A Religious Day Out At Shirdi

Shirdi, situated in the Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra, has remained home to the country’s greatest spiritual saint – Sai Baba. It is one of the most-toured pilgrimage hubs in India, famous for its Sai Shrine. Once a small, common village, Shirdi earned renown when Sai Baba began preaching the importance of shraddha (faith) and saburi (forbearance) to people and performed miracles to help individuals overcome their sufferings and distress. The village today is woven around the life of Sai Baba and offers vibrant cultural heritage and divinity that you can explore via booking cabs from Pune to Shirdi.

Top places to explore on a religious trip in Shirdi

Apart from the well-known Shirdi Sai Baba Temple, many other religious places are worth visiting in Shirdi. Here are some places you can explore if you plan a trip to this town.

• Shirdi Sai Baba Temple

The famous Shirdi Sai Baba Temple, also known as Samadhi Mandir, is the primary stop for almost every sightseer in the town. While the temple was originally constructed in 1922 by an affluent businessman from Nagpur and an ardent disciple of the saint – Shrimant Gopalrao, the stunning white marble statue of Sai Baba was inaugurated here in 1954.

Furthermore, extending across 7.5 acres of land, this temple welcomes an average of 50,000 to 60,000 adherents from across the country daily. Even though the temple remains open for people throughout the day, the most suitable time to visit here is during the daily Aarti held four times a day— at 4.30 am (kakad Aarti), 6.30 pm (dhoop Aarti), 10.30 pm (shej Aarti) and midnight (madhyan Aarti).

• Dwarkamai Mosque

One of the most sacred places to tour in Shirdi, Dwarkamai Mosque, is renowned as the principal abode of Sai Baba for almost six decades he spent in the village. The most impressive feature of the mosque is the dhuni – an eternal holy fire primarily lit by Sai Baba.

Moreover, the timber ash from the fire is considered to have healing capabilities and is a blessed gift that devotees take with them. The Dwarkamai mosque also accommodates an oil portrait of the saint, a stone seat that he used in his day-to-day bath, and a wooden bowl to keep charity offered by the locals.

• Sai Heritage Village

With exquisitely carved statues portraying different events in the life of Sai Baba, Sai Heritage Village is a theme park that offers visitors a picture of what the Shirdi was like back in Sai’s time.

Here you can glimpse different life-like statues, showing the sage offering medical assistance to the deprived villagers, serving food to his disciples, and scenes from his daily village life and palki.

• Khandoba Mandir

Khandoba Mandir in Shirdi, devoted to Lord Shiva, remains closely linked with the life of Sai Baba. It is believed to be where the temple’s head priest, Mhalsapati, greeted Sai Baba by stating, “Aao Sai”. And that’s how the Sai Baba got his name. In addition, the temple is a serene, peaceful site accommodating a stunning stone idol of Lord Shiva, Sai Baba and the priest Mhalsapati.

Shirdi is a fascinating religious and serene city which offers unmatched spiritual vibes. Earlier, the home town of Sai Baba, this place now witnesses a massive influx of tourists visiting the famous Sai temple. Hence, we can say that visiting this city will be a delightful experience and will give you supreme divinity and peace. So pack your bags, rent a car in Pune and get going!