Holy Pilgrimage to Lord Saibaba Temple at Shiradi in India

Most Indians have great faith in Lord Sai Baba of Shiradi. There are millions of strong followers all over the world of Lord Sai Baba. That is why Shiradi has become the main attraction of tourists as well as the most vital pilgrimage place in India. Shiradi is situated in the State of Maharashtra in India. I am also a follower of Lord Sai Baba and make sure to visit this famous temple of Sai Baba at Shiradi during my visit to India. Lord Sai Baba stayed at Shiradi from 1858 to 1918.

Shiradi can be reached easily from Mumbai, Nasik, or Poona by buses or the hired cars. Shiradi is around 72 miles away from Nasik, and 180 miles away from Mumbai. Lord Sai Baba was Muslim by caste. However, he has followers from both Hindus as well as Muslims. He taught that all the religions are same and lead to one god almighty. Sai Baba is believed to be the second birth of Lord Dattatreya. The Sai temple at Shiradi has become the epic center of all the social and religious activities of the temple trust. The most beautiful white marble statue of Lord Sai Baba, made by the famous artist Talim of Mumbai, has been placed here at the temple on seventh October, 1954. The facial expressions of Sai Baba are really heart throbbing and its eyes are full of sympathy towards all the human beings. There is an original fire, started by Lord Sai Baba himself here at the temple. The ashes of this fire place are taken by all the pilgrims with them and are used to cure all types of major diseases. There is a very heavy rush of pilgrims on Thursdays as Thursday is considered as the day of Baba. The morning and evening arti rituals are really worth attending. However, you need to be very careful as there is a very heavy rush of people at this time and the threat of pick pockets is also there. The Baba took Samadhi here at this temple only. His mortal body has been cremated at the temple in North/South direction, the head towards North and the legs towards South. The devotees put the new chaddar over the Baba's grave along with the cloth to wear on the head. The chaddar to put on Baba's Samadhi should be to size 6.5 feet long and 3.5 feet wide. The green color cloth to cover the head should be square of size 4.5 feet. The pilgrims can get back these clothes, if they want, after putting them on Baba.The main temple opens at 6 am in the morning and closes at 10 pm in the night. At this time, Baba's statue is covered with the best quality golden mosquito net for protection.

The residence of Baba is known as Dwarikmai and is situated below the ancient tree in the temple. This was the place where Baba left his mortal body on a Dussera day. Hence, Dussera day is celebrated as the nirvana day of Baba. The big fairs and celebrations are held at the temple on Ramnavami, Guru Purnima, and the Diwali days. The town of Shiradi becomes full of pilgrims on these days. Try to avoid Thursdays to visit Shiradi to avoid very heavy rush. Sometimes, you need to wait for the whole night outside the temple in long queue for the darshnas. There are many good hotels at Shiradi like Hotel Pilgrim Inn, Hotel Sai Villas, Hotel West Land, and Hotel Sai International. Hotel Sai international is our favorite hotel. This hotel offers nice air- conditioned double rooms at the charges of around Rs.3600 ($90) per day. The tourists need to book their hotel accommodation in advance due to heavy rush of people. There are many shops near the temple that sell pictures, cassettes, and DVD of Lord Sai Baba. The Prasad items can also be bought from these shops prior to entering the temple. All types of food items can be easily available at various restaurants at Shiradi. However, non- vegetarian items are not served in any of the hotels at Shiradi. The alcoholic drinks are also not sold within the city limit of Shiradi.

Shiradi has become one of the most important and vital place of pilgrimage for all the religions in India. I have seen many foreigners and non resident Indians, who are staunch followers of Baba and make sure to visit Shiradi during their each and every visit to India. If you have not visited Shiradi so far in your life, the time has now come to pay a visit to the holy temple of Lord Sai Baba before it becomes too late.