayers and vrata (fasting)
Offerings and prasāda from the daily prayers, that are distributed from the pandal to the community, include sweets such as modaka as it is believed to be a favourite of Lord Ganesh
The festival ends on the tenth day after start, when the idol is carried in a public procession with music and group chanting, then immersed in a nearby body of water such as a river or sea, called visarjan
In Mumbai alone, around 150,000 statues are immersed annually
Thereafter the clay idol dissolves and Ganesh is believed to return to Mount Kailash to Parvati and Shiva
The festival celebrates Lord Ganesh as the God of New Beginnings and the Remover of Obstacles as well as the god of wisdom and intelligence and is observed throughout India, especially in the states such as Maharashtra and Goa
Ganesh Chaturthi is also observed in Nepal and by the Hindu diaspora elsewhere such as in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Singapore, Malaysia, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Suriname, other parts of the Caribbean, Fiji, Mauritius, South Africa, United States, and Europe
In the Gregorian calendar, Ganesh Chaturthi falls between 22 August and 20 September every year
At public venues, along with the reading of texts and group feasting, athletic and martial arts competitions are also held