The Hindu Temple of Atlanta organized a spectacular, spiritually suffused, Ganesh Nimajjanam celebration On September 15, 2013. The nine days Ganesh Chaturthi ‘s concluding day celebration had historic significance in that it had the newly installed majes

Spectacular Ganesh Nimajjanam Celebrations at the Hindu Temple of Atlanta

By Mahadev Desai
Pics.by Dr.B.K.Mohan
and Dr.Sujatha Reddy.

The Hindu Temple of Atlanta organized a spectacular, spiritually suffused, Ganesh Nimajjanam celebration On September 15, 2013. The nine days Ganesh Chaturthi ‘s concluding day celebration had historic significance in that it had the newly installed majestic Ganapathi idol specially made in Hyderabad for the Hindu Temple.
On the bright, crisp Sunday morning many devotees, guests and visitors thronged to the Temple to witness the historic Ganesh Nimajjanam(idol immersion) ceremony.

In the morning Chinmaya Mission,Atlanta Balavihar children together with their parents performed Ganesha Puja.The elaborate Puja ceremony was conducted by Mrs.Geetha Raghu,together with the Hindu Temple’s priest and Balavihar volunteers. It was heartening to see children learning to perform Puja rituals.
In the afternoon, those who did not attend the Nimajjanam ceremony at the Lake Jackson,had a treat waiting! A spectacular dance performance by the visually impaired artists from Deepa Academy for The Differently Abled,Bangalore,India.HTA Chairperson,Community Services,Dr.Sujatha Reddy gave a welcome speech and appealed to the packed auditorium to support the Academy with voluntary donations.

The highest bidder for Ladoo

All the deities in the Balaji and Siva Temples wore a dazzling look in their ornate fineries and colorful garlands. The priests here cheerfully performed archanas throughout the day blessing all the devotees who came to offer their prayers.
The new dazzling and colorful idol of Lord Ganesh, was resplendent in rich adornments, artistic decor with a blend of fruits,flowers and puja accessories and lavish garlands . At noon, the elaborate Harathi was performed by Chief Priest Srinivas Sarmaji together with associate priests of the Temple to the chanting of Om Gan Ganpate Namo Namah by the devotees.
Next,the 66 lb.ladoo made specially by the Temple’s culinary expert Sri Ramakrishna ,as Mahaprasad for Lord Ganesha was


Prakara Utsavam

offered for auction. HTA President Narender Reddy conducted a historic,amusing and high spirited auction of the ladoo. After several bids the ladoo was finally sold to the highest bidder for $8,000. The bidder who wishes to remain anonymous offered the ladoo as prasadam to the attendees.

While prasadam was being relished preparations were being made for Ganesh nimajjanam ceremony.As Temple volunteers gently carried the Ganesh idol to the waiting pickup truck,for Nimajjanam ceremony,many devotees wearing red headbands and carrying Om pennants sprinkled flower petals and colored powder on eachother, danced and chanted Ganapati Bappa Moriya to the accompaniment of loudly beating drums.The Ganesh idol was securely placed on the pickup truck and gorgeous umbrella placed over his head. All the attendees joined in fun-filled Ganeshji’s Prakara Utsavam ceremony on the Temple grounds with enthusiasm and gaiety.

It was time to bid final farewell to much-loved Ganeshji.A motorcade of about 40 cars with Police escort left for Lake Jackson. At the Lake, Ganeshji was carried on a boat ride to the middle of the Lake and as over 200 devotees watched from the decks and a second boat nearby, Ganeshji’s nimajjanam ceremony was performed with great fanfare and to the joyous shouts of Ganapati Bappa Moriya and wishes for His return the following year. As they say, “with the immersion ceremony the Form(physical) returned to the Formless(spiritual). Ganapati idol became one with the Lake water.
An elated HTA President, Narender Reddy commented, “This year HTA has decided to celebrate Ganesha Chaturthi in a way that was never done before. For the first time, we at HTA celebrated Ganesha Chaturthi as a nine day event culminating in 'Ganesha Nimajjanam' today.On Saturday night,we had a fireworks spectacular that lit up the sky above the Temple.It was just awesome. It was magical! Also, this is the first time we offered a 66 lb. Ladoo, made specially by our Chef Ramakrishna, as Maha Prasadam to Sri Ganesha. Later,as you saw, the Ladoo was sold at the auction to highest bidder at $8,000. The bidding was a pleasant surprise to all of us. We were not expecting it.We took Sri Ganesha on a Prakara Utsvam with music and dancing by the devotees. The children and adults alike were thrilled to be part of it.Later we went in a caravan of 40 vehicles, with Police Escort, to Lake Jackson for 'Nimajjanam'. We shifted Sri Ganesha to a Boat and took him to the middle of the lake. With more than 200 devotees watching from the decks and another boat, we gave a warm send off with joyous shouts of 'Ganapathi Bappa Morya', to Sri Ganesha.During the entire 9 day event, several families with their children prayed to this special idol and took pictures. As President of this esteemed organization, I was delighted to see all our goals accomplished in this un-precedented way of celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi at HTA.The success wouldn't have been possible without the help of several dedicated volunteers and members of Executive Committee. My special thanks to Jaganmohan Rao who coordinated the 'Nimajjanam' arrangments,Ravi Chander & his energetic team who helped us at every step, Priests Sreenivasa Sarma ,Pawan Kumar, Shiva Naga Kumar and volunteer Priests. Our Priests worked over time and on some days without even taking any breaks. My sincere thanks to Raju Vanapalli, Bharadwaj and Mike Mallone who were extremely helpful in taking Sri Ganesha for Nimajjanam.These celebrations will remain unforgettable for HTA.”