Puranic Encyclopaedia: A Comprehensive Dictionary with Special Reference to the Epic and Puranic Literature c7.54

c7.54

9) Gaṇapati pūja. Gaṇapati occupies the most prominent place among the Devas connected with Śiva. In South India, Gaṇapati pūjā came into vogue in the 6th century A.D., and idols of Gaṇapati now extant might have been made at that period. In South India, temples dedicated to Gaṇapati are in no way less in number than those to Subrahmaṇya. The idol of Gaṇapati is installed at the gateways of villages and forts, under the fig tree, at the entrance of temples and at the southwestern corner of Śiva temples. Two types of idols are important: the Iṭampiri (the proboscis turned to the left side) and the Valampiri (the proboscis turned to the right side). It is stated that the enormously big belly of Gaṇapati contains in it the whole universe.