The Lord Who Comes First
A demon's wish, a boy made of turmeric, a moon that laughed, and a curse that reached all the way to Krishna. The full story of Vinayaka, in twelve parts.
Gajasura prays until Shiva agrees to live inside his belly, and it takes Vishnu, Nandi and a troupe of divine street performers to win him back. On Kailasa, Parvati shapes a son from turmeric paste and sets him at her door, and Shiva, not knowing him, cuts off his head. The boy returns with the head Gajasura was promised, tames the demon Mushikasura as his mouse, wins the lordship of the ganas by walking around his parents, and eats so much on his first birthday that the moon laughs at him. Parvati's curse on the moon ruins the wives of the seven sages and, ages later, brands Sri Krishna a thief over the Syamantaka jewel, until Krishna follows the trail to the bear king Jambavan's cave and gives the world the festival of Vinayaka Chavithi.
