Nagpur: Ganeshotsav, which was started by Bal Gangadhar Lokmanya Tilak, has now gone from local to global and is working to unite the society across all caste-religion boundaries. One such ideal example was seen at Nagpur’s Parvatinagar (Rameshwari) locality, according to a report in a local Marathi daily.
The report said that Suzanne Sohail Khan from the Muslim community has been worshipping Bappa in his home for the past ten years. As per tradition, this year also he has installed Lord Ganesh idol at his house. 18-year-old Suzanne worships Bappa every morning and evening with devotion, performs aarti and distributes prasad.
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Thursday 09 Jan. 2025
According to the report, Suzanne’s parents are also immersed in unbroken devotion for ten days. The entire family performs the aarti of Bappa every day during the festival. As the Khan family’s devotion and faith in Lord Ganesh conveys the message that all religions are one, one can see here that other Hindu-Muslim citizens of the area are coming to Bappa’s darshan.
Ganeshotsav is no longer limited to any caste-religion, the people of Nagpur are seeing an example of how it has become a symbol of pan-religious harmony.
Suzanne’s father Sohail Khan says, “Be it Ganeshotsav or Eid, every festival is a symbol of pan-religious harmony. Aarti and Namaz are ultimately one and the same. Only there are different ways of celebrating these festivals. Seeing Suzanne’s devotion to Lord Ganesh, we encouraged him. On the occasion of Ganeshotsav, we all devote ourselves to Bappa for ten days. We are satisfied with this. I am most happy that the message of unity is being sent to the society through this medium,” he emphasized.
How it all started:
According to the report, when Suzanne was five or six years old, he used to attend Ganeshotsav at friends’ houses. He wanted to have Bappa in his home. So he started making clay idols at home. This went on every year. His parents were also surprised to see this act of Suzanne. At first they ignored it. But after seeing Suzanne’s Ganesh Bhakti and strong desire, they finally realized. Ten years ago, Sohail Khan bought an idol of Lord Ganesh and installed it at home. Since then, the Khan family has continued this tradition till today.
