In
Maharashtra, Ganesh Chaturthi is the
most popular festival. Ganesh, the elephant faced deity is the
son of Shiva and Parvati and the lord of all auspicious beginnings.
He is the remover of all obstacles and is to be propitiated
before any other deity. Colossal images of Ganesh are built
and carried all round the city before they are finally submerged
in water. The city of Mumbai remains in a feverish pitch of
excitement throughout this period.
The
Buddhists in Ladakh and in the north-east,
celebrate the birth of the mystic master with supernatural powers,
Guru Rimpoche Padmasambhava (Lotus Born) with frenzied
mask dances - Chaams, and ritual display of painted scrolls
(Tangkhas). The monasteries of Hemis in Ladakh, Tawang
in Arunachal Pradesh and Rumtek in Sikkim, are particularly
renowned for these performances. These ritual dances illustrate
the incorporation of pre-Buddhist Shamanistic beliefs into the
Buddhist faith.