Ganesh devotees chant in chorus Ganpati Bappa Morya during Ganesh Puja. But, what’s the significance of this chant?

Ganpati

Ganesha is also known as Ganpati. The word Ganpati is a combination of 2 words – “Gana” which means ‘group’ or also ‘the attendants of Lord Shiva’ and “Pati” which means the ‘ruler’ or ‘leader’. Hence “Ganpati” means “ruler of many” or ‘leader of the ganas of Shiva.’

Bappa

‘Bappa’ means ‘father’ or ‘the lord.’

Morya

About ‘Morya’, one story goes like this…There was a great devotee of Lord Ganesh in the 14th century named Morya Gosavi. He was originally from village called Shaligram in Karnataka where his devotion was looked upon as madness. He later travelled and settled in Chinchwad, near Pune and invoked the Lord with severe penance. Morya attained siddhi (special powers and blessings) at Shree Chintamani and his son built the temple to commemorate the event.

It is said that Morya also performed penances at Siddhivinayak in Ahmedabad and Moreshwar at Morgaon where he built a temple too. Tukaram Maharaj and others have endorsed Moraya Gosavi as one who merged with Ganesha. The commencement of the Ashtavinayak pilgrimage is attributed to him.

It is said that Lord Ganesha, happy with Morya’s devotion, appeared in his dreams and granted him a boon. Morya refused any material wealth and asked that his name be forever connected with the lord himself. This can be said to indicate the inseparable bond between God and His devotee. So Lord Ganesha declared that every time His name is chanted, it should be followed by Morya. Thus the chant ‘Ganpati Bappa Morya!’ (Read about What does Lord Ganesha Represent? )

However, according to another legend, ‘Morya’ is said to be a combination of two words, ‘mhore’ and ‘ya’. In the Kolhapuri dialect ‘mhore’ and ‘ya’ collectively means ‘please come forward and bless.’

“Ganpati Bappa Morya…”

During the Ganesha processions, proceeding the immersion, devotees chant “Ganpati bappa morya, Pudhchya warshi lavkar ya; Ganpati baapa morya, Mangalmurti morya!”. The first half chant – “Ganpati bappa morya, pudhchya warshi lavkar ya” indicates that devotees are referring to Ganesha as the Lord of all (Ganpati) and a father (Bappa), who was worshipped by Morya Gosavi. They are praying to Him that He should return soon (lavkar) next (pudhcha) year (warshi).

The second half – “Ganpati baapa Morya, Mangalmurti morya!” means that our Ganpati is the bestower of serenity and one who makes things ‘auspicious’ or ‘pure’ (mangal). ‘Murti’ means an ‘idol’ or ‘form’. So we can say ‘Purity in its ultimate form’ is our Ganpati. 

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