10 Lessons on Investing from Lord Ganesha for a Bright Financial Future
September 8, 2021 Mutual Fund
Ganesh Chaturthi is here! The biggest religious-cultural and favourite festival of Mumbaikars is a 10-day-long celebration of Lord Ganesha’s birth.
In Hinduism, Lord Ganesha is the epitome of wisdom, remover of obstacles (Vighnaharta), symbol of happiness, master of knowledge (Vidya). In India, religious ceremonies always begin with offerings to Lord Ganesha. He holds the unique distinction of being the “Prathama Pujaya” (first lord to be worshipped). The most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon, Ganesha is also known as the lord of prosperity and wealth.
Ganesh Chaturthi is the perfect opportunity to learn some of the eternal lessons that Lord Ganesha offers. The pandemic has cast a dark cloud over celebrations, this year the Maharashtra state government has imposed several restrictions and issued guidelines for this festival to prevent the spread of virus. In order to make this Ganesh Chaturthi a valuable one amid the uncertainties of COVID-19 pandemic, let Lord Ganesha be your guide towards effective investment planning.
Let’s understand these investment lessons from Lord Ganesha through his distinct ways and unique physical features:
Lesson 1: Gajanana – Big head represents wisdom
Ganesha is called Gajanana as the elephant-headed lord has a huge head signifying broad-mindedness, wise decision making, and a vast ocean of knowledge. This tells us to always use the knowledge and learning we gain, to aim for your goals and make informed decisions.
So while drawing up your investments plan to start your wealth creation journey, think prudently about a S.M.A.R.T. goal-based financial plan. Your financial goals can be measured as short term, medium term and long term. Always account for the impact of inflation on your investments, and invest wisely in worthy investment avenues. Most importantly, assess your risk appetite, investment horizon and align your investments with your financial goals.
Lesson 2: Lambakarna – Develop good listening skills
Lord Ganesha is called Lambakarna because of his wide ears symbolic of his ability to listen. This aspect encourages you to listen and be receptive to new strategies and flow of financial information. It denotes that one must have their ears open wide to absorb knowledge and act accordingly.
Nowadays, a lot of information is easily available on various platforms related to the markets and other investment avenues. However, it is essential to filter the information or advice you’re receiving. Investing can be quite tricky when you are new to it, or facing a dilemma and have mixed thoughts, or during volatile market conditions.
This is when you should consult a financial professional to make worthwhile investment decisions. Also empower yourself with financial knowledge to be financially aware and gain valuable information. Good listening skills will enable you to implement effective strategies based on the new information you receive and achieve your envisioned financial goals.
Lesson 3: Chinteshwara – Eye for detail
Ganesha’s small, sharp eyes and concentrated gaze showcases a mind that is absolutely focused on the goal. On your wealth creating journey, you need to maintain this focused approach with your investment plan and work towards your financial goals once you have identified them.
Having an eye for detail when it comes to your investments means, you always observe the distinctive features of a scheme and the pros and cons of each investment avenue. This will enable you to create a well-diversified, strategic, all-weather portfolio.
In addition, you should stay focused and invested for a stipulated time frame in the market to generate optimal returns.
Lesson 4: Lambodaraya – Ability to stomach the risk
Lord Ganesha has a large belly that represents endurance and the ability to take risks. Ganesha tells us to consume only as much you can afford, evaluate your risk tolerance and invest accordingly. Consider investing in a systematic manner through SIPs when you are new to the markets and gradually increase the amount you invest over time.
Avoid directly jumping towards high-risk equities by investing a huge lump sum amount. Given the volatility in this market, if you invest in instruments beyond your risk tolerance, you may suffer capital loss. You must develop the risk capability to munch through market volatilities and digest any bad decisions.
One way to create a safety net is by building an emergency fund with 12-24 months of expenses including loan EMIs. The uncertain events like this pandemic can affect your risk appetite and cause turbulence in your portfolio. This contingency reserve will be your fall-back plan to survive any financial crunch.
Lesson 5: Vakratundaya – Adaptability from the trunk
Vakratundaya is another name stemming from Ganesha’s trunk, which represents flexibility and an adaptable nature. The trunk also embodies the power and strength to perform a variety of delicate and complex tasks.
It symbolise that one must possess the righteousness of patience to adapt during unfavourable conditions, since things may not always be the way you wish them to be. As an investor, you need to understand that market volatility can affect your investments, but one must never forget that the sky eventually clears for bright and beautiful rainbow.
You can counter this by periodically reviewing and rebalancing your investment portfolio, to see if its performance is aiding your journey of wealth creation. If you want to maintain a robust investment portfolio, a certain degree of flexibility between asset allocation, diversification, timeline adjustments, and the amount of investment is always advisable.If you want your financial plan to survive through the thick and thin of volatile markets and macro-economic conditions, your financial plan needs to be flexible and adaptable. Remember to review your portfolio and continue looking for better opportunities to efficiently adjust your portfolio.
Lesson 6: Ekadantaya – weed out unworthy investments
Known as Ekadantaya, Ganesha has two tusks and one of them is broken. This represents the strength and power of his tusks. The broken tusk represents the ability to recover from losses, and the other tusk represents the strength to weed out the bad.
Similarly, one must have the sense and strength to fork out underperforming investments that hold back the potential of the portfolio. A bad investment, if ignored, will make achieving your financial goals much harder. Many investors do not realise that a few underperforming schemes could be affecting the overall portfolio.
You need to evaluate the underperforming assets on qualitative and quantitative parameters and consider switching your investment into worthy investment avenues.
Lesson 7: Strength of Lord Ganesha’s Axe
Lord Ganesha holds the axe in one of its four arms, which represents the power to slash all the distractions and market-related worries. It tells us to not fall prey to any emotions or biases when we make an investment decision.
One must possess the strength to take right decisions and act unemotionally to eliminate bad and negative influences. Similarly while investing, use the axe of effective thinking and eliminate any behavioural biases affecting your investment decisions.
Lesson 8: The Mushaka – Lord Ganesha’s Vahana
Lord Ganesha’s vehicle, or vahana, is depicted as a little mouse in Hindu mythology. It expresses the most crucial life lesson of simple living and elevated thinking. Here Ganesha tells us to keep our temptations and desires under control and practice delayed gratification. It also highlights that we must not underestimate the power in the little, small things.
One of the basic requirements for investments to work is to have discipline. Learning to live within your means is the first step, save more than you spend, and avoid impulsive purchases via credit card offers and seeking instant gratification that may create a debt burden.
Let go of detrimental spending habits, allow yourself to create a budget, then save and invest wisely. Higher thinking empowers you to aspire for a better tomorrow by adhering to a robust financial plan. The mouse at Ganesha’s feet is his carrier; his tiny size can sometimes be misleading. If given a free hand, this little creature can wreak havoc. Similarly, practice delayed gratification and do not underestimate the power of investing small amounts via SIP regularly.
Lesson 9: Avail the “Prasada” – Successful investment planning
Lord Ganesha’s favourite food ‘Modak’ is distributed amongst devotees as ‘Prasada’ after conducting the ‘Puja rituals’. As an investor, once you’ve constructed an effective investment portfolio, here the Prasada represents the positive results of your investment.
You must have an eye on your ‘Modak’ (returns) like Lord Ganesha, better investment planning and focused financial goal will successfully reward you with sweet gains and bright financial future. This is nothing but the benefits of mutual funds returns or returns from your several investment avenues.
Lesson 10: God of Auspicious beginnings – Start your investment journey!
Lord Ganesh is the lord of auspicious beginnings, this Ganesh Chaturthi is a great opportunity for you to start your investment journey…
You must begin now!
The earlier you start, the better it is to build a healthy corpus. Remember that over time your money will grow with the magic of compounding. Start to save before you spend and invest it in rewarding investment avenues.
You see, Lord Ganesha reminds us that each year the celebrations will come, but they will also end. In my opinion, there is an important lesson in the “Visarjan” as well, that good times are temporary and bad phases do not last forever. Devotees bid goodbye to their beloved Lord Ganesha on the day of Visarjan and wait to celebrate the Ganesh Chaturthi next year.
From a financial planning perspective, there will be good times and challenging times on your investment journey. Hence, you must be prepared and flexible enough with your investments to adapt in the changing market environment. Your financial plan should be robust enough to survive the tough times and generate optimal returns in better market conditions.
As you celebrate the joys of Ganesh Chaturthi this year, spend a moment to reflect on these important investment lessons of Lord Ganesha and embark on the path of prosperity!
Happy Ganesh Chaturthi!
This article first appeared on PersonalFN here
