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Shri Sai Baba Samadhi Mandir

Shirdi, Ahilyanagar (Ahmednagar) district, Maharashtra

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Shri Sai Baba Samadhi Mandir
Photo: Kisna007, CC BY-SA 4.0

About

The Shri Sai Baba Samadhi Mandir in Shirdi is where Sai Baba's body was laid to rest. It is one of the most visited pilgrim places in India, and people of every faith come here. Above the samadhi sits a marble murti of Baba, consecrated in 1954. Four aartis are sung every day: Kakad aarti at dawn, Madhyan aarti at noon, Dhoop aarti at sunset and Shej aarti at night. Every Thursday Baba's palkhi goes from the Samadhi Mandir to Dwarkamai and the Chavadi. Dwarkamai, the Chavadi, Gurusthan and Lendi Baug, all linked to Baba's life, are close to the temple.

The story

Sai Baba was first seen in Shirdi as a youth of about sixteen, meditating under a neem tree. The villagers wondered how someone so young could keep such hard tapasya. That spot is now called Gurusthan. After some time he left, and later came back to Shirdi with the wedding party of a man named Chand Patil. From then on he lived in Shirdi for about sixty years. He stayed in an old mosque that he called Dwarkamai, kept a dhuni (sacred fire) burning there, and gave its ash, called udi, to devotees. From 1909 he began sleeping at the Chavadi on alternate nights. Baba met Hindu and Muslim devotees with the same love. He taught people to take God's name, to love everyone, and to keep shraddha and saburi, faith and patience. In 1912 the Ram Navami festival began in Shirdi in his presence. Gopalrao Buti, a devotee from Nagpur, started building a large wada in Shirdi at the end of 1915. On 15 October 1918, the day of Vijayadashami, Baba left his body. The next day his body was laid to rest in this Buti wada, which is today's Samadhi Mandir.

Visiting

October to March is pleasant. Thursdays, holidays and the three big festivals are very crowded. Dwarkamai, the Chavadi, Gurusthan and Lendi Baug are close to the temple and worth visiting. The Sansthan's prasadalaya serves meals to devotees. Many pilgrims also visit Shani Shingnapur on the same trip.

Festivals

  • Ram Navami (Chaitra Shukla Navami), celebrated here since 1912
  • Guru Purnima (Ashadh Purnima)
  • Vijayadashami: the day of Baba's Mahasamadhi (Punyatithi)
  • Every Thursday: Baba's palkhi procession

Famous temples

Sources