“I just wish this would go away.”
A thought we’ve probably all had. About a situation, a feeling, a difficult phase or sometimes even a thought that refuses to leave us alone. We all want things to get better and quickly. Perhaps, getting better doesn’t always mean making the difficulty disappear.
Ganesh Chaturthi often comes with a familiar wish; “dear bappa, may our obstacles be removed.” There is something deeply human about that wish. We all have things we would like to make easier, lighter or simply different. But what if, sometimes, the answer isn’t about removing the obstacles? What if it’s about understanding how we want to move through it?
The idea of an obstacle, however, can be more complicated that it first appears. We usually think of obstacles as something standing in our way; something to overcome so that we can get back to where we were headed. In our own lives, though, an obstacle can take many forms. It might be circumstance we never chose a pattern we keep repeating, a difficult relationship, an emotion we don’t know how to hold or a part of ourselves we haven’t quite understood yet.
When life feels overwhelming, we often look for the quickest way to feel better. We keep ourselves occupied, push uncomfortable thoughts aside, avoid conversations or tell ourselves that we simply need to stop thinking about it. Yet sometimes, the very thing we are trying to move past is asking us to pause and look a little closer.
Perhaps an obstacles is not always something that needs to be fought. Sometimes, it can be something that needs to be understood.
That doesn’t mean every difficult experience has a lesson waiting inside it, or that we should simply accept whatever comes out way. Some obstacles need action. Some need change. Some need us to set boundaries and some are simply beyond our control.
What we can begin to explore is how we meet them.
Do we immediately see ourselves as failing when something doesn’t work out? Do we become impatient with ourselves when we don’t have an answer? Do we carry the pressure of having to figure everything out on our own?
Perhaps mental wellbeing lies, in part, in giving ourselves the space to ask these questions.
Ganesh Chaturthi is also a reminder of faith, hope and moving forward and maybe that is where the idea of obstacles becomes a little more personal. We may not be able to choose the road ahead or know what lies around the corner. We can, however, choose to meet ourselves with a little more patience along the way.
Sometimes moving forward means solving what is in front of us. Sometimes it means accepting what we cannot change. And sometimes, it means reaching out and having a conversation.
We call Ganesha, “Vighnaharta” (the remover of obstacles). There is something comforting in that name, especially when life feels difficult. Having our obstacles removed doesn't always have to mean that every difficulty disappears. Sometimes, what we need is the clarity to understand what is in our way, the courage to face it, and the strength to find a way through.
Maybe that's what we can take from the familiar wish of Ganesh Chaturthi, not just “remove my obstacles,” but also, “help me find my way through them.”
Because the goal isn't a life without obstacles.
It is learning to face them with a little more clarity, courage and compassion.
And sometimes, that journey can begin with something as simple as a conversation.
मन Charcha
Conversations of the mind.
