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A Pilgrim trip To Shirdi - Abode of Sri Sai Baba

By Brunda Nagaraj

Shirdi, a dream of every Sai devotee, is to visit this divine place once in their lifetime. There are millions of people all over the world who visit this holy place to seek blessings of Sai Baba. Located in the district of Ahmednagar in Maharashtra, Shirdi is at a distance of 15km from Kopargaon and 83 km away from Ahmednagar. Once a small village, is now a famous pilgrim spot for devotees across the globe. Devotees believe that their miseries come to an end once they set their foot on Shirdi's soil and all their prayers are heard and their wishes come true.

Shirdi

Image Courtesy : Brunda Nagaraj

To reach Shirdi

Reaching Shirdi during olden days was a herculean task but there are several options these days to get to Shirdi. There is a direct train to Shirdi and you may also choose to fly to Pune and avail a taxi or self-driven cars. Shirdi is close to Nashik as well and there are a lot of city buses available from Nashik. Within the town, you may hop into a Rickshaw or a Tonga to experience the ethnicity of the place.

Pune to Shirdi distance : 199.9 km
Nashik to Shirdi distance : 87.5 km

Sai Ram

Image Courtesy : Brunda Nagaraj

Accommodation at Shirdi:

Sri Sai Baba Sansthan has their own accommodation facilities for their devotees. If you are planning to visit Shirdi and are looking out for rooms at Sai Baba Sansthan Trust, it is recommended that you book the rooms before-hand. The temple is technology friendly and has made it convenient to their devotees to book the rooms online. Rooms are available at affordable prices and is at a walkable distance from the temple premises.

Sai Ashram , Dwarawati and New Bhakti Niwas are part of Sri Sai Baba Sansthan Trust and there are plenty other hotels in and around the temple. There are shuttle services available to travel from the cottages to temple premises.

Things to do in Shirdi

Image Courtesy : Photographer in Shirdi

Food at Shirdi

The temple serves food for everyone who visits Shirdi at a very nominal price, most of the devotees choose to eat from the temple premises. The temple food is limited to Indian breads (Rotis), Vegetable curry, Dal and Rice. If you would want to explore the place for more, then there are a lot of shacks and hotels that serve amazing North-Indian and South-Indian food. Maharashtra will never leave the foodie in you disappointed.

Shirdi

Image Courtesy : Brunda Nagaraj

Things to do in Shirdi

A visit to Dwarakamai is a must do thing when you visit Shirdi; a divine experience to see the used things that belonged to Sai Baba will leave you awe-struck. The Kafni, the cooking utensils and the dhuni (the holy fire) that is still burning will leave you enchanted as you look around the entire place. Would you like to witness the bed where Sai was given his last bath after he passed away? Then, a visit to Chavdi is a must.

  • Visit to the ancient Hanuman Mandir and the Lakshmi Narasimha temple is also a must do thing when you are in Shirdi
  • Visit to the Khandoba temple which is at a walkable distance from the Sai temple to seek blessings of Lord Shiva who is in the form of Khandoba. Legends say that Sai Baba was first spotted here by the main priest Mahalsapati of this temple.
  • Do not miss to attend the Aarti sessions during your visit to Shirdi. Hymns sung rhythmically in Marathi praising the life of Sai Baba is a melody to ears. The ever-smiling statue of Sai Baba looks so beautiful that it puts you into a state of trance; do not be surprised if tears of happiness starts to roll down your cheeks.
  • Aarti details are available online and devotees can pick and choose time as per their convenience.

Common things you would spot in Shirdi

  • Every devotee who walks inside the temple will certainly utter the phrase " Sai Ram"
  • A ritual of feeding milk to street dogs is something that you would spot when you visit Shirdi
  • Vendors selling pomegranates at a very affordable price when it would have hit peaks in every other city is a common thing

Thousands of devotees visit Sai Baba at Shirdi to get their wishes fulfilled, so don't you think this should be added to your pilgrim trip list?

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