A very interesting story about Ganesh is the belief according to which he has been the writer of the Mahâbhârata

The Sage Vyâsa , the author of this epic, was meditating on Brahmâ. The god told him to request Ganesh to be the scribe for the dictation of this epic in verses.

Ganesh appeared immediately in the presence of Brahmâ and gave his agreement. However, he demanded that Vyâsa should talk without any stop.

Vyâsa dictated his own request : before starting to write, Ganesh had to understand each word, each thought, with all the significations they had.

Every time Vyâsa observed that Ganesh (photo ) had finished to write a verse (he used his broken tusk as a pen), he dictated another verse, as much complicated as possible. So, Ganesh was obliged to stop to write. That short period was enough to make Vyâsa able to mentally compose the following verses... and to tell them when Ganesh was ready.

This legend teaches us that the Mahâbhârata should not be read quickly. One must understand all the meanings of the story, and it is necessary to digest it. One must also listen to it carefully, and meditate about.

Actually, a belief says that the Mahâbhârata should not be read. We should listen to it every day, little by little. By this method, we may understand progressively the deep meaning of this story.