cover image Loving Ganesa: Hinduism'a Endearing Elephant-Faced God

Loving Ganesa: Hinduism'a Endearing Elephant-Faced God

Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, Subramuniya. Atrium Publishers Group, $19.95 (800pp) ISBN 978-0-945497-64-6

This celebration in print of an ancient Hindu tradition of great wisdom and potency is, as its cover copy says, primarily ""an illustrated resource"" of Ganesa materials suitable for the conduct of daily worship and study. The inclusion of crossword puzzles and two chapters on vegetarianism and ayurveda make for a collapse of focus in an erratic and uneven collection of priestly essays, testimonials, Ganesa lore, hymns and Sunday school-type handouts. Fascinating and endlessly intriguing as it may be, the book would have benefited from a less global goal. Nevertheless, as one of few available in its field, it is an important text for English-speaking readers and should remain as an all-you-wanted-to-know-but-were-afraid-to-ask book about Ganesa, the divine and much-loved remover of obstacles. (May)