In Indian mythology Ganesha is the God of Wisdom, the Lord of Success and the Remover of Obstacles. He has the head of an elephant and the huge pot-belly of a human.
One story tells that the Goddess Parvati decided she would like a bodyguard to protect her while her husband Shiva was away, so she created a son, who stood on guard outside her door. Shiva returned and finding his way blocked by the boy cut off his head. When the furious Parvati told him what he had done he instructed his followers to cut the head off the first living being they could find, which happened to be an elephant. The elephant head was attached to the boy’s body and all was well.
Ganesha’s pot-belly is very much characteristic of the onset of diabetes. Ganesha’s love of sweets is legendary; he can be seen carrying a bowl full of them. In the worship rituals he is offered the jambul fruit, a type of plum which is known to stabilise sugar levels.
While diabetes is often considered to be a disorder of our times it is clear that it has existed for thousands of years. At a time and in a place where medicines were unheard of people had to turn to Nature for solutions. One of the powerful mantras of Ganesha has a message containing a cure for the ailment. This involves consuming a mixture made from the stem of the lotus flower and the juice of the jambul plum.