Ganapatya

Ganapatya is a denomination of Hinduism that worships Ganesha (also called Ganapati) as the Parabrahman, Saguna Brahman. thumb|A 13th-century statue of Ganesha, Hoysala Empire|Hoysala-style, [[Karnataka]]

==Beliefs== The worship of Ganesha is considered complementary with the worship of other deities. Hindus of all sects begin prayers, important undertakings, and religious ceremonies with an invocation of Ganesha, because of Ganesha's role as the god of beginnings. But although most Hindu sects do revere Ganesha, the Ganapatya sect goes further than that, and declares Ganesha to be the supreme being. Ganapatya is one of the six principal Hindu sects which focus on a particular deity, alongside Shaivism, focused on Shiva; Shaktism, focused on Shakti; Vaishnavism, focused on Vishnu; Indraism, focused on Indra; and Saura, focused on Surya. While Ganapatya is not as large a sect as the other five, it still has been influential. There is also the Smartism sect, which follows Advaita philosophy and practices the "worship of the five forms" (Panchayatana puja|) system, popularized by . In this system, the five deities Ganesha, Vishnu, Shiva, Devī, and Sūrya are viewed as five equal forms of one Nirguna Brahman.