Ashta Vinayak Yatra - March 2021 (Part 6)

The drive to Siddhatek was about 70 kms which took us nearly two hours to reach after passing through the town of Daund. Along the way, we stopped at a roadside Sugarcane juice shop and had nice fresh juice to cool & quench our thirst. It was nearly one p.m. when we reached and parked outside the  main temple.

The temple is situated on a hillock on the northern bank of the river Bhima surrounded by a thick foliage of Babul trees. We were informed that to propitiate the deity, devotees often do circumambulation of the hillock seven times, even though there is no paved road and the path passes through thorny shrubs.

Ganesh ji here is with his trunk turned to the right. Usually, the trunk of Ganesh is depicted turned to his left. It is believed that the right-trunked Ganesha is very powerful, but difficult to please. This is the only Ashtavinayaka shrine where the deity has his trunk to the right. Traditionally, a Ganesha whose trunk is to the right is named "Siddhi-Vinayaka", the giver of siddhi (accomplishment, success, supernatural powers).

Legend goes that Lord Vishnu performed penance at Siddhatek, invoking Ganesha with his mantra – "Om Sri Ganeshaya Namah". Pleased, Ganesha bestowed His blessings and various siddhis ("powers") on Vishnu who went on to fight and slays the demons Madhu & Kaithabh who were disturbing Brahma in His process of Creation. The place where Vishnu acquired siddhis was thereafter known as Siddhatek.

We walked in and climbed the few steps to reach the temple after buying some offering from a shop outside. The temple was nearly empty as was the case with all others temples we visited during this yatra. The Sanctum was cool from inside although there were no air-conditioning in sight. We had a nice long darshan of the Lord and could offer our prayers in leisure.

After that we drove back towards Pune. As it was very hot & we wero hungry,  we decided not to halt for lunch. Instead we are some fruits & snacks that our co-yatri had thoughtfully carried. We reached Pune by 5.30 p.m covering nearly 115 kms in about 3 hours.

That evening, at 7 p.m., we had an early dinner at a hotel called "Horn OK Please" at Ferguson Road, Pune. The hotel is made to appear as a Dhaba and serves pure vegetarian Punjabi food. The food was delicious and the pricing reasonable. They do not have many Jain fare (without onion & garlic) though. After this, we went back to our hotel tired but happy to have covered 6 out of 8 temples of the yatra.

Ashta Vinayak Yatra - March, 2021 (Part 5)

After a wonderful darshan of Chintamani Ganesh and good breakfast at Theur, we proceeded towards Moregaon. The distance of approx 60 kms could be covered in an hour and half.  As we drove towards Moregaon, we saw huge areas under sugarcane cultivation. This crop consumes too much water which is a scarce resource in these parts. There were hardly any trees along the fields or the roads. 

We reached Moregaon by 11 a.m. and proceeded towards the temple. The temple is a short walk away from the parking place and the heat was making it look longer. We had to walk through small village roads where they had tied plastic sheet above the road to protect from the Sun. If only people grow more trees, we would have natural shade as well as cool breeze & also attract rains.

The temple is at a higher level - perhaps built on a small hillock. We had to climb few steps to reach the temple. As usual, no crowds and easy entry as well as darshan of the Lord Mayureshwar sitting majestically with Riddhi & Siddhi on either side,  awaiting His devotees. He is known as Mayureshwar as He rode on a peacock and also become this place used to be inhabited by many peacocks.

The Morgaon temple is not only the most important temple in the Ashtavinayak circuit, but also is described as "India's foremost Ganesha pilgrimage"

Morgaon is the adhya pitha – foremost centre of worship of the Ganapatya sect, which considers Ganesha as the Supreme Being. It attracts the greatest number of pilgrims in the Ashtavinayak circuit. This location is believed to be as holy as Kashi / Varanasi.

Legend links the temple to killing of the demon Sindhu by Ganesha. The exact date of building of the temple is unknown, though the Ganapatya saint Moraya Gosavi is known to be associated with it. The temple flourished due to the patronage of the Peshwa rulers and descendants of Moraya Gosavi.

After finishing darshan and doing my mid day prayers just outside the Sanctum beneath a Hanuman temple, we came around the temple. The heat being high, we couldn't linger there for long. We soon departed for Siddhatek after brief halt at a footwear store to buy a pair of slippers for one of our yatris whose sandals had broken.

Ashta Vinayak Yatra - March 2021 (Part 4)

On the morning of 29th March, we woke up early, finished our morning ablutions & prayers and assembled at the hotel lobby by 7.30 a.m. Soon we were on our way to Theur to have darshan of Chitamani Ganesh. Theur is just 20 kms away from our hotel, which in the early morning light traffic took us no time to reach. Being Holi, streets were nearly empty.

We reached the temple parking lot by 8.30 a.m. The beautiful temple is about 50 meters away from here. There were few shops open at that time. 

When we entered the temple, it was almost empty and we could have darshan immediately. We chanted our prayers, and made our offerings to the Lord. As we did the customary circumambulation in the clockwise direction, we saw a cute Lakshmi Narayan temple behind the main Ganesh temple. 

The temple is believed to have been built by Ganpatya Saint Morya Gosavi and was renovated by various Peshwa rulers who were drawn to the temple. Legend goes that the wish-granting jewel Chintamani was retrieved by Ganesh ji for His devotee Sage Kapila from the greedy king Gana. It is here that Lord Ganesh pacified the uneasy mind of Lord Brahma who meditated on Him. 

The courtyard of the temple was very quaint and beautiful but we were not allowed to take pictures of ourselves here. Hence, we took pictures at the main doorway of the temple on our way out. We later had breakfast of Poha (the traditional Maharashtrian dish of cooked Puffed rice), Batata vada and Masala tea at a restaurant near the parking area. 

By 9.15 or so, that place had become a mini-market place for local villagers who came in various vehicles to sell their farm produce. The vegetables and fruits were fresh and chemical free and we bought Guavas and Chikoos to carry back home. After that we departed for our next destination - Moregaon to have darshan of Mayureshwar. 

Ashta Vinayak Yatra - March, 2021 (Part 3)

We checked into Novotel at Viman Nagar, Pune at around 3.15 p.m. Initially, the security of the hotel did not allow entry to our LCV as this was unusual for them. They are used to guests coming in private sedans or taxis. It took some time for him to get the clearance. Then there was a long wait at the reception to sign up. The air-con was not cool enough and the reception gave a vague explanation for it. Finally, after nearly 30 minutes, we were allotted our rooms. 

The rooms were very comfortable and spacious. We had a refreshing bath and hot cup of coffee post that. After relaxing for an hour or so, we assembled again to go to our next destination - Ranjangaon Maha Ganapati temple.

Ranjangaon was 44 kms away from our hotel - a short hour long drive. Thanks to Covid19, there were few vehicles on the road and we reached our destination by 6.15 p.m. The beautiful well maintained east facing temple is very close to the parking lot. The temple was built by Sardar Kine around the Sanctum constructed by Peshwa Madhavrao. During the dakshinayan (Southern movement of the Sun), the rays of the Sun fall on the Swayambu deity. 

It is believed that Lord Shiva sought the blessings of Ganesh ji at this place before proceeding to destroy Tripurasur. Ganesh ji can be observed sitting in a cross legged position with trunk turned towards left and with Riddhi & Siddhi on two sides. He is known as Maha Ganapati here. There is a small Shiva temple on one side of the temple. There is also a Vittal Rukmai temple on another side.

We had a comfortable darshan with no one asking as to move away. Sufficient time was available for chanting our prayers, offering our prostrations and filling our eyes & mind with His image. There is a nice courtyard around the temple where we relaxed for a while and took pictures. When we came out, we could see a large bonfire made for celebrating Holi in the outer ring of the temple.

It was nearly dark when we came out of the temple. The birds were settling down for the night in a nearby tree and each wishing each other 'good night' loudly. We boarded the vehicle and stopped at a restaurant on the way for a sumptuous dinner. By the time, we returned to our hotel, it was nearly 10 p.m. We slept soundly that night tired after a long day in which we had driven more than 300 kms...

Ashta Vinayak Yatra - March, 2021 (Part 2)

Although Pali is only 38 kms from Mahad, it turned out to be longest & most painful part of our yatra. The roads were in very poor shape due to the concreting work being done. Our vehicle was shaking & rocking making us feel terrible. Additionally, it was getting warmer as it was mid-day and the dust from the roads made us feel suffocated.

It took nearly 2 hours to reach Pali and we were glad when we entered the town. The temple was a short walk away from the parking lot. As in the case of Mahad, this temple too had very few devotees. We were now certain that Covid19 had drastically reduced the flow of devotees. Due to this, all the traders / shopkeepers who depend on tourist inflows are having a terrible time. We were told that business is down 90% since Covid restrictions began.

Ballaleshwar Ganapati temple in Pali is probably the only temple named after a devotee of the Lord. The temple is so constructed that the Sun's rays falls on the east facing Deity during worship. The Lord with His trunk turned left has Riddhi & Siddhi waving fans in the silver background. Moreshwar Vittal Sindkar (Dhige) built this temple in 1640 and it was renovated in 1760. 

Legend has it that a young boy named Ballal was an ardent devotee of the Lord and he was once blessed with a darshan of the Lord after intense prayers. Ganesh ji came in the form of a Sadhu. Ballal recognised the Lord and prayed that He always stays in that place and bless the devotees who come here. The Lord agreed and also said that His name will be preceded by Ballal's name. It is a practice here to have a darshan of Dhundi Vinayak before seeing the Lord. Dhundi Vinayak is the original swaymbhu which was worshipped by young Ballal. 

We had a leisurely darshan of both Dhundi Vinayak and Sri Ballaleshwar Ganesh. We had ample time to recite our prayers, do our prostrations and pradakshina. Unlike Mahad, here we were not allowed to go inside the Sanctum and had to be content with the darshan from a distance.

After darshan, we came out and had a taste of the subsidised lunch (Rs.20 per meal) which comprises of rice, daal, sabzi, sweet and pickle. We then treated ourselves with sugarcane juice in one of the shops outside the temple premises.

We then boarded for a long trip to Pune. Unfortunately, we had to return via Khopoli which meant going over the bad roads one more time. This road trip to Pali & back was the worst part of our entire yatra. We were relieved once we touched the expressway to go to Pune.

The trip to Pune was long and we decided to have our packed lunch in the vehicle itself. It comprised of lemon rice, chips, wafers and curd rice washed down with cool bottled water. When we reached our hotel at 3.15 p.m, we were ready for a short nap to feel refreshed and prepare ourselves for the next trip in the evening to Ranjangaon...

Ashta Vinayak Yatra - March, 2021 (Part 1)

Our Yatra group of 8 families was very keen on doing the Ashta Vinayak yatra for quite some time. The Ashta Vinayak Yatra refers to a pilgrimage to the eight temples dedicated to Lord Ganesh (son of Shiva & Parvati) that are situated around Pune in Maharashtra. In February of 2021, we firmed up our plans to do this yatra in end March, 2021. The yatra was planned to coincide with Holi festival so that minimum leave is taken by working people.

In the beginning, 6 couples decided to join the yatra. The other 2 couldn't join due to personal reasons. As the travel date came closer, 2 more couples dropped off due to close family members getting Covid19. The rest of us i.e. 4 couples were determined not to miss the opportunity. Also, we felt that we should complete the yatra before the 2nd outbreak of Covid19 results in a stringent lockdown situation like 2020.

So, on 28th March, 2021 we 8 yatris started our Ashtavinayak yatra at 7 a.m. after chanting "Ganpati Bappa Morya" and seeking His blessings for a safe & successful yatra. We had hired a light commercial vehicle (Force Traveller) for the yatra. It was a 22 seater air-conditioned vehicle driven by a young driver called Raju.

We first drove towards Mahad to have darshan of the VaradVinayak (Vinayak who gives boons to His devotees). On the way, our driver played nice Tamil religious songs which made us feel we were driving around in Tamil Nadu. We reached Mahad by 8.30 a.m. and were dropped off right outside the temple.

The temple is situated in a scenic place with a small pond beside the temple. Behind the temple is a small temple of Shri Dattatreya and of Shani, Rahu & Ketu along with Hanuman. The temple also has a Yatri Niwas (lodge) and offers subsidised meals to all yatris. The entire village has come up in the area around the temple.

Mahad village is situated in Khalapur taluka of Raigad District. Legend has it that a Rishi by name Vachaknavi was visited by a ruler by name Rukmangada, and during the visit, the Rishipatni Mukundaa expressed her attraction to the king. The king turned her down leaving her seething in anger. In the meanwhile, Indra, the king of the Devas came down to the earth in the disguise of Rukmangada and accepted her amorous moves. 

An illegitimate son Grutshmadha was born out of their union. The son, learning of the story of his birth was grief stricken, and prayed to Ganesha in Bhadrakavana for absolvement of the sins of everyone concerned. His prayers were granted by Varadavinayak of Bhadrakavana (now Mahad).

Shree Dhondu Paudkar in 1690 A.D found the swayambhu idol of Shree Varadvinayak in a lake. This idol was kept in a nearby goddess temple for some time. Afterwards in 1725 A.D Varadvinayak temple was built by Peshva Sardar Ramji Mahadev Biwalkar & he gifted this to the Village.

Varadavinayak is portrayed, seated on an east facing throne. Stone images of his consorts Siddhi and Riddhi are also seen in the temple. A lamp in this temple is said to have been glowing uninterrupted for over a hundred years.

The temple was unusually empty when we arrived probably due to Covid19 fears and the fact that we arrived early in the morning. After a comfortable darshan, we could circumambulate the temple clockwise, chant our prayers and offer our prostrations to Him.

After this we took pictures outside the temple, some of which are posted here in this blog. We then had our packed Breakfast comprising of Idlis, Vadas with chutney followed by masala tea from a nearby restaurant.

After this, we departed around 10 a.m. to our next destination which was Pali.

Srirangapatna & Melukote Yatra on 31/01/2021

During a recent visit to Bengaluru to attend a wedding, we managed to get one day to do a short but sweet yatra. We were four couples who went together for our yatra which is described below.

On the cold morning of 31^st Jan, 2021, we woke up early at 5 a.m. and after finishing our ablutions and morning prayers, we awaited the Tempo Traveller (TT) which was to take us to our destination. The TT came slightly late and we left by 6.15 a.m. which was a delay of fifteen minutes. The air was cold and crisp at that time as the Sun had yet not risen. Soon, we were en-route to Srirangapatinam which was our destination.

 The first hour of the drive was uneventful as some of us were busy catching up on our morning chanting of prayers. At around 8.30 we halted at a hotel called Kamat Lokaruchi for breakfast. The food here was excellent (Thatte Idli & Madhur Vada are their specialities) and it is frequented by many people travelling the Bengaluru-Mysuru road. After breakfast, we had a short 12 km drive to our first halt – the Aprameya Krishna temple. This is in a place called Ambegalu.

The temple is a serene temple just off the highway adjoining an old village. There were hardly any visitors to the temple at that time giving us the opportunity to have a nice leisurely darshan of the Lord. The speciality of the temple is an idol of baby Krishna on His knees holding a ball of butter in His hands. This Krishna was captivating, and it was difficult to depart after seeing Him in that pose. It is said that Saint Purandaradasa composed the famous song "Jagadodhaarana" after seeing Krishna in this pose at this temple. We bought Chikki (peanuts and jaggery mix in the form of a bar of chocolates) from a local vendor which was reasonably priced and had a heavenly taste.

After this, we left straight towards the island town of Srirangapatipam which used to be the preferred place of a number of kings in the past. We reached around 10.30 a.m. and headed straight towards the banks of the holy river Kaveri. Here three of us had a traditional bath (complete with Sankalpam) while the others preferred to just sprinkle themselves with the water. The water was cool and clean and flowing with slight force. We could comfortably sit on the rocks and have a nice refreshing dip.

After this, we had nice coconut water and sugar cane juice as it was getting warm. The Ranganatha temple (reclining Narayana) was very close to the river. Fortunately, there were not many visitors at this temple (probably due to Covid19 restrictions) and we could get a darshan of the Lord within a short time. The deity is similar to the one in Srirangam. Near His feet was the idol of Kaveri Devi signifying that She is as holy as the river Ganga, if not more. There are three temples of Shri Ranganatha known as Adi Ranga (Srirangapatna), Madhya Ranga (Sivasamudra) and Sri Ranga (Srirangam). It is believed that if one visits all 3 temples in the same day, one is qualified for moksha or liberation.

After this darshan, we drove towards the Nimishamba Devi temple which is about 4 kilometres away.

Here we saw a fairly large crowd waiting patiently in queue for an entry into the temple. As we stood it the queue, one man came and offered to escort us directly into the temple by paying a small fee. We happily agreed and within no time we were inside and having a wonderful darshan of the Devi. Her name signifies that She will come to the assistance of Her devotees within moments of remembering Her. The deity was very tastefully decorated with flowers and lemons. She was looking attractive and very pleasing to the eye. There was a rare Krishnashila  Shree Chakram at Her feet. After Her darshan, we saw the other deities in the temple – Vinayaka, Shivalingam, Lakshmi Narayana, Surya Narayana & Hanuman..

 

This temple also has the Holy river Kaveri flowing calmly beside. After this, we had lunch at a nearby restaurant. Lunch consisted of a traditional thali / food platter which everyone enjoyed heartily. Then we proceeded towards Melkote which we reached by 3 p.m. At this time, the temples were closed. We were informed that the Cheluva Narayana Swamy temple, which was consecrated by Sri Ramanuja in the 12^th Century, will open at 3.30 p.m. and we decided to wait outside the temple. A small crowd of devotees had gathered by the time the temple opened. After a short wait, we could have the darshan of Cheluva Narayana who appeared exceptionally beautiful. The Utsava Murthy was also unique and it is believed that this deity was worshipped by both Rama & Krishna.

 

After this lovely darshan, we proceeded towards the Melkote Narasimha temple on top of the rocky hill close to the temple. It is believed that this idol was installed by Prahalada himself. We climbed the 250 + steps to reach the temple. Along the way, we met a local person named Narasimha who is about 70 years old. He carries a pitcher of water several times a day up to the temple where he works in the temple kitchen. This strenuous work that he has been doing for past 45 years (almost non stop without a break) has resulted in him having a lean and fit physique.

He was kind enough to take all of us directly to the Sanctum (by passing the queue) at the time of the opening of the temple for evening darshan. We felt blessed to see the Lord in all His glory from a remarkably proximity (almost touching distance). After this, Shri Narasimha took us inside the temple kitchen (Madapalli) where we had a darshan of LakshmiNarasimhan which is placed inside the temple. We were especially lucky to go there. Later he gave us a lot of sweet prasadam directly from the kitchen. He also invited us to visit the temple during the annual festival around April when thousands of devotees flock from far & near.

 A few of us stood at the temple gates and chanted our prayers and recited portions of Narayaneeyam relating to Narasimha Avtaar. After this, we climbed down back to our TT and left on our return journey to Bengaluru. Along the way, we halted for our evening prayers and then once again for dinner. By the time we reached back it was post 10 p.m. We were exhausted from the 350+ km yatra and ready to crash into bed with sweet memories of a wonderful day spent in good company with memorable darshan of the Lord in different forms.

After doing various yatras for several decades now, I firmly believe that one needs to accompany like-minded friends in order to thoroughly relish and enjoy the experience. 

Miracle at Kanchipuram !!

During the middle of June, 2019 a friend sent me a message about Atti Varadar. He informed me that the Varadaraja Perumal temple in Kanchipuram (which is one of my favourite temples) is about to witness a event which occurs only once in 40 years. He informed me that the main deity of the temple is actually immersed in the temples tank and the one we pray to in the temple is actually a replacement idol. It seems that due to constant invasions from Islamic rulers (who were known to loot & destroy temples as well as the idols with a view to change the peoples faith) the temple priests had immersed the main deity in the tank. This is brought out once every 40 years only and after 48 days of giving darshan, He is immersed in the temple tank once again.

My friend also sent a video describing this event and the wonderful opportunity to see the main deity. As I had missed the previous event 40 years ago (due to lack of knowledge as well as funds) and am unlikely to be alive for the next time, I felt I must visit Kanchipuram and see the Lord. My wife agreed to this yatra which was planned at short notice. The date of the commencement of this event was 1st July and we were told that after 24 days in a sleeping posture, the Lord would be kept in a standing posture for the next 24 days. Accordingly, we planned to visit Kanchipuram on 23rd July and return on 27th July and booked our tickets and made hotel arrangements.

In the first few days of July, we were watching the news about this event. The crowds there were unprecedented. A few lakh people visited the temple in the first few days. Weekends and holidays were especially crowded. The wait time was anything from 4 hours to 10 hours depending on the day and the time of the visit. People wrote horror stories of their experiences waiting in the sweltering heat in the make shift arrangements. Several people fainted due to the heat and exhaustion. A few days before our visit six people from the crowd of devotees had to be hospitalised due to exhaustion and out of this four people died at the hospital.

The enormous crowds only seemed to increase rather than decrease as the days passed. We were informed that the infrastructure of Kanchipuram was not prepared enough to handle this. Transport was an issue. Outside taxis were not allowed inside the town and the access for vehicles were restricted within a 4 kilometer radius around the temple. There was an online arrangement made for booking special darshan but the number of tickets were limited and the site was deluged with people trying to book.

In view of such a situation, I started calling many of my contacts to see if they could help me and facilitate a quicker entry to avoid the heat and the wait. Most of my friends expressed their inability. A few days before our departure to Kanchipuram, we were told that Prime Minister Modi was due for a visit on 23rd & 24th July and that the temple would be closed for security reasons. It made us even more apprehensive. In the back of our minds we were hopeful and felt that the Lord would do something to make it easy for us. A day before leaving, I was at a local temple in Navi Mumbai witnessing and participating in a havan for Lord Ganesh as it was Sankashti. After the havan, we told the priest that we need his blessings for a good darshan of Atti Varadar. The priest told us that Lord Ganesh will facilitate it and He is the remover of obstacles. We prayed to Lord Ganesh for a smooth and easy darshan of the Lord.

We flew to Chennai on 23rd July and immediately proceeded to Kanchipuram by car. We had booked a local taxi from Kanchipuram so that he could drop us to our hotel rather than leave us at the outskirts as was being done by all outside taxis (who were not allowed inside Kanchipuram town limits). As we proceeded towards Kanchipuram, the taxi driver told us that outside vehicles are now permitted to come into the town as the local traders were complaining about drop in business due to the restriction. He further told us that the Chief Minister (CM) of Tamil Nadu was expected to visit the temple the same evening and there will be restrictions for devotees like us. So, we decided to visit the other temples of Kanchipuram on 23rd and try our luck with Atti Varadar on 24th.

We arrived at our hotel at 3 p.m. As soon as we entered the hotel, the manager at the reception told us that due to proposed CM visit there are virtually no crowds at Atti Varadar temple and we should immediately proceed for darshan. We immediately freshened up and left the hotel within 15 minutes. As informed by the manager, we went without footwear as there were no arrangements for custody and safekeeping. Outside the hotel, we got an autorickshaw who quoted Rs. 200/- for the 2 kilometer odd ride. We requested him to take us as close as possible to the entry gate. He quickly drove us to the temple using some inner roads and dropped us at a place which was barricaded and manned by a few policemen. We tried to enter the road leading to the temple gate and the policemen said that only people with VIP pass were allowed from there. He then directed us to a nearby area from where people like us would get entry.

After walking nearly 20 minutes, we came to the correct place for entry. Luckily for us the sky was overcast and, although not raining, the tar roads were easy to walk in. On a normal day, it would have been very hot and scalding to the feet. When we entered the temple gates through the "Normal" darshan queue, we found that there were only about hundred odd people in the queue. We quickly stood in the queue and as it was moving rapidly, we had our darshan of Atti Varadar within about 10 minutes. What a miracle !! It seems that the entire Universe conspired to make this happen and give us a fabulous darshan within a very short time. We were overwhelmed with gratitude and were beaming from ear to ear. We felt blessed that the Lord whose darshan is so difficult to get was easily seen by us.

As we stepped out of the temple and started finding our way back to our hotel, we were immersed in the miracle that we just witnessed that day. A truly unforgettable experience reinforcing our faith in the Lord.

Pandharpur Yatra on Ashaad Ekadashi 2019

Five of us decided, on short notice, to visit Pandharpur on Ashaad Ekadashi day (12th July, 2019) and have a darshan of Lord Vithoba, Devi Rukmai and the thousands of Warkaris who visit this holy place from all over Maharashtra and other parts of the country, For many years this has been a cherished desire to participate in the festivities and enjoy the experience. It was indeed a wonderful experience which I would like to share with you, dear reader, and hope it inspires you to also do the yatra in the near future.

For people who are unaware of  Pandharpur or the Warkaris, I suggest you do a Google search for detailed information. In brief, this temple is in existence for thousands of years and the idol of the Lord is not man made but is considered as the virtual image of the Lord who came to visit Pundalik who was renowned for his service to his parents. Pundalik, who was busy attending to the chores of his parents, asked the Lord to stand on a brick (Vit as it is called in Marathi) till he finished attending to his parents. The Lord stood there waiting with His hands on His hips and, later on the request of Pundalik, became an idol in the same form to bless all His devotees. Warkaris are devotees, from all walks of life, who undertake a 21 day pilgrimage by foot to Pandharpur so as to reach before Ashaad Ekadashi (the Shukla Ekadashi that falls between the middle of June & July). They are simple people who are brimming with devotion and spend their time singing the glories of the Lord in the form of Abhangs written by the famous Sants of Maharashtra - Gynaenshwar , Namdeo, Tukaram etc.

We had planned to stay a night at Pandharpur and, thanks to a dear friend, got a couple of rooms booked at Pandharpur. This was in Hotel Dhanashree which is on the main road leading to the temple and about 15 minutes walk away from the temple. I had inquired with the hotel and was told that they have adequate parking facility and hence we decided to go to Pandharpur by car.

We left early morning on 12th July at 4 a.m. to reach well on time for watching the various festivities at Pandharpur which is about 360 kilometers form Mumbai. When we started, it was raining heavily. Luckily, we had hired a driver to drive us in a friend's Ertiga car and hence were able to sit back during the journey. Normally, it takes about 6.5 hours to reach Pandharpur from Mumbai. So, we were expecting to reach by noon taking into account the crowds expected as we neared the destination. It was raining all the way till we neared Pune, after which it was comparatively dry and warmer. On the expressway after the second toll booth, we stopped for a break and had excellent fresh tea at a nearby shop. The shop has an open kitchen and we could see the cook pouring fresh oil in the cauldron for frying vadas and bhajias. We then proceeded smoothly till we had covered about 300 kilometers.

Along the way, around 50 kilometers before reaching Pandharpur, we decided to fill petrol in the tank as we were not sure of the situation at Pandharpur. We stopped at a petrol pump on the highway and the driver asked the attendant to fill the tank with petrol. Unfortunately, it was a new attendant (the regular attendants were on leave due to visit the temple) who presumed that this was a diesel vehicle and filled the tank with diesel. When he presented the bill of less than Rs. 2000, the owner of the car (who was also a co-yatri) questioned as to how the bill is so less. We then discovered the blunder. Fortunately, the driver had not started the vehicle after this and hence the engine was not corrupted with the wrong fuel. The supervisor at the pump was very cool and immediately worked out a solution to tow the car to a nearby garage and empty the tank and then to refill it with petrol.

The towing van was present at the Petrol Pump but the keys were at his residence and hence he sent a motorbike to fetch the keys. Unfortunately, the bike had limited fuel and stalled midway to his residence. He then called the garage mechanic to the pump station itself to release the mixed up fuel from the car. This whole process took about 2 hours as they were doing it slowly so as to save the mixed fuel to be re-used in their generator later. In the meantime, the supervisor made us sit comfortably in his small office and generously offered us tea as refreshment. After the fuel was removed and replaced, we set out once again to our destination.

A big lesson for all car owners to put a sticker on the lid of the fuel tank indicating what kind of fuel needs to be used in the car.

As we neared Pandharpur, we found that the traffic was denser and about 15 kilometers away the traffic was diverted from the main road. We tried to use Google Maps to find our way in but it was unable to help us. After circling the town for about half an hour, we finally reached a location which was about 5 kilometers from our hotel. Here the traffic was regulated, and only one vehicle was allowed in for every ten minutes or so. After an agonising wait, we finally were allowed in, only to find a huge traffic jam on the way. The jam was caused by the huge influx of people who were walking towards and away from the temple town. The roads were lined up by hundreds of makeshift shops on either side selling a variety of stuff like toys, clothes, bags, pillows, bed sheets, food articles etc. The cross roads from where vehicles were coming into the main road were unregulated, leading to more jams. After about half an hour in the car, we decided to walk to the hotel. About 150 meters away from the hotel, we found another barricade put up by police to prevent vehicles from moving in. Although we informed the policeman that we are booked in a nearby hotel, he refused to allow the vehicle in. So, we walked with our bags (luckily they were light) to the hotel.

One learning from this is that it might be better to take a train to Pandharpur during Ashaad Ekadashi if one wants to avoid the inconveniences of road travel & traffic.

The person at the reception told us that we can get the car in by showing the visiting card of the hotel. One of us went back with the card and managed to bring the car back to the hotel parking lot which was inside from the main road and protected by security. There are very few hotels in Pandharpur. When lakhs of people descend upon such a town, one can imagine the chaos for accommodation. Most of the pilgrims do camp wherever they can - at schools, temples, halls, etc. All the hotels follow a unique scheme during Ashaad Ekadashi. They let out rooms for a minimum stay of 3 days. Even if you want for only one day, you have to pay for 3 days. If one has a good connect at the hotel, one can negotiate for reducing the minimum period to two days. The hotel was decent - good clean rooms, bathroom & beds, good air conditioning and no mosquitoes. We freshened up at the hotel and got ready to visit the temple. It was around 4 p.m. at that time. In the meantime, I was coordinating with a contact who had promised to speak with some influential people and enable us to get a pass for a quick darshan of the Lord. He told me to wait at the hotel and said he will let me know the exact program after some time. At around 6 p.m., we decided not to wait anymore as it would soon become dark & to proceed towards the temple and coordinate with my connect over the phone.

It was a short walk to the temple. Instead of going directly to the temple, we took a detour towards the Chandrabhaga river. We walked through very crowded streets which were full of Warkaris. There was virtually no place to stop or rest. All along we heard devotional songs and bhajans being played in residences, halls, temples, streets etc. People lovingly addressed each other as "Mauli". Mauli means mother in Marathi and it is a term used in context of the Lord who is as caring as a mother. This term is also used for all devotees who are treated as incarnations of the Lord Himself. When we reached the banks of Chandrabhaga river, we were pleasantly surprised to see a good flow of water. The river, which is a tributary of the Bhima river, has the form of a crescent (moon shaped) here and hence is called Chandrabhaga. There were thousands of people on its banks doing various activities - some were bathing, some swimming, some praying, some listening to holy discourses, some watching street performers etc. After sprinkling some of the river water on ourselves (as a quasi bath), we proceeded towards the temple.

It was dusk time when we reached the temple through the vast crowds. We first visited a Krishna temple very close to the main Vitobha temple. We found many Warkaris had camped here and were making food for themselves. We then went to the terrace of this temple and had a great view of the entire Chandrabha river on one side and the Vittal temple on the other side. After this, we moved towards the main temple and had the darshan of Namdev chi Payari - this is at the footsteps of the main temple. This is where Namdev and his entire family took Samadhi as they preferred to have the footsteps of the devotees of the Lord on their head rather than going to Vaikunth (abode of the Lord).

After this, we did a pradikshna of the temple along the road which surrounds the temple. While doing the pradakshina of the temple we saw some Warkaris coming out of the temple after Charan Darshan. As is the custom, we touched their feet (as this is symbolic of touching the feet of the Lord) and inquired with them as to how long they were in the queue for the darshan. The said 12 hours. Further down, we saw some Warkaris coming out after Mukh Darshan (where only the face of the Lord is seen). They informed us that they were in queue for only 2 hours. By this time, I realised that my contact was unable to make arrangements for a quick darshan for us as he was unable to reach out to the right people. So, we decided to stand in queue for the Mukh darshan. It was about 7.40 p.m. at that time.

We went to a stall near Namdev chi Payari where we could leave our footwear for safe keeping. Then we started walking towards the end of the queue for Mukh darshan. It was a long walk indeed. After some distance, we managed to get into the queue out of turn at 7.55 p.m.. From then on, we moved very briskly and reached the temple doorsteps by 8.40 p.m. After having one more darshan of the Namdev chi Payari, we moved in and within 10 minutes or so, we were inside the temple. We could see a few VIP devotees walk in straight for the Charan Darshan (where one gets to go close to the Lord and also touch their forehead on the Lords feet). On hindsight, it is better to wait for the darshan as we get more time to meditate & pray to the Lord. The authorities had created a small ramp which enabled us to have a clear vision / darshan of the Lord. We could see Him clearly from top up to waist level. The distance from the viewing spot to the deity was about 30 feet. The darshan itself lasted 30-40 seconds and was very satisfying. More than us seeing Him, we were delighted that he saw us and registered our attendance along with the thousands of sincere devotees.

After this we had a Mukh darshan of Rukmai (His consort). Fortunately for us, there were no devotees inside Her temple at that time and we could see Her Holy feet as well as face. We could wait a little longer here and it was also possible to go back for the second or third time to have Her darshan in view of low crowd here and low supervision too. The distance from the deity to the viewing point was about 15 feet only.

After this we came out, went to the stall and collected our footwear, took some pictures and purchased some prasadam from a counter outside the temple. As we were very tired by this time, decided to return to our hotel. All five of us were fasting on this day. Luckily halfway to our hotel, we found a rickshaw who took us back to the hotel for a nominal fare. The crowds had visibly thinned by this time. We went to sleep by 10 p.m. the end of a long, eventful and blessed day.

The next morning (13th July), we woke up and finished our morning rituals and had breakfast at a nearby restaurant and departed for home. The return trip was uneventful. We encountered some heavy traffic for the first few kilometers but it was smooth after that. We had a nice lunch at Cream Center, Pune on our way back and reached Mumbai by 6.30 p.m. The rains, which were virtually absent during our time at Pandharpur, made a comeback at Lonavala and when we reached Mumbai it was raining heavily as usual.

Thus ended our once-in-a-lifetime short & sweet Pandharpur Yatra during Ashaad Ekadashi.

Chardham Yatra - Part 14 (Conclusion of Yatra)

Day 13 (31st May 2019) was the last day of our yatra. We woke up to the doorbell rung by Ranveer for the last time at 5.30 a.m. with his hot cup of coffee. By 6.30 a.m. we had finished our morning ablutions and were ready. The first activity in the morning was to go to Mansa Devi temple which is within Haridwar itself. This is second Shakti Peetham we visited during this yatra. After a short ride by electric rickshaw, we reached the starting point of the ropeway which was to take us up the hill where the temple is. While there is a regular path by foot also, we preferred the ropeway for its novelty factor as also the time saving factor. The ride costs Rs. 100 per person for both directions (up & down).

As we were early, there was not much wait time to catch our ride. Four people are allowed in each car. The ride itself took only about 5-6 minutes to reach the top. Before going up, we had purchased some offerings but after reaching up, we found there are several shops selling all kinds of offerings including flowers, bangles, a combo offering of coconut, flowers, prasad etc. The aarti was in progress when we entered, and we were greeted by the sound of ringing bells and the smell of burning camphor and oil lamps. A big crowd was standing in front of the deity witnessing the aarti. Security people were doing a good job of crowd management and within a few minutes we had got our darshan of the Devi. Just outside the main sanctum, we saw the idol of another Devi which is unique as it perspires. Then we went around and had a darshan of all the other deities around the temple before coming back to the ropeway for our decent.

After coming down, we went by rickshaw to Har-ki-Pauri which was nearby and had our last darshan of Ganga. We also visited the Ganga temple which stands at this place. If we had more time, we would have also had our last dip at this holy place. As we had to complete our brunch and move to the airport at Dehradun, we skipped the last dip. After this we came back to the hotel in another electric rickshaw.

Ranveer had made a special lunch that day. It is called Samaradhanai lunch which was to celebrate the completion of our Yatra. Lunch comprised of Sambhar, Rasam, Potato bhaji, Dal vada, Pal payasam (milk kheer), Papadam, Curds, Pickles etc. Our Dwadashi meal was superb indeed. We all ate heartily for one last time. He also made chutney sandwiches (at very short notice) for eating during our long flight back home. The Yatra was made thoroughly enjoyable due to the culinary skills of Ranveer, the driving skills of Pradeep and the guidance of Srinivasan. M/s Srinivasan Tours can be reached at 9871723005 / 98682 60599 if anyone else wishes to avail of their services. They do many other yatras besides the Chardham yatra.

On this picture to the left, you can see from left to right - Shri Srinivasan the tour operator in white shirt, Ranveer the master chef & Pradeep the reliable driver)

Post lunch, we said our goodbyes & thanks to Ranveer and waited while our bags were loaded on the TT. We then left the hotel by around 11 a.m. to the Jolly Grant airport at Dehradun. We were all web checked in for our return flight at 2.30 p.m. The return flight by Indigo Airways left on time and was via Delhi (for most of us). The wait time in the aircraft at Delhi was frustrating as it took 1 hour 40 minutes and the AC was not working during that time. The outside temperature at that time was a record 46 degrees Celsius. After a harrowing & agonising wait, we finally left Delhi and arrived back safe and sound by around 6.30 p.m. in Mumbai. Thus, ended our 2-week Chardham Yatra. It was a very good yatra for us as (a) we had the benefit of great co-yatris whose company made us forget any discomforts that may have come up (b) God grace was showered upon us in more ways than we could imagine - great weather, comfortable darshans, good luck etc. and (c) Superb tour operator and staff. . 

I hope you enjoyed reading this and found it useful to plan your next trip to Dev Bhumi (Gods Land) at Uttrakhand. I would strongly recommend at least one visit in one’s lifetime. It is a truly holy and divine place. Pilgrims who are 50+ and younger pilgrims having health issues must consult their doctors before undertaking such a trip to higher altitude shrines. Feel free to write to me in the comments for any clarification and I shall respond forthwith.

Bolo Yamuna Maiya ki Jai !!!

Bolo Ganga Maiya ki Jai !!!

Bolo Kedar Baba ki Jai !!!

Bolo Triyugi Narayan ki Jai !!!

Jai Badri Vishal !!!