Visit to Simple and Silent Satadhar in Gujarat State in India

We had an opportunity to visit many holy places in the Gujarat State in India during our last visit to India in the year 2007. We were really amazed to see such places and our faith in the god have increased tremendously since then. The faith of people in god in India is simply beyond imagination. This faith only provides them with the energy that is needed to survive in the most adverse circumstances. Satadhar is one such place of pilgrimage that attracts thousands of tourists from all over the world.

Satadhar is situated at around 45 miles from the city of Junagadh towards Tulsi Shyam in Gir forest. The tourists can reach Satadhar by hired cars or taxis or State Transport buses from all the major cities of the Gujarat State. There are no temples here at Satadhar but there is a Samadhi and the holy sit of the great Giga Bapu. The pilgrims come here and perform the darshanas of these holy remembrance places of the great Saint Giga Bapu. The Saint Giga Bapu was born here at Satadhar who had a strong belief in the human beings and started serving the food to the poor people at the young age of fourteen years. Whatever small amount he earned through his hard labor work, he spent it in giving the food items to the poor and needy people. Gradually, the importance of this place went on increasing and soon the flow of pilgrims started from all over the country. It is said that if you express any wish here at the Samadhi of the holy Saint Giga Bapu and pray with your heart, your wish gets fulfilled very soon. Lot of married and childless couples come here specifically to pray for the child at this holy spot. Saint Giga Bapu took the Samadhi here at Satadhar at a very old age after giving very long service to the community and society. The sit on which he was sitting during his life time is still kept as his remembrance. The free food is served here at all times all throughout the year. All the pilgrims feel really happy in accepting the simple Prasad of Saint Gigabapu with love, respect, and faith towards this great Saint. The morning and evening arti rituals are really worth attending here. At present, Saint Jivraj Bapu, the third generation of Saint Giga Bapu lives here still serving the poor and needy people in the same way as Saint Gigabapu. There is a small market at Satadhar that has few shops selling the religious items like rudrax malas, photos of the Saints, and the ancient religious books. The tea with snack is served to all the pilgrims in the morning till around 10 am. The simple Gujarati lunch is served from 11 am to 1 pm. The afternoon tea is served at around 4 pm and finally, the simple traditional Gujarati dinner is served at 7 pm to all the visitors free of cost at this temple.

There are few small dharmshalas here for the tourists to stay for the night halt. The simple, clean, and neat rooms are provided to the visitors here at Satadhar at very nominal charges of around Rs.10 (twenty cents) per day. Many pilgrims stay here for the night. It is suggested to book your accommodation in advance by writing a simple postcard to the Satadhar trust as there is a heavy rush here almost all throughout the year. The large traditional fair is held here every year on the birthday of Gigabapu. Thousands of people visit this holy place during this fair to show their love, respect, and faith towards the late Saint Giga Bapu. There is a nearby place called Sheth Sagalsa place, which is around 5 miles away from Satadhar. It is said that Sagalsa sheth gave the sacrifice of his only son here to satisfy the hunger of one Sanyasi who really was god himself and had come to test the faith and strength of Sheth Sagalsa. The visitors can proceed onwards towards Sasan Gir and Tulsi Shyam, which is around eighty miles away from here.

There are thousands of followers of great Saint Giga Bapu having lot of faith in this human being who has passed his entire life in service of the poor and needy people. They keep on visiting this holy place again and again. All my readers would have visited many wonderful tourists' attractions but this place of Satadhar is unique of them all and conveys the eternal message of service to hungry and poor human beings. I would be really happy if this article encourages even one single individual to visit this holy place in Gujarat State in India.