Ganesha is Vighneshvara or "Vighnaharta"(marathi), the Lord of Obstacles, both of a material and spiritual order. He is popularly worshiped as a remover of obstacles, though sometimes he also places obstacles in the path of those who need to be checked. Paul Courtright (author) says that "his task in the divine scheme of things, his dharma, is to place and remove obstacles. It is his particular territory, the reason for his creation."
