ganesh chaturthi, also called vinayaka chaturthi, in hinduism, 10-day festival marking the birth of the elephant-headed deity ganesha, the god of prosperity and wisdom. it begins on the fourth day (chaturthi) of the month of bhadrapada (august???????september), the sixth month of the hindu calendar. -lord ganesh is worshiped first before starting anything new. lord ganesha clears the obstacles and paves the way for us to move forward in life. the large elephant head of lord ganesha symbolizes wisdom, understanding, and a discriminating intellect that one must possess to attain perfection in life - ganesha, who is also known as the lord of new beginnings, is also worshipped as the remover of obstacles. it is believed that when the idol of the ganesha is taken out for immersion, it also takes away with it the various obstacles of the house and these obstacles are destroyed along with the visarjan. -the highlight of this year's ganesh festival was the popularity of eco-friendly celebrations. it took 63 days to make the 63 ft clay idol and six hours to dissolve the idol.