Ganesha is the elephant-headed deity in Hinduism. He is the son of Shiva and Parvati. Ganesha is very popular among Hindu people. They regard Ganesha as the deity of wisdom, success and good luck. Ganesha is over all difficulties. Hindu people call Ganesha "Vighneshvara", in Sanskrit language means one who can overcome all problems, obstacles and difficulties. Thus, people believe worshipping Ganesha will remove all problems, obstacles and difficulties from life.
          Nowadays, Ganesha becomes the universal deity who is one of the most popular deities in the world especially in India, Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet, Mongolia, China, Japan, Korea, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Indonesia, etc.

Mythology

There are two mythological stories about Ganesha.

First story is that Parvati had made a boy out of the dirt of her body. The boy of dirt became alive. This boy was guarding the way while Parvati was taking a bath. Shiva wanted to meet his wife, Parvati. The boy did not allow him. Shiva became angry. He cut off the head of the boy. Then, the head of an elephant was fixed to make the boy alive again. Therefore, Ganesha has a head of an elephant.

The other story is this. Parvati was very proud of her son Ganesha. She asked Shani (planet Saturn) to look at her son. Shani looked at the face of Ganesha. Shani’s look burnt Ganesha’s face and he became headless. Then Brahma (the creator god of Hindus) advised Parvati to fix the first head of anything she could find. Parvati found a head of an elephant. This head she fixed on the body of Ganesha. Thus, Ganesha got an elephant’s head.

His Image
 
Any picture, image or portrayal in any form of Ganesha generally has the following characteristics or features:
• He is shown with a tubby body, showing that the entire universe is inside him.
• His color is red or orange.
• Generally, he has four arms, and sometimes three eyes.
• He carries a mala (garland) and certain other items like a lotus flower.
• He sits generally with a bowl of sweets (laddus or modaks) before him.
• The rats will be around Ganesha.  He uses a rat as his vehicle. That shows Ganesha is friendly and can be a friend of every approving creature and disapproving creature.

Power
 
Ganesha is the deity of wisdom, success and good luck. That means, to worship Ganesha will make the worshipper lucky and successful in studying and working especially in arts and performances as well as make the wishes of the worshipper come true. To worship Ganesha can remove all problems, obstacles and difficulties from life. 

Ganesha in Thailand

In Thailand, Ganesha has been worshipped since the past. Ganesha image is widely seen at historic sites in Thailand such as in Nakhonsrithammaraj Province, Surajthani Province, Lopburi Province, Nakhonrajchasima Province and so on. Ganesha statue is an important thing in Hindu rites and ceremonies such as the ceremony called “Wai Khru” for Thai classical dance and any kind of performances. People hold Wai Khru Ceremony before they perform because they believe in Ganesha that he will bring wisdom, success and good luck to them. 
 

In addition, The Fine Arts Department Ministry of Culture Thailand and Silpakorn University uses the Ganesha picture as the logo. 
  

There are many Hindu temples in Thailand where Ganesha statue is situated such as this one in Silom Road, Bangkok “Wat PhraSriMahaUmaTheWee” or people often informally call “Wat Khaek”. A lot of people visit here every day.

How to Worship Ganesha