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My recent pilgrimage to Shirdi and Basar
Posted by lionbikashNov 25, 2007 | 3256 views
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Ajanta Express starts from Secunderabad at 6-30 PM. and reaches Nagarsol by 5-45 A.M. Nagarsol is the nearest railhead for Hyderabadis to visit Shirdi. At Nagarsol station we were almost mobbed by taxi drivers. They asked for Rs.50/- per person but settled forRs.40/- after little bargaining to drop us to our hotel at Shirdi. However the flip side is they only start when they get full quota of 8 passengers. If you want to save some money you should wait – later passengers were offered Rs.30/- per person. After a drive of around two hours we were dropped at our destination, Sai Krishna Residency. The apartment complex is mainly owned by Telugus. We were guest of one of my friends, who owned an apartment there. These apartments are available on rent; you can enquire after reaching Shirdi also. It is situated at a distance of around 5 minutes walk from the temple complex. They have a restaurant serving good Andhra meals. Nearby there is a choultry maintained by Saibaba Temple of Malkajgiri, Hyderabad. I found it good. They have AC rooms also. You can book rooms in advance (one week) at Hdyerabad at the Malkajgiri temple premises.
Those who are not aware – Shirdi is famous for Saibaba, situated around 265 kms from Mumbai. There is no railway station at Shirdi; one has to get down at Nashik, which is around 75 kms from Shirdi. However there are plenty of bus services from Mumbai to Shirdi, and I believe people from Mumbai mainly come by road. From Hyderabad also there are plenty of bus services operated by APSRT, APTDC and no. of private operators.
Nobody knows how and when Saibaba came and settled at Shirdi. He passed away to his heavenly abode on 15th Oct. 1918. During his stay at Shirdi large no. of people flocked to Him for his blessings. There are numerous stories of miracles his followers witnessed during his lifetime and even to this day. Till date thousands of followers flock to Shirdi to visit His Samadhi Mandir. I believe Thursdays are really crowded. Once I have met a person who was squatting in front of the main gate at 10-30 PM on a Wednesday. He would wait there whole night to have an early morning darshan of Saibaba.
This time I found lots of changes around the temple complex. They had raged the shops around the temple thus making it more convenient for the devotees. The waiting halls and queue rooms are well maintained. I always find the temple well maintained. There is absolutely no harassment by temple authorities or other people, which is normally associated with any famous temple in India. One really gets satisfaction in this temple.
As there was nothing else to do, we visited the temple thrice, once for midday Arati and once for Sandhya arati. Aratis are conducted four times a day – Early morning at 5.15 A.M., midday arati at 12 noon, Sandhya arati during sunset time and midnight arati at 10-30 PM.
There are a few other smaller places around Shirdi to visit:
The Dwarakmayee mosque where Saibaba used to reside. Here the articles used by Saibaba are on display. The sacred dhuni (fire) kindled by Saibaba is still kept burning. The bibhuti (ash) given as Prasad at Shirdi is collected from this dhuni.
Chavadi – Saibaba used to stay here every alternate night.
Gurustan – Sainbaba used to sit here under a neem tree.
Next morning we went to see the Shani temple of Shignapur. Shignapur is around 70 kms from Shirdi. Shared Jeeps are available as conveyance from Shirdi and back. I found the fare Rs. 60/- per person as reasonable. After a journey of 2 hours the jeep driver dropped us at a ground surrounded by shops selling puja articles. Suddenly we were surrounded by a few shopkeepers. We were told that to visit the temple one has to wear saffron robe. One has to take bath and has to visit the temple with wet clothes. Ladies are not allowed inside the temple. Men also should not look or touch any lady after he takes bath. They also informed us that they do not charge for the saffron robe lent to the devotees, one only has to purchase the puja materials from the shop. We did not find any other way and had to purchase puja materials worth Rs.250/- (fixed rates, we were assured) and Oil of Rs. 50/- (One should pour oil on the idol for abhishek) Anyway we did as per the instruction and had our darshan. At the temple premises we found that there was no such restrictions. Anyone can visit the temple including women. There is a big board inside the temple premises urging the devotees not to pay more than Rs.100/- for the cost of Puja materials. I wonder what is the use of keeping a notice board inside the temple premises when the unsuspecting devotee has already been duped? I guess it is part of the racket. I am sure that the jeep driver also gets his share.
Anyway the temple is well built and well maintained. Inside temple there is no restrictions except taking the photo of the stone image of the ‘Shani Dev’. As we had already purchased the puja articles, we followed the rituals as instructed by some attendants there. There is no Pujari in the temple.
On the return drive we stopped at a cane juice shop. The whole road is dotted with these shops and in all probability is patronized by the visitors of the temple. I was amazed by the bullock driven juice extractor used. I guess it can be described as a tool of medieval period. I remembered in earlier days people used to extract oil from mustard seeds with this kind apparatus. I have taken a photograph; I hope I will able to upload the photo.
On return journey Ajanta express reaches Basar at 4-45. I was eager to visit Basar from the day I read maddss’s blog on Basar. Those who have not read – Basar is situated at border of Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, very near to Nanded, the famous sikh shrine. I believe one of the two Saraswati temples of India is at Basar.
The temple is situated at a picturesque place. Except for big rush of people with small children (the aksharam ritual – the first reading and writing exercise of a child) there was not much rush. We had a leisurely darshan of the deity. The temple is well maintained and very clean. There is a Vyas gumpha nearby. One has to climb a few steps to reach there. There is nothing much to see except the beautiful panoramic view at the top. The view of the statue of goddess Ganga placed atop some big loose stones on a hillock nearby is breathtaking.
Our next stop was the bank of River Godavari. There is a big statue of Devi at the bank of the river. Here one can hire boats for cruise. Godavari is a sacred river down south. A bath in the river is a must for the pilgrims.
Devagiri express which runs from Mumbai to Hyderabad on this route stops at Basar at 10-30 AM and reaches Secunderabad at 2-30 PM. We took the train to conclude our journey. Other Travelogues by lionbikash
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