In August 2013, during my second visit to India, I flew to the city of Aurangabad, capital to the region of Maharashtra. Me purpose was to visit the village of Shirdi and stay some days there. Aurangabad is the nearest main city to Shirdi. Kopergaon, though quite nearer, not having so much infrastructure, nor airport. The airport of Aurangabad is a new one and quite tidy, although lacks a proper public transportation service. When I arrived, I went to speak to the airport manager so as to be sure I would get correct information. I was disappointed to find out that due to recent national security policies now it wasn't possible for foreigners to buy a SIM card for cell-phone, and that at that time (it was afternoon) there were not more busses from the airport for the rest of the day.
The owner of a transportation agency (as usual, always going forward after what smells like possible business), realizing that I was not in the mood of hiring a car by myself, suggested me to wait until next flight arrived, because probably there would be more pilgrims willing to go to Shirdi. Luckily enough, I met a family of Sikhs that had travelled with that sole purpose, and we shared a hired car. I was specially comfortable traveling with them, because from my experiences in India I learned to trust them more than the rest of the locals. And they proved to be a charming and kind family.
We took about three hours along a nasty road to reach Shirdi, including a short stop to drink some Chai (Masala tea) at a tea-shop for just 5 Rupees (USD 0,08) a glass.
On arriving at Shirdi, the driver left us each at our pre-booked hotels. It was already night, so I just prepared for bed.
Before traveling, some Indian friends, kindly worried about my safety during the trip, suggested me to book all the lodging beforehand. That's what I did. However, unfortunately that proved to have been a bad idea at least in that case. Because I realized that I was overcharged in all the hostels I stayed in India (except the one in Varanasi) for having pre-booked using reservation-websites like hostels.com and alike. So, I ended up paying a relatively high price. Let me be clear, I paid peanuts, because I stayed in low-budget hostels. But I realized that I would have paid quite less had I book right there on the spot. And all the hostels had availability, and there were lots of them, as well as family homes offering rooms for rent at a better price than I paid.
My room didn't have a view, was depressing, the sheets and blankets were torn and pricky, the light was weak and they cut the electricity during the day. There was a leakage dripping from the ceiling of the room near the entrance; the door of the toilet didn't close (anyway, I was alone), there was no shower, just a squat-on shitter; no place to place your things on, and of course, no soap and no paper. And a warning threatening to charge a fine if you used too much water in that dry region in the middle of the Indian subcontinent. But that was fine. I was prepared for all that. What I found more annoying was the impertinence of the hostel staff pushing me and insisting for me to hire their services (all kinds of services, because, as it seemed, they were experts in whatever trade!). Anyway, nothing serious. Just the usual thing in those regions.
Virtually all there is to do and see at Shirdi is inside the enclosed and protected Sai Baba compound:
- The Dwarkamai: the dilapidated mosque (not dilapidated any more) where Sai Baba lived and spent most of the time, and received his devotees. Here also was (and still is) his Duni or sacred file, which hasn't ever stopped burning since his death, thanks to the foundation that has been founded by his devotees. The Udi (sacred ashes that are believed to possess miraculous effects) proceed from this Duni, and is still distributed for free inside the compound.
- The Chavadi: Located beside the Dwarkamai. Here Sai Baba used to sleep every other night.
- The Temple of Ganesha.
- The tombs of several of Sai Baba's most notable disciples and devotees.
- Sai Baba's Temple. This temple was built with Baba's consent by one of his devotees, and was finished just before his death. Before dying Baba expressed his will (in a peculiar way) to be put there after his death. Since then, here lye his mortal remains, and therefore is the main pilgrimage site in the whole compound. Here is where the devotees go to receive Darshan, and here is where his Puja is executed.
- The Lendi, or garden that was transformed from a shabby place into a beautiful garden by Sai Baba, and that he took care of until his last days.
- The Gurustan: This is the tree where Sai Baba was seen for the first time when we has just arrived at the tiny village of Shirdi being a teenager. Sai Baba would spend most of the time under that tree, do penance, and even sleep. It is believed that his Guru's mortal remains lye below in a small underground temple. Baba told his devotees to reverenced this place and this tree, which todays is believed to possess miraculous powers.
- Sai Baba's Padukas: These are his foot-prints, that have been taken by one of his devotees while he lived, and that were and still are reverenced like Baba himself.
- The well where Sai would go daily to get water for drinking, washing, cooking, and watering the Lendi.
- The museum where can be found many objects and artifacts that have been used by him and by his devotees. There is also an interesting collection of photos.
- A book-store that belongs to the Sai Baba foundation, and where you can purchase books and DVDs and a ridiculously low price.
- The office that distributes Baba's Udi for free. You need to queue-up.
- The buildings that was built by a couple of his devotees to lodge pilgrims that came to receive Darshan from Baba.
Here you can also find the administration from the foundation that looks after the whole compound, as well as other things of lesser importance.
The temple opens every day at 6 AM, when the Puja for Sai Baba is performed. This ceremony includes washing the marble statue that represents him inside the temple, and dressing it up. This ritual was performed by his devotees request while Sai was alive, and still continues to be performed today, through the statue. This Puja or ceremony is open to public. You have to queue-up as if going to receive Darshan, and when you pass by Sai Baba's statue and tomb, you can just stop for a brief moment, because the guards are keen that the queue keeps moving. While in he queue you can hear the devotional shouts Hai Sai, and chants form the devotees while they wait to get it.
Sai Poornima: Thursdays are Sai Baba's day, when a special procession used to be made carrying him around the village, and is still performed today.
The main Temple can be seen from outside the compound, and it's two high golden turrets look very beautiful. Outside the compound the only things worth visiting are:
- The bazar that is located behind the compound.
- The tiny Khandoba temple along the main road, from which Mahalsapati greeted Baba "Hai Sai" when the latter was returning to Shirdi.
- Two more blocks ahead along the road there is a small temple dedicated to Baba and his disciples.
In full day is enough to visit all that there is to see in Shirdi. However, if you are traveling from very for away as I did, you may want to stay 2 or 3 days, and repeat the itinerary some few times. However, other than this, there is absolutely nothing else to do here. And in Shirdi, as in all the rest of the Maharashtran region, there is a real language barrier, because people don't speak English. Since their local dialect in Marati (instead of Hindi, like in Dehli), their second tongue is Hindi. And you very rarely meet trilingual locals that can also speak English.
The bus terminal is a few blocks away from the compound and temple, westwards along the main road. It's very easy to get there; however, it took me some time to make myself understood what I was looking for. From there you can buy a cheap bus ticket, in a sleeping cabin, to go back to Aurangabad city.
The owner of a transportation agency (as usual, always going forward after what smells like possible business), realizing that I was not in the mood of hiring a car by myself, suggested me to wait until next flight arrived, because probably there would be more pilgrims willing to go to Shirdi. Luckily enough, I met a family of Sikhs that had travelled with that sole purpose, and we shared a hired car. I was specially comfortable traveling with them, because from my experiences in India I learned to trust them more than the rest of the locals. And they proved to be a charming and kind family.
We took about three hours along a nasty road to reach Shirdi, including a short stop to drink some Chai (Masala tea) at a tea-shop for just 5 Rupees (USD 0,08) a glass.
On arriving at Shirdi, the driver left us each at our pre-booked hotels. It was already night, so I just prepared for bed.
Before traveling, some Indian friends, kindly worried about my safety during the trip, suggested me to book all the lodging beforehand. That's what I did. However, unfortunately that proved to have been a bad idea at least in that case. Because I realized that I was overcharged in all the hostels I stayed in India (except the one in Varanasi) for having pre-booked using reservation-websites like hostels.com and alike. So, I ended up paying a relatively high price. Let me be clear, I paid peanuts, because I stayed in low-budget hostels. But I realized that I would have paid quite less had I book right there on the spot. And all the hostels had availability, and there were lots of them, as well as family homes offering rooms for rent at a better price than I paid.
My room didn't have a view, was depressing, the sheets and blankets were torn and pricky, the light was weak and they cut the electricity during the day. There was a leakage dripping from the ceiling of the room near the entrance; the door of the toilet didn't close (anyway, I was alone), there was no shower, just a squat-on shitter; no place to place your things on, and of course, no soap and no paper. And a warning threatening to charge a fine if you used too much water in that dry region in the middle of the Indian subcontinent. But that was fine. I was prepared for all that. What I found more annoying was the impertinence of the hostel staff pushing me and insisting for me to hire their services (all kinds of services, because, as it seemed, they were experts in whatever trade!). Anyway, nothing serious. Just the usual thing in those regions.
Virtually all there is to do and see at Shirdi is inside the enclosed and protected Sai Baba compound:
- The Dwarkamai: the dilapidated mosque (not dilapidated any more) where Sai Baba lived and spent most of the time, and received his devotees. Here also was (and still is) his Duni or sacred file, which hasn't ever stopped burning since his death, thanks to the foundation that has been founded by his devotees. The Udi (sacred ashes that are believed to possess miraculous effects) proceed from this Duni, and is still distributed for free inside the compound.
- The Chavadi: Located beside the Dwarkamai. Here Sai Baba used to sleep every other night.
- The Temple of Ganesha.
- The tombs of several of Sai Baba's most notable disciples and devotees.
- Sai Baba's Temple. This temple was built with Baba's consent by one of his devotees, and was finished just before his death. Before dying Baba expressed his will (in a peculiar way) to be put there after his death. Since then, here lye his mortal remains, and therefore is the main pilgrimage site in the whole compound. Here is where the devotees go to receive Darshan, and here is where his Puja is executed.
- The Lendi, or garden that was transformed from a shabby place into a beautiful garden by Sai Baba, and that he took care of until his last days.
- The Gurustan: This is the tree where Sai Baba was seen for the first time when we has just arrived at the tiny village of Shirdi being a teenager. Sai Baba would spend most of the time under that tree, do penance, and even sleep. It is believed that his Guru's mortal remains lye below in a small underground temple. Baba told his devotees to reverenced this place and this tree, which todays is believed to possess miraculous powers.
- Sai Baba's Padukas: These are his foot-prints, that have been taken by one of his devotees while he lived, and that were and still are reverenced like Baba himself.
- The well where Sai would go daily to get water for drinking, washing, cooking, and watering the Lendi.
- The museum where can be found many objects and artifacts that have been used by him and by his devotees. There is also an interesting collection of photos.
- A book-store that belongs to the Sai Baba foundation, and where you can purchase books and DVDs and a ridiculously low price.
- The office that distributes Baba's Udi for free. You need to queue-up.
- The buildings that was built by a couple of his devotees to lodge pilgrims that came to receive Darshan from Baba.
Here you can also find the administration from the foundation that looks after the whole compound, as well as other things of lesser importance.
The whole compound is protected by an outer wall with several gates around it, protected by guards, and some basic infrastructure for devotees to queue-up. The guards check that you get in barefoot, and that you are not carrying along any cell-phone or camera. For just 2 Rupees there are some stalls where you can leave your shoes. Although as from the second day I simply preferred to leave my hostel barefoot. After all, the filth was everywhere, and it made not much difference.
The temple opens every day at 6 AM, when the Puja for Sai Baba is performed. This ceremony includes washing the marble statue that represents him inside the temple, and dressing it up. This ritual was performed by his devotees request while Sai was alive, and still continues to be performed today, through the statue. This Puja or ceremony is open to public. You have to queue-up as if going to receive Darshan, and when you pass by Sai Baba's statue and tomb, you can just stop for a brief moment, because the guards are keen that the queue keeps moving. While in he queue you can hear the devotional shouts Hai Sai, and chants form the devotees while they wait to get it.
Sai Poornima: Thursdays are Sai Baba's day, when a special procession used to be made carrying him around the village, and is still performed today.
The main Temple can be seen from outside the compound, and it's two high golden turrets look very beautiful. Outside the compound the only things worth visiting are:
- The bazar that is located behind the compound.
- The tiny Khandoba temple along the main road, from which Mahalsapati greeted Baba "Hai Sai" when the latter was returning to Shirdi.
- Two more blocks ahead along the road there is a small temple dedicated to Baba and his disciples.
In full day is enough to visit all that there is to see in Shirdi. However, if you are traveling from very for away as I did, you may want to stay 2 or 3 days, and repeat the itinerary some few times. However, other than this, there is absolutely nothing else to do here. And in Shirdi, as in all the rest of the Maharashtran region, there is a real language barrier, because people don't speak English. Since their local dialect in Marati (instead of Hindi, like in Dehli), their second tongue is Hindi. And you very rarely meet trilingual locals that can also speak English.
The bus terminal is a few blocks away from the compound and temple, westwards along the main road. It's very easy to get there; however, it took me some time to make myself understood what I was looking for. From there you can buy a cheap bus ticket, in a sleeping cabin, to go back to Aurangabad city.
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