14 Fascinating Lord Ganesha Stories for Kids with Morals

Amongst a multitude of gods that are present in the pantheon of Hindu mythology, Lord Ganesha is perhaps one of the most popular ones. His idols are omnipresent in nearly every corner of the country, and there is a huge interest in celebrating Ganesha Chaturthi. That might also be due to the very source of the name Ganesha, which has been formed from two words. “Gana” means the masses of people, and “isha” is used to refer to a god. This, quite literally, makes Ganesha the Lord of the masses. He has been worshipped for many years, and Lord Ganesha’s stories for kids have gained quite a lot of popularity among people.

Why Should Children Listen or Read Lord Ganesha Stories?

Listening to or reading the moral stories of Lord Ganesha helps children understand valuing and respecting their parents and elders. Lord Ganesha is also known as the Deva of intellect, prosperity, wisdom, and the remover of obstacles. Reading these stories will help children instil His teachings and morals in them.

Interesting Stories of Lord Ganesha for Kids

Kids may not be interested in the long pujas and worship procedures of Lord Ganesha. However, you can introduce them to various stories that surround this mythological deity and let them be awestruck by how wonderful some of them are.

1. The Story of His Birth

Let’s begin from the start with the lord Ganesha’s birth story.

Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati lived on Mount Kailash. While Shiva was away, Parvati created a boy named Ganesha from turmeric to guard her home while she bathed. When Shiva returned, Ganesha blocked his entry, not knowing who he was. Enraged and unaware that the boy was Parvati’s creation, Shiva beheaded him.

Parvati, devastated and furious, threatened to destroy the universe. To calm her, Brahma and Shiva promised to bring Ganesha back to life. Shiva sent his troops to fetch the head of the first living creature they found—an elephant. The elephant’s head was placed on Ganesha’s body, and he was revived and declared Shiva’s son. From then on, Ganesha came to be worshipped as the remover of obstacles and the god of beginnings.

Moral

As much as this story talks about the birth, it teaches us an important lesson on how anger can cause harm to our near and dear ones and how necessary it is to rectify our mistakes as soon as we can.

2. The Story of the Missing Conch

This is a wonderful story that showed how even Lord Vishnu had to relent to Lord Ganesha’s antics.

Lord Vishnu was deeply attached to his conch, which he kept with him at all times. One day, he realized it had gone missing and grew very annoyed. Determined to find it, he used all his powers to search for it. Eventually, he heard the familiar sound of the conch coming from a distance and followed it to Mount Kailash. There, he discovered that Lord Ganesha had taken the conch and was happily blowing it.

Vishnu requested Ganesha to return the conch, but Ganesha refused. So, Vishnu turned to Lord Shiva for help. Shiva explained that even he could not influence Ganesha’s will and advised Vishnu to perform a puja in Ganesha’s honor. Vishnu humbly followed the suggestion and conducted the puja with full devotion. Pleased with Vishnu’s sincere worship, Ganesha finally returned the conch to him.

Moral

The story quite interestingly reveals the fun side to Lord Ganesha and his antics. Furthermore, it teaches us about humility by showing how God as great as Vishnu, did not hesitate to worship Ganesha.

3. The Story of Shiva’s Failed Battle

Lord Shiva and Lord Ganesha have many stories together. However, this story goes beyond the relationship between father and son and teaches a very important lesson.

When the elephant head was procured and Ganesha was brought back to life, Shiva heeded Parvati’s wishes and made it a rule that before beginning any new endeavor, it was necessary to worship Lord Ganesha and get his blessings. However, Shiva forgot that the rule applied to him as well.

On one such occasion, Shiva was heading out to war with the demons and proceeded to take his entire army along with him for it. But, in the rush of leaving for the battle, he forgot to worship Ganesha first. This led to them facing many problems even before reaching the battlefield. On the way to the location of the battle, the war-carriage wheel was damaged and the progress came to a halt. This seemed like divine intervention to Shiva and he suddenly remembered that he had totally forgotten to worship Ganesha before heading for battle.

Stopping all his troops, Shiva proceeded to set up the puja then and there and completed the rituals worshipping Ganesha. With Ganesha’s blessings, Shiva proceeded ahead and he and his army were successful in defeating the demons completely.

Moral

This just goes to show that no matter who you are, once you have created a rule, it applies to everyone equally.

4. The Story of Ganesha’s Wisdom

Ganesha and his younger brother Karthikeya once found a magical fruit in the forest, said to grant immense knowledge and immortality. Both wanted it and refused to share, so they took the matter to their parents, Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. To decide who should have it, Shiva challenged them to circle their world three times. Karthikeya flew off quickly on his peacock, determined to win.

Ganesha, knowing his mouse couldn’t match the speed, chose a different path. He respectfully walked around his parents three times, explaining that to him, they were his entire world. Touched by his deep wisdom and devotion, Shiva declared Ganesha the winner and gave him the fruit, showing why Ganesha is revered as the god of knowledge.

Moral

Not only does this story give a great example of how using your wisdom can help resolve a situation smartly, but it also teaches that your parents should be given the respect and love they deserve.

5. The Story of Parvati’s Wounds

This wonderful story is a great example of how the entire world is a single unit.

Ganesha was known to be a mischievous child and he would indulge in a number of naughty activities. One time, he came across a cat while he was playing, and proceeded to mess around with it. He picked up the cat and threw it on the ground, pulling its tail and having fun with it, while the cat meowed in pain. Ganesha failed to notice it and played around until he was tired and then came back home.

On reaching Mount Kailash, Ganesha was shocked to see Parvati lying down outside the home, with wounds all over her body, and crying in pain. Ganesha rushed to her and asked her who did this. To which Parvati replied that Ganesha himself had done this to her. The cat was actually a form of Parvati, and she wanted to play around with her son, but Ganesha treated her unfairly and ruthlessly and his actions on the cat have reflected on his own mother.

Ganesha was utterly sorry for his behaviour and took an oath to treat all animals in a gentle manner with care and affection.

Moral

This story gives a very important lesson that does unto others as you would want others to do unto you, and this also includes animals.

6. The Story of Kubera’s Downfall

Kubera was a renowned God who was very popular for being the wealthiest of them all in the entire universe. He had a treasure trove of wealth and would hoard everything to himself with pride.

One day, he invited many guests over for dinner, including Shiva and Parvati. But they both could not attend the dinner, so they sent over Ganesha as their representative. Ganesha noticed how Kubera’s behaviour was and he decided to let his antics loose. He began devouring the dinner speedily and ended up finishing all the food leaving barely anything for the other guests. Yet his hunger was not satiated. So he ended up entering Kubera’s wealth collection and start eating all the gold and wealthy items. Still unsatisfied, Ganesha then proceeded to eat Kubera himself, who ran to Mount Kailash for protection.

Shiva, seeing the reason behind Ganesha’s doing, offered a simple bowl of cereals to Ganesha. He ate them and immediately was satisfied. Kubera learned not to amass wealth greedily and agreed to distribute it amongst everyone.

Moral

The story shows how greed and pride can be harmful to a person and it is necessary to be considerate towards everyone.

7. The Story of Kaveri’s Creation

It begins with the wish of a sage called Agastya who wished to create a river that would benefit the people staying in the southern lands. The Gods heeded his wish and presented him with a small bowl containing water. Wherever he would pour the bowl, the river would originate from there.

Agastya decided to create the origin beyond the mountains of Coorg and proceeded to travel there. On the journey, he got tired and began looking for a place to take some rest. Just then, he came across a small boy who was standing alone. He requested him to hold the pot of water while he went and relieved himself. The boy was Ganesha himself. He knew what the pot of water was for and realized that the location he was at was perfect for the river, so he set the pot down.

When Agastya came back, he saw the pot on the ground and a crow attempting to drink water from it. He shooed away the crow, who flew away but not before tipping the pot on the ground. This resulted in the river originating from that place itself, which is now called the Kaveri river.

Moral

Sometimes, things may not always work out in the way we wish them to. Nevertheless, what happens does happen for a good reason.

8. The Story of Ganesha’s Single Tusk

There are many versions that explain this but this Bal Ganesh story does it best.

As legend has it, Mahabharata is Ved Vyas’ creation, but it is said to be written by Lord Ganesha himself. Ved Vyas approached Ganesha so that he could transcribe the epic story as he narrated it to him. The condition was that Vyas had to narrate it without break and Ganesha would write it in a single go.

As they progressed in writing the story, there came a point where the quill that Ganesha was using to write it down broke and he had no other quills with him at that moment. Ved Vyas could not stop narrating the story since the condition was already set in stone for him. Without wasting any time, Ganesha quickly broke off one of his own tusks and fashioned it into a pen, using it to continue writing the epic without interruption. This allowed the epic to become a holy one and Ganesha and Vyas ended up completing it together.

Moral

This story of Ganesha shows very clearly how necessary it is to be disciplined and determined to complete a task once you have accepted to complete it, no matter what happens. A personal sacrifice might also be necessary to complete something epic.

9. The Story of the Lunar Curse

After enjoying a lavish feast hosted by Kubera, Ganesha’s stomach grew so large that he struggled to walk and eventually fell down. The moon witnessed this and laughed at Ganesha, mocking his appearance and fall. Feeling insulted, Ganesha cursed the moon to disappear completely. However, when the moon sincerely apologized, Ganesha softened and modified the curse—allowing the moon to wax and wane in a 15-day cycle.

In another version, after overeating modaks prepared by Parvati, Ganesha rode out on his mouse. Startled by a snake, the mouse stumbled and Ganesha was thrown to the ground, causing his belly to burst open and spill the modaks. He quickly stuffed them back and tied a snake around his waist to hold his stomach in. The moon, watching again, burst into laughter. Furious, Ganesha cursed him once more—declaring that anyone who looked at the moon on Ganesh Chaturthi would face false accusations.

Moral

One should never laugh at somebody else’s problems or deformities. This is impolite and is not a sign of good behaviour.

10. The Story of The Sweet Kheer

Ganesha once entered a village in the form of a boy, holding some rice in one hand and milk in the other. He began asking for help to make some kheer but everybody was busy.

He reached a poor woman’s hut who agreed to make the kheer for him. As she mixed it together and set the pot to cook, she fell asleep and the boy went out to play. On waking up, she realized the kheer had cooked and was extremely delicious.

She was too hungry and couldn’t resist it. But before eating the kheer, she took out some of it in a bowl and offered it to Ganesha’s idol and then began eating the kheer. No matter how much she ate, the pot never emptied. When the boy returned, the woman gave him the entire pot and confessed that she ate before him because she was hungry. The boy replied saying he ate it too when she offered the bowl to the Ganesha idol. The woman began crying at his feet and Ganesha blessed her with wealth and health.

Moral

Before taking care of your own needs, make sure to worship God and keep something aside for others as well.

11. The Story of Ganesha at Kubera’s Wedding

This Ganesha story for kids will help kids learn a valuable lesson about being greedy.

Kubera was a proud and greedy God well known for the huge wealth he had accumulated. Once, Kubera invited several guests to a wedding feast. Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati sent their son Ganesha who decided to teach arrogant Kubera a lesson. Ganesha quickly ate up all the food at the feast, leaving no food for the other guests. He then went on to eat up the furniture, vessels, and even Kubera’s wealth! Kubera ran to Mount Kailash for Lord Shiva’s help. Lord Shiva advised him to humbly offer Lord Ganesha a bowl of cereal. Ganesha’s hunger was finally satisfied by eating a bowl of cereal. Kubera learned that he was wrong to be too greedy and proud.

Moral

It is not good to be too proud and greedy. Just be happy and satisfied with what you have.

12. The Story of How Mouse Became Ganesh’s Vehicle

Here is another Lord Ganesha story for kids to listen to Ganesh Chaturthi’s story in English.

One day, in the court of God Indra, Krauncha, a divine musician-God, accidentally stepped on the foot of Sage Vamadeva. Sage Vamadeva got angry and cursed Krauncha to become a mouse and remain so for his entire life.

Krauncha immediately became a mouse and ended up damaging everything in its path. One day, he ended up stepping on the ashram of Maharshi Parashar, with whom Lord Ganesha was staying at that time. Krauncha ended up destroying the ashram too.

Lord Ganesha decided to teach Krauncha a lesson and unleashed his noose on Krauncha. It ended up looping Krauncha, the mouse and bringing him to Lord Ganesha’s feet. Krauncha begged for forgiveness, and so Lord Ganesha made the mouse his vehicle from that day.

Moral

Intelligence and wisdom can solve small and big issues.

13. The Story Why Lord Ganesh Loves Modak

Goddess Parvathi, Lord Shiva, and Bal Ganesh once visited Anusuya, wife of Sage Atri. Anusuya prepared a lot of delicious dishes for them. Lord Shiva was hungry, but Anusuya insisted on serving Bal Ganesh first. Only after his hunger was satiated would she serve Lord Shiv and Goddess Parvati. Bal Ganesh started to eat and almost finished the entire food. But he was still hungry.

Anusuya realised that there would not be anything left for Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. So, she prepared a special sweet made with rice flour, coconut, jaggery, and ghee. She then offered it to Ganesh. Surprisingly after eating the sweet Bal, Ganesh immediately felt full and satisfied. Looking at this, Goddess Parvati said that all his devotees must offer this special sweet to Ganesh during every puja. The sweet none other than Modak. This is how Lord Ganesh’s love for Modak became well known.

Moral

Parents always think of their children’s happiness first.

14. The Story of How Lord Ganesha Became the “God of Beginnings”

Once, Lord Ganesha was guarding the Swarg Lok as everybody went to attend Lord Vishnu’s wedding. When Narad Muni saw Lord Ganesha alone, he told him that he was not invited to the wedding because he ate too much and was very fat. This made Lord Ganesha very angry, and he sent an army of mice to dig the soil and make it hollow on the way from where the marriage procession was going to pass. The army of mice dug the soil, and the wheels of the chariot got stuck into it.

None of the Gods were able to pull out the chariot, so a passerby was asked for help. He took Lord Ganesha’s name and pulled out the wheels! When the Gods asked him why he took his name, he said that he was the God of beginnings who removes all the hurdles from life.

On hearing this, the Gods went back to him, apologised and took him with them to the wedding.

Moral

You should not judge someone based on their looks.

FAQs

1. Who is Lord Ganesha?

Lord Ganesha is one of the most worshipped deities in Hinduism, known as the remover of obstacles and the god of wisdom, beginnings, and prosperity.

2. Why Do Kids Love Lord Ganesha?

Kids love Lord Ganesha as they admire him for his great wit, and that is why they love to listen to his stories.

3. Which Is the Most Famous Story of Lord Ganesha?

Although all the stories of Lord Ganesha are famous, the story of his birth tops the list.

Telling your kids the Lord Ganesha’s stories from the trove of mythology is a great way to introduce them to Lord Ganesha. Various pujas and rituals may always be a part of the home, but what’s necessary is to hold God in your heart and adhere to the principles put forward by him.

Also Read:

Ramayana Stories for Kids
Mythological Stories for Kids
Lord Krishna Stories for Children

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