Why Ganesh Ji Is Worshipped First | The Divine Story of Ādi-Pūjya-Dev

kou bhala gana bhī le, jaga bhū raja kana. pai gaṇapati tava guna nahiṃ saka gana.
Gaiye Ganapati jagavandan- Bhaktiras Sindhu, page 66, sankirtan no. 92
(One may accomplish the impossible task of counting every grain of dust on this earth, but, O Ganapati, no one can count Your virtues.)

Different gods and goddesses have different swift-moving vehicles (vāhanas). Some have a lion, some a peacock, and some a bull. For instance, Shankar Ji's vehicle is a bull, Brahma's is a swan, Vishnu's is Garuda, and Shadanan's (Kartikeya) is a peacock.

Once, a competition was held among all of them to see who could be the first to circumambulate the entire brahmānd and return.

But Ganesh Ji's vehicle was a mouse. Now, how fast could the poor mouse run? Yet Ganesh Ji also stood in the competition.

Then Narad Ji arrived. Seeing Ganesh Ji, he burst out laughing and asked, "What are you doing?"

Ganesh Ji replied, "I too am taking part in the competition."

Narad Ji said, "Don't you realize how weak your vehicle is? When will it manage to go around the entire universe and come back?"

Ganesh Ji's face fell, and he said, "Yes, that is true."

So Narad Ji told him a clever trick: "Do this - write God's name and circumambulate it. This will be counted as circumambulating all the universes."

Ganesh Ji wrote the name of his beloved deity and circumambulated it. He was therefore declared the winner, ahead of everyone else.

That is why, in India, whenever any worship is performed, Ganesh Ji is worshipped first. Whether it is Ram, Krishna, or any other God, or goddesses such as Durga, Chandi, and so on, they are all worshipped after Him. That is why Ganesh Ji is Ādi-Pūjya-Dev - the deity who is worshipped first of all.

It is impossible for anyone in the whole world to count all the particles of dust on the earth. No one could even count the particles of dust in four feet of ground. But "even if someone could count every particle of dust on the entire earth, O Ganpati, no one can count Your host of virtues. You possess so many virtues that no one can count them, even if one could count every particle of dust on the entire earth."

Ganpati Bappa ki Jai!