Ganesha with His Consorts

Ganesha, elephant-headed god of goof fortune and auspicious beginnings, sits enthroned with his wives perched on his rotund thighs. The wife holding a lotus flower may be Riddhi ("prosperity"). The other may be Siddhi ("accomplishment"). She carries a bowl of the round sweets presented to the god in temple ritual. Below his throne, the rat, Ganesha's vahana (vehicle or compliment), nibbles at a stolen sweet. This image was probably once part of the many carvings that covered the exterior of a Hindu temple.