Which Ganesha idol or photo is best for home? (2024)

Ganesha is one of the revered Hindu deities and regarded as the remover of obstacles and a symbol of happiness and prosperity. Lord Ganesha is also known as the protector of households. Thus, many people prefer to place Ganesha images and idols near the main entrance door to keep away evil energies. Vastu Shastra prescribes the right way to place Ganesha images and idols. If you are planning to bring a Ganesha murti to your home, make sure to consider these Vastu guidelines. Also, find out the right direction for the placement of Ganesh murti or photo at home.

Best Ganesh murti for home: Quick facts

Which type of Ganesha idol is good for home ?

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Forms of Ganesha: Types of Ganpati Murti

The Hindu god, Ganesha, is known to be the god of auspicious beginnings and is worshipped in 32 different forms, as mentioned above. In India, you will find Ganpati murtis depicted in some of these forms. As per the religious scriptures, lord Ganesha took these forms to save his devotees from diverse issues of life.

Also read: Buddha statue for home Vastu tips

Vastu for Ganesha photos and idols at home

• Place lord Ganesh idols or images in west, north and northeast directions.
• Do not place the Ganesha idol in the south direction.
• Place the deity on a raised platform, typically, at the eye level.
• When installing a lord Ganesha statue, proper puja vidhis must be followed.
• Make sure to keep area around the Ganesha idol clean and clutter-free.
• Place the idol with a sense of reverence and positive attitude.
• Keep flowers, incense, oil lamps, etc. near the Ganesha statue.

Places to avoid

• Bedroom
• Garage
• Vacant area
• Laundry area
• Under staircases
• Storerooms
• Any dark place

Source: Pinterest

Also read all about Pooja room Vastu

Which direction Ganesh should face?

Ganpati idols or images should ideally be placed in the north, north-east, east or west direction, preferably facing the north. Ganpati should face the north direction, as it is believed that Lord Shiva, who is his father, lives here. The Ganesha murti can be placed at the main door, facing inside. If you are placing Lord Ganesha images, it should face the main entrance of the home. Always remember that the back of the deity should face the outside of the house.

Which Ganesha idol is good for home entrance?

One can consider placing the Drishti Ganesha at the home entrance, which helps ward off bad luck and negative energies, thus inviting positivity and prosperity. The image or idol of Drishti Ganapathy must be hung on a wall opposite the main entrance. You can consider placing a pair of Ganpati idols, with one facing the house.

Posture

• When bringing a Ganesh idol for home, remember to notice the posture of the deity. Ideally, the Ganesha images or idol in lalitasana is considered the best. This is also known as sitting Ganesha as it represents a state of calm and peace.
• Ganpati bappa images or Ganesh photos in reclining positions are also considered very lucky as it represents luxury, comfort and wealth.
• The dancing form of Ganesha is usually placed for aesthetic purpose.
• Images of lord Ganesh with a modak in hand is quite popular.

Direction of trunk

As per Vastu, the trunk of the Ganesha idol should be tilted towards the left, as this represents success and positivity. It is believed that theGanesh idol with a trunk tilted towards the right represents a hard-to-please attitude. A rare form of Ganesha is where the deity’s trunk is straight or up in the air.

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Modak and mouse

Make sure a modak and mouse are part of the structure. This is because the mouse is considered as his vehicle while the modak is considered his favourite sweet. This Ganesh murti is ideal for home entrance.

The mouse also represents material desire and our mind, which is full of desire. Although the mouse is small and has tiny teeth, it can continuously nibble and empty out a barn full of grains. The parallel drawn is that there is a ‘mouse’ in all of us – our desires. These desires can eat away even a mountain of goodness within in us.

A mouse, with its tiny sharp teeth, snips and nibbles away at ropes that bind. Hence, the mouse resembles a mantra which can cut through layers of ignorance, leading to the ultimate knowledge and truth represented by Lord Ganesha.

The prasad or modak that lord Ganesha holds in his hand signifies material, opulence, and strength.

So, it is essential to keep a note of these details when choosing a Ganesh idol for home.

Which colour Ganesha idol is good for home ?

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Ganesha placement: Vastu directions

Best offerings for Lord Ganesha

• Small bowl of rice
• Modaks
• Satori, a Maharashtrian sweet flatbread
• Motichoor laddu
• Durva-Dal, a type of grass

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Significance of Ganesh murti

Keeping a Ganesh statue or picture at home is believed to attract good luck and prosperity.

A Ganesh murti is a symbol of perfect life which teaches importance principles.

• One of Lord Ganesh’s tusks is broken. The symbolism of the broken tusk is that a wise person is beyond duality. The single tusk also signifies single-pointedness.
• The four arms of Lord Ganesha symbolise the four attributes -mind, intellect, ego and conscience. Ganesh murti design, with one leg raised up and the other on the ground, symbolises that one should be involved in both, the spiritual and material worlds.

Since most people love Lord Ganesha, they collect or are gifted the Ganesha idol or images. So, a common question is,’How many Ganesh idols should be kept at home?’. According to Vastu, it is advised to keep only one idol in a room. If there are more than one Ganesh idol together, the positive energy is bound to get disrupted. This can impact the balance of Riddhi and Siddhi, who are the wives of Lord Ganesha, and can lead to a hostile environment.

Which Ganesha idol is good for Ganesh Chaturthi?

Ganesh Chaturthi is a 10-day festival widely celebrated across India where devotees bring home Ganesha idol. When installing the Ganesha idol, one should follow Vastu dos and don’ts to bring positivity. One can consider white Ganesha idols that denote peace and prosperity. Make sure the Ganesha should be in a sitting position, also known as lalitasana and the trunk is titled towards the left for prosperity.

Bringing home Ganesh murti for Ganesh Chaturthi

With the onset of the 10-day Ganesh Chaturthi festival, there are many people who bring the Ganesha idol home. While bringing a new ganpati murti home, the idol’s face is covered and it is unveiled only during its sthapana. The idol, which is brought home during the festival, is then immersed after one-and-a-half days, three days or 10 days, as per the number of days each family follows. As more and more people are becoming environment-conscious, there is an increase in people opting for eco-friendly Ganeshas for home, which get dissolved easily during immersion. Also, there are many options like Ganeshas, which when immersed, grows to become a plant that people are opting for. Choose a small Ganesh murti of you have a small mandir at home and make sure you follow the Vastu guidelines when placing the deity.

Eco-friendly Ganesha idols

You can bring home eco-friendly Ganpati idols made of natural materials such as natural clay, organic soil, plant seeds and natural colours.

How to worship Lord Ganesha?

Place the Ganpati idol in the north, north-east, east or west on an elevated platform. Make sure to keep the space clean and clutter-free. Light a brass oil lamp (diya) and incense candlestick. Prepare a pooja thali with items such as flowers, rice, ghee and Kumkum. Red hibiscus is considered Lord Ganesha’s favourite flower and must be presented to the deity. Put a gardland around the deity and apply tilak to the Ganesha murti and chant the Ganesh mantra. Offer ladoos and modaks to the deity.

Ganesh idol Visarjan

According to the traditions, Ganpati Visarjan is performed one and half days, three, five, seven or eleven days from the start of the Ganesh Chaturthi puja. The idol is kept in the puja room and worshipped for three to ten days. As part of the visarjan, people immerse the idols in a water body.

Can you place Ganesha idol outside the house?

As per Vastu Shastra, the house entrance must be decorated with auspicious symbols to invite positivity into the house. People normally place images of gods or goddesses above the door as a symbol of good luck. However, one should avoid keeping idols of Lord Ganesha at the house entrance or above the main door. This is because one should avoid placing the Ganesha idol with its back towards the house as it is regarded as inauspicious. If it must be placed; make sure to keep another statue of Ganesha on the inner side of the house entrance.

As per Hindu mythology, Lord Ganesh was once asked by his mother, Parvati to stand guard while she bathed. He did not let his father, Lord Shiva, enter the premises. In anger, Lord Shiva beheaded him. Hence, as per some beliefs, the placement of Ganesha at the doorway can lead to conflicts or troubles. However, you can keep the idol at a suitable place inside the house as per Vastu recommended direction.

Ganesha photo and idols to remove Vastu defect

As per Vastu Shastra, keeping Ganesha photos and idols at home can help in removing the negative effects caused by the Vastu defects. Lord Brahma, on the request of Vastu Purusha, created the rules of Vastu Shastra. Worshipping Lord Ganesha satisfies the Vastu deity. Building a Vastu-compliant house ensures happiness, prosperity and progress.

If an Ekdanta Ganesha idol or picture is placed at the main door of the house, then on the other side, at the same place, one must place the idol of Ganesha such that the backs of both Ganesha keep meeting, which helps reduce the negative effects of Vastu doshas.

Further, as per Vastu Shastra, keeping White coloured Ganesha and worshipping vermilion coloured Ganesha helps removed Vastu defects from the house. One must note that a Ganesha statue must have the deity’s favourite modak or laddu and his vehicle mouse, which is considered ideal for rectifying Vastu doshas.

In an office space, placing Ganesha photo, images or idols where the deity is standing helps remove Vastu defects.

FAQs

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(With inputs from Surbhi Gupta, Purnima Goswami Sharma and Aruna Rathod)

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