The attributes and characteristics of Ganesh have evolved over many centuries of Indian history. Several of the sacred Hindu texts relate myths and anecdotes associated with his birth and exploits and help to explain his distinct iconography. He is popularly held to be the son of Shiva and Parvati, although the Puranas (ancient Hindu and Jain texts narrating the history of the Universe and describing Hindu cosmology, philosophy and geography) disagree about his birth, stating that he may have be