Gajananam Bhuta

गजाननं भूतगणादि सेवितं
कपित्थजम्बूफलसार भक्षितम् ।
उमासुतं शोकविनाशकारणं
नमामि विघ्नेश्वर पादपङ्कजम् ॥

gajānanaṃ bhūtagaṇādi sevitaṃ
kapitthajambūphalasāra bhakṣitam .
umāsutaṃ śokavināśakāraṇaṃ
namāmi vighneśvara pādapaṅkajam ..

I bow to you, the Lord with the face of an elephant (Gajanana), one who is served by the celestial attendants (Bhoota ganas) and other beings.
The one who consumes the extract of Kapitha (wood apple) and Jambul fruits (Jamun).
O the son of Goddess Uma, who is responsible for destroying all sorrows.
I reverently bow to the lotus feet of Lord Vigneshwara (who removes all obstacles).

Description

The Gajananam Bhutaganadhi Sevitam mantra is one of the most loved morning prayers offered to Lord Ganesha, the God of Auspiciousness and Success. This prayer is also chanted before starting any new activity.

Gajananam – Gaja means elephant and anan means face or mouth. The elephant faced god.
Bhoota Ganadhi Sevitam – Bhuta means soul and gana means servants, meaning come to be served by Celestial Attendants or Followers.
Kapittha Jambu Phalacharu Bhakshanam – means who Eats the Core of Kapittha (Wood Apple) and Jambu (Rose Apple) fruits.
Uma Sutam – means son of Uma ( Parvati, wife of Lord Shiva and is also considered as adi shakti).
Shoka Vinasha Karanam – means the one who can destroy all the reasons of the sadness.
Namami Vigneshwara pada Pankajam – Namami means Bow or Prostrate; Vigneshwara pada Pankajam is the Lotus feet. I Prostrate at the Lotus-Feet of Vigneshwara (the God Who Removes Obstacles).

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Ganapati means “Lord of the people” (gana-“Host, group of people”, pati-“father, Lord”) and is also known as
Ganesha Gana-Esha, again referring to a Lord (Isha) of the Host/People.
Lord Ganesha, who is known as the Lord of New Beginnings, is also worshipped as the Remover of Obstacles.

Sri Swami Chinmayananda describes the symbolism of Lord Ganesha as follows:

The Lord of Obstacles, Sri Vighneswara has four arms representing the four inner equipments, the Anthahakarana(Mind, Intellect, Memory and Ego).
In one hand He has the ROPE and in the other He has an AXE. On the spiritual pilgrimage, all obstacles are created by the very subjective and objective worlds in the seeker himself. Sri
Vighneswara chops them off with the AXE. He cuts off the attachments of His devotees to the world of plurality and thus ends all the consequent sorrows. He holds the attention of the seeker constantly towards the Higher, and pulls us nearer and nearer to the Truth and ultimately ties him down to the Highest Goal with the ROPE. With one hand, He blesses all His devotees and protects (ABHAYA) them from all obstacles on their spiritual path of seeking the Supreme, and with the other hand He feeds the seeker with MODAKA, representing the reward of the joys of sadhana — the “Joy of Experiencing the Reality”.

Sri Sai Baba on Significance of Vinayaka Worship
By Sri Sathya Sai Baba

The following are a few more salient features of Ganesha’s symbolism that we ought to know

1. He is the first God to awaken in our consciousness and the first God to preside over our inner transformation.

2. As Vighneswara, the remover of obstacles, he removes ignorance, the biggest obstacle in our spiritual transformation.

3. Seated in the Muladhara chakra, he opens the blockages of inertia (tamas) present in the body and facilitates the passage of Kundalini and the free flow of spiritual energy.

4. As the harbinger of good, messenger of God and lord of the divinities, he fulfills the desires of his devotees and opens to them the doors of prosperity and abundance.

5. He is not only the son of Siva but also of Parvathi (nature). Since he is born out of their union, he personifies life, duality and manifestation in its diverse aspects.

5. His vehicle is the lowly mouse. His association with it symbolizes his lordship or control over fear, hesitation, weakness, doubt and nervousness, which the mouse symbolizes. He removes these obstacles to facilitate success and achievement for those who pray to him.

6. Lord Ganesha is the enjoyer of food. As the eater of various forms of food, he symbolizes Brahman, the ultimate recipient of all sacrificial offerings, In the body he symbolizes the individual Self, which is described in the Vedas as the enjoyer and the witness consciousness.

7. Lord Ganesha is the lord of Siva ganas. In the body, the ganas symbolize desires, thoughts and impulses. They are responsible for the instability and the modifications of the mind. They are also responsible for our distractions and failures in life. As their lord, Ganesha helps us in stabilizing our minds and experiencing peace and sameness.

Lord Ganesha is our friend and benefactor in the fulfillment of the four aims of human life, namely duty (dharma), wealth (artha), enjoyment (kama) and liberation (moksha). He helps both the householders as well as the ascetics in realizing their goals. He is also described as a galactic god, who keeps balance among various worlds. He is the true son of God, Isvara, the Lord of the Universe.