Lambodarar

 

The next name is lambodarar, with the pot belly. Lambam means hangs, utaram means belly. Means has a big pot belly. Lord Ganesha is called by the foreigners as pot bellied. In the ahaval it comes as "pezhai vayirum". He keeps a modaka filled with the coconut (called poornam), reminding us that he is the embodiment of the totality. So he has a full round stomach. It symbolizes full contentment. Because it encompasses the various universes it is egg shaped.

 

In the modakam the white dough covers the sweet poornam. Modakam means happiness, or that which gives happiness. The lord Ganesha is the embodiment of such happiness, and is the modaka. He gives the sweet love to all and gives happiness (love is honey in Sanskrit). Ma means male elephant. We can say that the lord has taken the form of the elephant, as the embodiment of happiness, encompassing the absolute reality of brahma which is nothing but love, like how the dough is covering the sweet poornam in the modaka. To demonstrate that the inside is the nice sweet poornam, the round modaka, and pot belly for him. There is no beginning or end for a ball. There is it is the symbol for the absolute reality (Brahman). He has a pot belly to symbolize that principle.

 

When we see some with a big belly we feel happy as we think that he is strong or healthy. When a child is like that we are happier. When do not become happy seeing a skinny thin person. We also relate the skinny body with the actual qualities of a person. The person with a pot belly is a harmless and innocent person. Also we feel funny watching a fat pot bellied person, and feel like laughing. The lord Ganesha who has a smily face, also makes us laugh with his pot belly. Because people are caught with so many difficulties, and so the lord Ganesha seems to have decided to make us laugh and let us forget our miseries, instead of giving difficult instructions and philosophies.

 

Especially the children are extremely happy, to watch the pot bellied lord Ganesha. To suit this, purandara dasar has created a nice song for teaching young children, "lambodara lakumikara" lakumikara means lakshmi kara – the giver of all auspiciousness.