COURTESY: GOOGLE PHOTOS
For my first post in the year 2020, I wish to narrate my experience of visiting Shirdi to have darshan of Shirdi Saibaba. This is my third visit to the holy place. Myself and my wife planned to visit the place arranged by Sainamam Tours Pvt Ltd as Shirdi Tour Packageon 30th and 31st December 19 so that I could be in Shirdi for my 70th Birthday. The Package Includes : Two Way Economy Class Air tickets - Chennai /Shirdi / Chennai,Transportation in Shirdi, Accommodation in Star Hotel at Shirdi, Buffet Dinner on first day , Buffet Breakfast and Lunch on second day, Arrangement for darshan of Saibaba and other places of worship in Shirdi by an experienced Guide. My experiences of the visit on 30/31 December 19 are given below:
First Day of visit 30.12.19
We reached Chennai International Airport to board Spicejet flight to Shirdi. Spicejet operates two direct flights to Shirdi daily to and fro Shirdi from Chennai. On reaching the place, we were provided with Lunch by the co-ordinator of the tour. The flight took off at 1.30 pm with delay and reached Shirdi International AIrport around 3.30 pm. Coordinator/ Guide of the tour at Shiridi, Mr.Rajesh received us and arranged for our travel of the twenty members of the Group to ST Laurn The Spiritual Resort by different cars.
Courtesy Google Photos
St Laurn - The Spiritual Resort, the best luxury hotel in Shirdi, a resort where peace of mind is restored. Spread across five-acres, the upcoming property will be a luxury five-star hotel with 138 keys. St Laurn is one of the best 5 star hotels in Shirdi offering top-end Meditation & Spa facilities. A warm welcome awaits you! To know more about the Hotel and to book rooms visit the site at http://stlaurnhotels.com/shirdi/
After getting refreshed we went to Saibaba Samadhi Mandhir by the Cars arranged by the Hotel. Our Guide Mr.Rajesh took us to important places in the Mandhir complex like Gurusthan (Holy Neem Tree), Dixit Wada Museum and explained in details about the importance and details of each place. Then he took us to the entrance of queue for Paid darshan which was arranged by the Travel and we joined the queue and had nice darshan of Saibaba.
Mobiles/Cameras/ Electronic Devices and wearing cheppals inside the temple are prohibited and we had to leave them outside.
Mr.Rajesh informed us that the present idol of Saibaba in the Mandhir was installed in the year 1954 and until then a portrait of Sai baba was worshipped in that place. At present the portrait is kept in the Dixit Wada Museum.
Courtesy Google Photos
After having nice darshan of Shirdi Saibaba , we reached the Hotel and had our dinner.
About St Laurn The Spritual Resort
As explained earlier the Hotel has five star facilities like Swimming pool,Gym,Spa,Children's Play area etc. There are also Idols of Shidi Saibaba in an ambiance of Temple with Priests doing Pujas regularly.
Sai Baba's idol in St Laurn Resort
Sai Baba's idol in St Laurn Resort
Sai Baba's idol in St Laurn Resort
Big Portraits of Shirdi Saibaba with his Messages adorn the walls of the Hotel everywhere. On the whole the Hotel has a Divine atmosphere and the Rooms and Room Services are very Good. It is a nice place to stay in Shirdi with a Spiritual feeling.
Second Day of visit 31.12.19
On the second day after taking our breakfast in the Hotel, there was a get together of the Group members arranged by the Coordinator to celebrate my 70th Birthday with cutting of Birthday cake by me.He also presented 'Sri Sai Satcharita' book on behalf of Sainamam Travels. It was an unforgettable Birthday celebration for me since it happened in Shirdi.
Hanuman Mandhir:
Next we went from the Hotel to Hanuman Mandhir which is near the Samadhi Mandhir. The Anjaneya inside the temple is reported to the exisitng in the same place when Saibaba was alive and he used to worship the Anjaneya Idol which is in the temple.
Hanuman Mandhir
Dwarakamai:
After worshipping Lord Anjaneya we went to Dwarakamai, a place where Saibaba used to dwell. Dwarkamai is one of the treasures of Shirdi for the devotees. They say that Dwarkamai is the heart of Shirdi, the place where the great Sai Baba spent a significant part of his life including his last moments. Though we had to stand in a Queue , it was fast moving and we could spend considerable time inside the Dwarakamai.
Entrance of Dwarakamai
About Dwarkamai : Source:https://www.holidify.com/places/shirdi/dwarkamai-sightseeing-3519.html
This two-levelled structure is home to many possessions of the great Sai Baba. The first level has a portrait of Baba and a huge stone on which he used to sit. This level has two rooms- one with a chariot and the other that contains a palkhi (palanquin). A small temple with a saffron flag rests in front of these rooms.
On the second level is a square stool made entirely of stone- this stool is the one that Baba used to sit on while taking a bath. There is also a big grinding stone here and a wooden vessel called 'Kolamba'. This vessel is the same one in which Baba used to keep the bhiksha that he brought from the village.
Another memento of Baba that attracts thousands of devotees to Dwarkamai every year is an oil painting of Shri Sai Baba sitting in the carved wooden shrine. The painting conveys several emotions and sides to Shri Sai Baba- kindness, patience, self-belief, generosity and unflinching faith in the Almighty in a beautiful and artistic manner.
On the second level is a square stool made entirely of stone- this stool is the one that Baba used to sit on while taking a bath. There is also a big grinding stone here and a wooden vessel called 'Kolamba'. This vessel is the same one in which Baba used to keep the bhiksha that he brought from the village.
Another memento of Baba that attracts thousands of devotees to Dwarkamai every year is an oil painting of Shri Sai Baba sitting in the carved wooden shrine. The painting conveys several emotions and sides to Shri Sai Baba- kindness, patience, self-belief, generosity and unflinching faith in the Almighty in a beautiful and artistic manner.
Chavadi:
Then we went to Chavadi which is also nearby Hanuman Mandhir and Dwarakamai.
Chavadi
Chavadi means village meeting place, office, or court and was the place where taxes were collected, village records kept, disputes settled by the village heads, and visiting officials put up. After Baba's mahasamadhi the Sansthan acquired the Chavadi, and until the late 1930s, used it for storing books and accommodating pilgrims. The village offices have long been relocated and the Chavadi is kept as a shrine to Baba and is open to all. https://holyshirdi.saibaba.com/chavadi/index.html
The Chavadi is very significant to Sai devotees not only because Baba stayed here but also because it played a major role in the inception of formal worship of Baba. Once Baba started sleeping at the Chavadi, the custom arose of offering regular arati to him on his arrival from the mosque. This was Sej (night) Arati. Later, Kakad (morning) Arati was offered when he woke up there. Inside the Chavadi is a large portrait of Baba which was painted by Ambaram from Nausari in Gujarat, after Baba had given him darshan in a dream in 1953. The right portion of the building contains the framed photo of the cross-legged Baba kept in grand attire. https://holyshirdi.saibaba.com/chavadi/index.html
There were separate queues for Men and Women to enter inside Chavadi but the queues were not long like the queue to enter Dwarakamai. So we could easily enter the Chavadi and worship Saibaba.
After visiting Chavadi we went for shopping in the shops located in the area where they are selling Idols and Pictures of Shirdi Saibaba and other mementos.
Return to Chennai:
After taking our lunch in the Hotel we vacated the Hotel and reached the Airport by the Taxis arranged by the Coordinator of the tour. The flight was on time and we could reach Chennai by 4.45 pm.
Thus our visit to Shirdi though hectic , it was very pleasant and we could cover all the important places within a short span of time.
