extravagant: excessively rich boon blessing prestige diminish feast atico appetite : hunger miserable : very unhappy
Kubera, God of wealth had become arrogant. One day, he decided to host an extravagant feast for the Gods, such a feast as never had been hosted before. It would increase his prestige and show all men and Gods the extent of his wealth and influence.
Accordingly, he went to Mount Kailash to invite Lord Shiva. Shiva was his patron. Kubera owed all his wealth to Shiva, who pleased with his devotion had given him the boon that his wealth would never diminish, no matter how much he spent.
Shiva declined to come but said he would send his son, Ganesha. Kubera was disappointed. Shiva’s presence would have been a feather in his cap. But at least he was sending Ganesha. It would have been an insult if no one from the family were to come. Kubera resolved to make the feast so grand that Shiva’s absence would not be felt
The guests were many – thousands of them – both Gods and men. They were made to sit in a huge hall built especially for the purpose. The chief guest, Ganesha, was the last to come
The moment he entered, he began to ask for food. He was shown to a seat of honor and amazing dishes were set before hims He gulped them down and asked for more. He was given a second helping and then a third but his appetite remained as such only
Kubera ordered his army of cooks to produce more food but they could not keep pace with Ganesha’s eating speed. The Elephant-God was eating food meant for thousands. When he had finished all the food set before him, he began to shout, “Give me more, give me more !” and then getting impatiently to his feet, rushed to the enormous kitchen and ate all the food there. Kubera was shocked. All the food was gone and the guests had not been fed. Worse, Ganesha was still hungry.