Rijswijk, Netherland: Ganesh Chaturthi Is also known as Vinayak Chaturthi and is 10 day Hindu festival. Lord Ganesha is the God of New Beginnings, Remover of Obstacles as well as the god of wisdom and intelligence.
Due to covid 19 the festival was celebrated differently across globe with some restrictions but that did not hinder our love for bappa or our spirit and enthusiasm for the festival.
Many people can still celebrate this festival at home and digitally too.
The Indian diaspora In the Netherlands celebrated Ganesh Chaturthi on Saturday 22nd August conducted by IBCC , an organi- sation in their own Mandir at Rijswijk,Netherland.
On this day people worship Almighty Lord Ganesha in several ways by:
- Having a Raksha Sutre tied
- Offering Prashad and flowers
- Shiv Abhishek
- By doing Hom Havan
They also gave an opportunity to every visitor to offer pooja of 10 min in the Mandir with their whole family. But people had to register first via the e-mail considering the COVID-19 norms.
Due to covid 19 , IBCC took into account the rules and guidelines of the RIVM.
Such as –
- A walking route had been mapped out through the building so that
people have every opportunity to worship Ganesha. - At the end of the route, people had offered prashad and a meal
to take home. - People may be required to complete a health statement due to government regulations.
- It is mandatory to keep a distance of 1.5m and to wear a mouth
mask! - In case of health problems, stay at home! By following every measures of COVID-19 the Ganesh Chaturthi was celebrated with the same zest for the supreme God of fortune and remover of all obstacles. No matter where you are, the spirit of faithfulness for Lord Ganesha is intact with every Indian. So let’s pray and hope that lord Ganesha stays our mentor and pro tector and remove this corona obstacles from our lives and bless us. Ganpati Bappa Morya!- By Mrs Pranita Adwait Deshpande
