One always starts any prayer, ritual and/or occasion by worshipping our Beloved Elephant God. One of the famous mantras dedicated to Ganpati follows:
Vakratunda Mahaakaaya Suryakotee Sama Prabha Nirvighnam kuru mey Deva Sarva kaaryeshu Sarvadaa
Vakratunda curved trunk
Mahakaaya large bodied
Surya kotee million suns
Sama Prabha with the brilliance of
Nirvighnam free of obstacles
Kuru make
mey my
Deva Lord
Sarva Kaaryeshu in all work
Sarvada always
O Lord Ganesha of Large body, curved trunk, with the brilliance of a million suns, please make all my work free of obstacles, always.
This God of knowledge and the remover of obstacles is also the older son of Lord Shiva. Lord Ganesha is also called Vinayak ( knowledgeable ) or Vighneshwer (god to remove obstacles). He is worshipped, or at least remembered, in the beginning of any auspicious performance for blessings and auspiciousness.