In accordance with Hinduism, it is customary to worship and invoke Lord Shri Ganesha before initiating any auspicious endeavor. It is believed that without the initial worship of Lord Shri Ganesha, no puja can be successful. Therefore, before worshipping any other deity, Lord Shri Ganesha is worshipped first. He is revered as the foremost deity, and his worship is said to remove all obstacles, hence he is also known as Vighnaharta, the remover of obstacles.

When the name of Lord Shri Ganesha is mentioned, it evokes various stories in people’s minds, with one of the most prevalent being the tale of his severed head. Often, the question arises: why was Lord Shri Ganesha’s head severed? Why does he have the head of an elephant? And most importantly, if answers to these questions are found, where did his head go after being severed? These questions spark curiosity in everyone’s minds.

According to the Shiv Purana, the reason for Lord Shri Ganesha’s head being severed is as follows:

According to the Shiv Purana, the birth of Lord Shri Ganesha is believed to have originated from the dirt of Mother Parvati’s body. It is said that Mother Parvati created a form from the dirt of her body and breathed life into it, thus giving birth to a living child.

As per the Shiv Purana, when Mother Parvati was about to enter the bath, she instructed this little child not to allow anyone to enter the chamber. As Mother Parvati entered the inner sanctum for her bath, Lord Shiva arrived. In obedience to his mother’s command, the child refused to let Lord Shiva enter. Enraged by the child’s insolence, Lord Shiva severed his head with his trident.

Upon hearing Mother Parvati’s cries and lamentations, the entire universe trembled with fear. Witnessing this, Lord Shiva, in order to pacify Mother Parvati, replaced the severed head of Lord Shri Ganesha with that of a baby elephant. Since then, Lord Shri Ganesha is depicted with the head of an elephant and is worshipped in this form.