Every time I participate in NaNoWriMo there are obstacles. I call upon Ganesh and celebrate Deepavali to honor them.
We might as well face it, overcoming obstacles is the cornerstone of literature. Our protagonists overcome impossible odds in desperate attempts to shoulder unbearable burdens to come through for the win (or die trying.) Small wonder that writers in general, and NaNoWriMo participants in particular, take pleasure in discussing the obstacles they must face to tell their stories. We have a love/hate relationship with obstacles. One one hand, we want writing it to be easy and fun, on the other we want credit for the hard work of creation. The story is in the struggle for authors as well as for their characters.
We are not the only writers to struggle with obstacles. When Vyasa tried to write the great Hindu epic, Mahabharata, he had a wicked case of writers block. In his mind, he saw the great truth he wanted to convey but when he started to write, his hands could not keep pace with the vastness of his vision. This is such a common affliction of writers all over the world, I’m sure you’ve been there. I know I have! Vyasa did what any devoted Hindu would do when seeking to write universal truth, he meditated and prayed. After some discussion, the gods came to the decision that Ganesh should act as scribe to the mind of Vyasa.
Now Ganesh is the famed remover of obstacles and patron of the arts in the Hindu pantheon. Who better to appeal to for the creation of an epic work of literature? Ganesh had a condition though. He would only serve to translate Vyasa’s vision into words if Vyasa agreed to pour it out quickly and all at once. That is, constant narration, no breaks, no hesitation. Ganesh explained that truth was most pure if uncensored, free, and spontaneous from the void.
Kind of like the philosophy behind NaNoWriMo. Writing WriMos do not edit as they go. They do not take days off, they churn out that word count. They do not edit themselves. They just pour it out onto the page.
<iframe width=”560″ height=”315″ src=”//www.youtube.com/embed/vRCLbQ5DQVg” frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen></iframe>
Of course Vyasa agreed! He was so happy to have the help of Ganesh and trusted him completely. They prepared, and then began. Vyasa communicating in pure stream of consciousness and Ganesh translating the epic truth into volume after volume of Mahabharata.
But great literature is not achieved without great sacrifice. The frail pens could not keep pace and broke, their nibs ruined. Frustrated with the distraction of having to continually make new pens, Ganesh made a decision. He broke his own sacred tusk from his mouth and used that to complete the work. His own sacred ivory would not break no matter how long Ganesh wrote.
At last the work was done. Ganesh respectfully took his leave from Vyasa leaving behind the Mahabharata, fully formed and complete. Vyasa looked at it in awe. There it was! his vision, just as he conceived.
Ever since, writers have invoked Lord Ganesh at the beginning of each new work.
Is it a coincidence that National Novel Writing Month occurs in November and closely coincides with Deepavali (Diwali) the Hindu festival of lights honoring Ganesh and celebrating a new beginning? I think not.
Read ~ Write ~ Wander
~Angie
How about you? Will you be invoking spiritual or supernatural aid for your NaNoWriMo efforts? What will you be doing?
(youtube video property of Shemaroo Kids. They have some pretty cool stuff. If you liked that, you might want to check them out.)