Why Eco Friendly Ganesha ?
Maharashtra’s most celebrated festival Ganesh Chaturthi is around the corner and it’s time to bring home our eco-friendly Ganesh Ji. The Ganpati idols which are used typically are made up of Plaster of Paris(PoP) which is not bio-degradable and painted in artificial toxic paint which is harmful to us and marine life.
These harmful chemicals bring a plague aspect to the environment by increasing the acid content of water sources and killing the aquatic life that survives in water as an essential part of our ecology. People who come in contact with this polluted water suffer from medical conditions like infections, bloody eyes, lung disease, ailments, and problems related to the skin.
Ganesh Chaturthi teaches us great values like protectiveness, care, bonding, togetherness, gratefulness, devotion, and spirituality so it is our duty to maintain those values and celebrate an eco-friendly Ganesh Chaturthi this year by using eco friendly innovative ideas.
Fish Friendly Eco Friendly Ganesha
Taking the eco friendly Ganesha to the next level – SPROUTS environment trust & Ogilvy & Mather (O&M), Mumbai have initiated this concept of eco friendly Ganesha made up of fish food which the aquatic life can consume easily without any damage to the ecosystem. This concept has created a buzz on social media with the hashtag #GodSaveTheOcean.
For more such creative sustainable plans you can check How Thaely, an initiative by Ashay Bhave, creates eco friendly shoes out of plastic waste.
“We had discussions on various parameters such as idol size, color and the process of making it. The use of the now famous hashtag came up during one of those discussions.”
said Anand Pendharkar, Founder SPROUTS in an interview
Size matters, The makers stressed about the importance of making the idol as small as possible to reduce the ecological imbalance. They make the slightest use of clay (as an outer covering) and fill the idol with fish food on the inside.
The idols are being created thanks to a combined effort by individuals from SPROUTS, O&M, and Margam, a women’s self-help group, which is part of VIDYA NGO based at IIT, Powai.
“Most of the artisans are male. So, we have trained these women on how to make the idols, turning them into artisans.”
Pendharkar also said in an interview
However, the art of handmade often brings its own challenges. Since the idols cannot be mass-produced due to their innovativeness, the team is doing its best to meet the unprecedented demand.
Chocolate Eco Friendly Ganesha
As seen all over the internet this type of eco friendly Ganesha is our personal favorite, various celebrities like Shilpa Shetty Kundra decided to go the eco-friendly way by welcoming eco friendly chocolate Ganesha into their home.
After the pooja for visarjan which is marked as a symbol of purity, you can visarjit it in a container full of milk and can distribute that chocolate milk amongst your family and friends as prasad
Many people on social media have shown their holistic indecisiveness on drinking the liquid in which the immersion took place so for those concerns about consuming God, don’t we say that God is present in each and every particle that exists in the universe?
Fruit & Vegetable Eco Friendly Ganesha
Who would have thought that you could make a Ganpati idol out of fruits and vegetables and that too is eco friendly at the same time? This can be the most convenient and easiest way of distributing the prasad as you can distribute the fruits amongst friends, family, and the unprivileged.
Various companies online are selling fruit Ganpati idols. If you want it to be a DIY project for yourself and your children as it can be a fun sensory activity for the younger ones, to make your celebration more eco friendly read 5 Ways To Go Green This Ganesh Chaturthi: Here Is How You Can Make The Festival Eco-Friendly
Tree Eco Friendly Ganesh
Tree Ganesha is a registered brand that came up with an innovative concept called Tree Ganesha that will celebrate the Ganesh Chaturthi festival without harming the environment, in addition, it gives a return gift to the environment by planting a tree.
How it works?
It is made up of red soil, organic fertilizer, natural colors, and seeds that transform into a tree when immersed in the soil of your garden as visarjan. Then later on when that soil turns into a tree the Ganpati gives his blessing in form of leaves, flowers, and fruits which will be the prasad for you and your loved ones.
Clay Eco Friendly Ganesh
Idols made up of mud and clay are a big hit as they are pocket friendly and easily accessible. If you choose to make an eco-friendly clay idol you must immerse it in a bucket full of water at home, and later on, that water can be used to water the plants and trees around your home so that the clay is recycled in an adequate way.
We wish you a very happy and sustainable Ganesh Chaturthi, May lord Ganesha bring lots of happiness in everyone’s life.
feature image source – Pixahive & pexels
If you loved this story, read a story about how Entrepreneur Earns Rs 2 Lakh/Month By Making Eco-Friendly Products; Empowers Local Artisans.
If you know more inspirational stories about any person, company, new idea, or social initiative, write to us on mad4india.com, or share such information with us on Facebook or LinkedIn.
Thank you for this informative and well-written post. It’s evident that you’ve put a lot of effort into research and crafting an engaging article. Your work is highly valuable!
Thank you very much for sharing, I learned a lot from your article. Very cool. Thanks. nimabi