The divine family having explored every nook and cranny the temple found their stroll came to an end right where it had begun. As the four Gods stood by the blazing pillar of fire that had begun their tour, Shiva and Parvati contemplated what might raise their child Ganesha's spirit and allow him to see his true power.
Ganesha stood feeling defeated. While his brother Kartikeya had unlocked his abilities rather quickly, it was not so easy for Shiva's second born. They had placed his holy relics in his hands, in his right the goad with which he would remove mankind's obstacles and in his left the rope with which he would capture all difficulties, but the items felt dead in his hands. They even placed a rosary around his neck which could help in his pursuit of knowledge, but to no avail. Shiva stood quietly contemplating what to do next.
"Father, Mother?" mumbled the timid Ganesha as he fell to his knees. A quiet stream of tears was now rolling down his cheeks, "Is there something wrong with me? I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I don't think I'll ever be as strong as Kartikeya."
Hearing her son say this sent sharp pains into Pavarti's heart. She had seen in visions the greatness Ganesha was destined for and she knew she had to help her son unlock his potential. Suddenly, she was struck with an idea.
"Strength isn't the only gift which can be granted, my child." Proclaimed Parvati as she walked over to save her son from his internal torment. "I have something special for you that may just give you the power you've been looking to find."
With that she walked over to her husband and whispered in his ear. As Shiva listened his brow furrowed, "But the Devas nev-" he was cut off by a brisk smack to the back of the head from his dearest wife. As the two continued to confer, the furrowed brow was replaced with a grin. Shiva believed this plan would work.
"Ganesha, Kartikeya, follow me." Shiva said as he turned on his heals and headed out of the temple. The boys rushed to catch up, unsure of where they were headed. As they reached their father's side, they noticed Pavarti had not followed them.
"Wait!" exclaimed Ganesha, "We left Mother!"
"There's no reason for her to come. Where we are headed, only one of you will be allowed to go." retorted Shiva. He halted before a grand staircase carved into the earth by divine power and which spiraled around the mountain to its tallest peak. "At the top of this mountain lies a fruit which was given as a gift by the Devas. The fruit will grant supreme knowledge to whoever should pluck it. However, you must first prove yourself worthy of climbing this peak and receiving the fruit through a challenge. Whichever of you can encircle the whole world three times first may claim the fruit as your prize."
"That's easy!" Exclaimed Kartikeya as he whistled for his vahana. When the mighty peacock arrived, Kartikeya waisted no time and mounted the bird. As the two ascended into the sky Kartikeya hollered down, "I'll have returned in an hour at most!" before zipping away into the clouds.
Once again Ganesha felt defeated. He didn't even want to attempt the task as he knew his brother was at a great advantage. Knowing he would feel this way, Shiva bent down to his son and said, "Remember what your mother said earlier. Strength and physical ability is not the only gift which can be given. This is a fruit of knowledge and therefor must be attained by brains, not strength or speed. You are the remover of obstacles. Find a way to overcome this one." With that, Shiva vanished, leaving Ganesha alone with the task at hand.
Ganesha sat and contemplated the task at hand long enough to watch his brother make his first two rounds about the earth. He knew he had less than half an hour to complete the task. Suddenly, Ganesha was struck with an idea. He raced back into the temple to find his parents. They were sitting upon their thrones and were smiling in anticipation, hoping that Ganesha had come with the solution to their challenge. "Have you found your solution, Ganesha?" asked Pavarti with hope gleaming in her eyes.
Ganesha replied, "Mother, you made me from turmeric and breathed life into my form that I may watch over you and protect you. Father, you did decapitate me...but I know it was simply a misunderstanding, and upon learning of your mistake, saving me became your priority. You gave me new life and raised me with love and compassion. Therefore, I need only encircle you both thrice, as you are my whole world."
The two nodded and stood from their seats. They allowed Ganesha to walk around them, proud that their son had discovered for himself that cunning can overcome strength.
"You may go receive your prize now." uttered Shiva after Ganesha had completed his final lap. Wasting no time, Ganesha raced up the mountain, eagerly awaiting the fruit which he had earned. When he reached the peak, he found no fruit tree or bush from which he could receive supreme knowledge, but instead he found his mother, father, and brother.
The three were smiling at him and anticipating his next move. For a moment Ganesha was filled with rage. He felt like his family had tricked him and were mocking his lack of power.
Sensing his brothers frustration, Kartikeya chimed in, "brother, you won the competition. You proved you could beat me as you are. Don't you see that you never needed a divine fruit to be the wisest among us?"
With the nudge from his older brother, Ganesha was finally able to see clearly. He felt the divinity flowing through him, his head pulsing with the knowledge he had been hiding from himself. He had been so fixated on his brothers abilities, he had neglected his own. Ganesha saw the great things he was yet to do and he finally understood that power comes in many forms and that his supreme knowledge could guide humanity.
"Family, I have finally seen what I must do. I know my purpose. I must find the sage Vyasa, for he has a grate tale that must be told. It will take many years to complete, but humanity needs the Mahabharata to guide them."
"You're correct," replied Shiva. He was so proud of his children but did not want to see them leave. "You both have great destinies to fulfill and you must start on your tasks with haste but first we shall have a feast to send you off."
The four shared in one last meal together before Ganesha and Kartikeya set off on their respective quests to save humanity. Shiva and Pavarti knew it would be a long time before they saw their children again, but they felt comforted in knowing they would always have the memories they made together in the temple.
I pulled from a few different stories to write this final installment in my storybook project. I knew I wanted the competition between the two boys to be the center of this story, but I didn't like that the original ends with Kartikeya leaving and feeling cheated by his brother. I would like to think the bonds of brotherhood are stronger than that. Also, I wanted Ganesha to find the strength and wisdom within himself rather than from an external force so I decided to play the events as a clever ruse by Pavarti to bolster Ganesha's confidence enough to believe in himself. I didn't go into too much detail as to Ganesha's origin story as I know many are familiar with it, if you want to learn more about how Shiva decapitated him and why he has the head of an elephant, I've included a great telling in my bibliography!