Birth

Shiva and Parvati with their son Ganesh

In popular Hindu mythology, Ganesha is considered to be the son of the Hindu deity Shiva and Parvati. The most common account of his birth begins with Shiva leaving his wife Parvati for an extended period of time in order to meditateupon Mount Kailasa. This inspired intense loneliness within the goddess. Longing for a son, she gave birth to the young man, Ganesha. She quickly ordered him to stand guard at the door of her private chamber while she bathed. Eventually, Shiva returned from his meditation and attempted to access Parvati's private chamber. Ganesha refused to let him in and a struggle ensued, after which Shiva beheaded Ganesha. Hearing the commotion, Parvati came out of her bath and informed Shiva that he had just killed her child, and threatened to destroy the universe if the situation was not rectified. Shiva promptly sent his servants to the North, the holy direction, so that they could find a new head for Ganesha. Details as to where this replacement head came from vary according to different sources.[56] Eventually, the servants found an elephant and cut off its head, which they placed upon Ganesh's shoulders upon their return. When Ganesh came back to consciousness, Shiva adopted him as his own. [57] Puranic myths provide a wide variety of other explanations for Ganesha's form.[58] Some texts say that he was actually born with his elephant head (or heads), though in most stories he acquires the head later. [59] In a different story, when Ganesha was born his mother Parvati showed off her new baby to the other gods. Unfortunately, the god Shani (a deity corresponding to the planet Saturn) who is said to have the "evil eye" looked at him, causing the baby's head to be burned to ashes. The god Vishnu came to the rescue and replaced the missing head with that of an elephant.[60] In

yet another story, Ganesha is created directly by Shiva's laughter. After Ganesha's birth, Shiva became concerned that the youth was excessively beautiful, and so he cursed Ganesha to have the head of an elephant and a protruding belly in order to make his appearance less appealing.[61]