Stories of Lord Ganesha are full of wisdom, devotion, and valuable life lessons for children. Told in simple and easy English, these stories help young readers improve their language skills while learning about important values such as obedience, intelligence, sacrifice, respect for parents, and determination. Lord Ganesha is loved by children for his elephant head, kind nature, and clever thinking.
This collection, “The Story of Lord Ganesha,” includes popular and child-friendly tales like The Birth of Lord Ganesha, Ganesha and the Race Around the World, The Story of the Broken Tusk, and Ganesha and the Mango of Wisdom. Each story explains why Lord Ganesha is known as the god of wisdom and remover of obstacles.
Part of our English Stories for English Learners series, these short stories are perfect for bedtime reading, classroom storytelling, and moral education, helping children learn English while understanding timeless lessons from Indian mythology.
The Story of Lord Ganesh
Once upon a time, in a beautiful palace on Mount Kailash, there lived a great god named Lord Shiva.
He had a loving wife, Goddess Parvati. They both were very powerful and kind.
One day, Goddess Parvati wanted to take a bath.
She didn’t want anyone to disturb her, so she created a little boy from clay. This boy was very handsome and strong.
She brought him to life and named him Ganesha.
She told Ganesha to stand at the door and guard it while she was inside.
Ganesha stood at the door with a strong and brave heart.
After some time, Lord Shiva came home.
He saw Ganesha standing at the door and wanted to enter the house.
But Ganesha didn’t know who Lord Shiva was and stopped him.
“Stop! You cannot enter,” Ganesha said bravely.
Lord Shiva was surprised. “Who are you, and why are you stopping me?” he asked.
“I am Ganesha, and my mother told me to guard the door. No one can go inside,” Ganesha replied.
Lord Shiva became very angry.
He tried to enter, but Ganesha was determined to do his duty.
In his anger, Lord Shiva cut off Ganesha’s head with his powerful weapon, the trident.
When Goddess Parvati came out and saw what had happened, she was very sad and angry.
She told Lord Shiva that Ganesha was their son.
Lord Shiva felt very sorry for what he had done.
He promised to bring Ganesha back to life.
Lord Shiva sent his followers to find the head of the first living creature they saw.
They found an elephant, took its head, and brought it to Lord Shiva.
Lord Shiva placed the elephant’s head on Ganesha’s body and brought him back to life.
Ganesha was alive again, but now he had the head of an elephant.
Goddess Parvati was happy to see her son back, and Lord Shiva blessed Ganesha.
He made Ganesha the god of wisdom and the remover of obstacles.
From that day on, everyone started praying to Lord Ganesha before beginning any new task.
He became one of the most loved gods in Hinduism, known for his wisdom and kindness.
And that is the story of how Lord Ganesha got his elephant head.
One day, Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati were sitting with their two sons, Ganesha and Kartikeya.
Both boys were very clever and loved their parents very much.
Lord Shiva decided to have a little competition between his sons.
He told them, “Let’s have a race. Whoever goes around the world three times and returns first will win a special prize!”
Kartikeya, who had a fast peacock as his vehicle, quickly jumped on it and flew off to circle the world.
He was confident that he would win because his peacock could fly so fast.
Ganesha, on the other hand, had a small mouse as his vehicle.
He knew that his mouse couldn’t compete with Kartikeya’s fast peacock.
But Ganesha was wise and thoughtful.
He knew that the world was big, and it would take a long time to travel around it.
Then, Ganesha had an idea!
He thought of his parents, Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati, as the most important people in his life.
He realized that to him, they were the whole world.
So instead of racing around the world, Ganesha walked around his parents three times with devotion and love.
After completing three circles around them, he bowed down and said, “I have finished my race!”
When Kartikeya returned, he was surprised to see that Ganesha had already won. He asked Ganesha how he did it.
Ganesha smiled and said, “For me, you both are my entire world.
So, by walking around you, I have gone around the world.”
Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati were very pleased with Ganesha’s wisdom and love.
They blessed him and declared him the winner of the race.
Ganesha won the special prize because he showed that love and wisdom are more important than speed.
And that is why, to this day, Ganesha is known as the god of wisdom and understanding.
Once upon a time, there was a wise sage named Vyasa.
He was very knowledgeable and wanted to write down the great Indian epic called the Mahabharata.
However, it was such a long and complicated story that he needed someone very special to write it down quickly as he narrated it.
Sage Vyasa thought of Lord Ganesha, who was known for his intelligence and ability to write very fast.
He prayed to Ganesha and asked him for help.
Ganesha agreed to help Sage Vyasa but with one condition.
He said, “I will write down the story, but you must not stop speaking. If you stop, I will stop writing.”
Sage Vyasa accepted this condition, but he also had a condition of his own.
He said, “You must understand every word I say before you write it down.”
Ganesha smiled and agreed. The writing began.
Sage Vyasa started narrating the story of the Mahabharata, and Ganesha wrote it down with his tusk.
The story was so long that they kept going for many days and nights without stopping.
As Ganesha was writing, his pen suddenly broke.
He couldn’t continue without a pen, but he didn’t want to break his promise and stop writing.
So, without hesitating, Ganesha broke off one of his own tusks and used it as a pen to keep writing.
Sage Vyasa was very impressed with Ganesha’s dedication and determination.
Thanks to Ganesha’s efforts, the Mahabharata was written down completely and became one of the greatest epics in the world.
Because of this story, Ganesha is also known as “Ekadanta,” which means “the one with one tusk.”
His broken tusk reminds everyone of his great sacrifice and dedication to completing his task.
And that is the story of how Lord Ganesha lost one of his tusks but became even more famous for his wisdom and determination.
Once upon a time, in the heavens, Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati received a magical mango from a wise sage.
This mango was no ordinary fruit—it was the Mango of Wisdom. Whoever ate it would gain immense knowledge and wisdom.
Ganesha and his younger brother Kartikeya both wanted the mango. They began to argue over who should get to eat it.
To solve the problem, Lord Shiva suggested a competition.
He said, “Whoever goes around the world first and returns here will win the mango.”
Kartikeya was very excited. He quickly climbed onto his fast peacock and flew off to race around the world.
He was determined to win the mango.
Ganesha, on the other hand, knew that his small mouse couldn’t race against Kartikeya’s speedy peacock.
But Ganesha was clever. He thought for a moment and realized something important.
Instead of trying to travel around the entire world, Ganesha simply walked around his parents, Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati, three times.
After doing this, he stood in front of them and said, “I have completed my journey around the world.”
Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati smiled and asked Ganesha, “Why didn’t you go around the world like Kartikeya?”
Ganesha replied, “To me, you both are my world. By walking around you, I have traveled around the world with love and respect.”
Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati were very pleased with Ganesha’s wisdom and love for them.
They declared Ganesha the winner of the competition and gave him the Mango of Wisdom.
When Kartikeya returned after his long journey, he was surprised to see that Ganesha had already won.
But he understood that Ganesha’s wisdom and love for their parents made him the rightful winner.
And so, Ganesha gained the Mango of Wisdom, showing that true wisdom comes from love, respect, and clever thinking.
