Once, Vishnu had to meet Shiva urgently. On reaching Mount Kailash, he placed his divine wheel (Sudarshan Chakra) at a safe place and went in to meet Shiva. After meeting Shiva, Vishnu came out to take his Sudarshan Chakra. But to his dismay, it was not there. He searched high and low for his Chakra, but couldn’t find it anywhere in Mount Kailash. Then, using his celestial powers, Vishnu was able to see that the Chakra had been swallowed by Ganesha! In order to get back his Chakra, Vishnu began praying to Ganesha. But Ganesha could not be pleased easily. So Vishnu pulled on his earlobes with his arms crossed and started bending down and then getting up. When Ganesha saw Vishnu in this posture, he could not control his laughter and out flew the Chakra from his stomach into Vishnu’s hands! Since then, the act of bending down and stretching back, while holding the earlobes with crossed hands became a mode of worshipping Ganesha.
Ganesha Swallows Sudarshan Chakra
