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Hanuman (Maruti) Mandir
Down the lane that runs between Dwarkamai and Chavadi is the Hanuman Mandir, one of the oldest temples in Shirdi. Marked by a pair of trees enclosed by a circular railing, it is also known as the Maruti Mandir. Unusually, the temple faces south and there are two Hanuman images here, side by side. You may also notice a few weights and dumbbells in the corner. Because Hanuman is considered strong and vigorous, young men find this an auspicious place to come and exercise.
Baba seems to have had some connection with this temple, sometimes he would stand in front of it and remain there for a while, occasionally slowly moving his arm up and down. 0nce during the procession to Chavadi, when he came to the lane facing the mandir, he was suddenly seized as if by a spirit
and some devotees had to hold him until he reached Chavadi, where the
spirit left him. Shama asked him about the incident, "Baba, this Maruti is our Swami, Why do you worship and adore our Swami “? Baba replied, "Arre, shama, in my childhood my parents dedicated me to Maruti, and so I make signs at him to remind him I am his brother."
The Mandir was a place where sadhus used to stay, including the ascetic Devidas, whom Baba would occassionally visit in his early days, When Baba went to Rahata (a village about five kilometers from Shirdi) with the fakir Javhar Ali in the early l890s, his devotees were deeply unhappy at his absence from them. After about eight weeks they succeeded in persuading Javhar Ali to let Baba return to Shirdi, though he insisted on coming too. A few days later, a debate was held in this mandir between Javhar Ali and Devidas. The fakir was roundly defeated, causing him to flee area, after which Baba remained among his devotees in Shirdi until the end of his days.
At night, especially on Thursday, the temple is sometimes filled with music when locals gather to sing bhajan.
The Three Temples
Just behind the new outdoor theatre is a row of three small temples. They are dedicated to Ganesh,Shani (i.e. Saturn) and Mahadev (i.e. Shiva). Baba's local devotee, Tatya Kote Patil, was fond of offering lamps here. The shrines were rebuilt and enlarged in l999 as part of the re-modelling of the Temple complex.
The small samadhi of the tiger, commemorated by a statue in Dwarkamai and said to have received mukti from Baba, is a few feet from the Mahadev shrine.
Mahalaxmi Temple
This temple is just by the side Pilgrims Inn (MTDC) in Pimpalwadi Road, about five minutes walk from Dwarkamai Baba occassionally visited it on his begging rounds and the temple is mentioned in the Sri Sai Satcharitra as Baba once sent his devotee there on an unusal mission Baba Ganapat Shimpi had tried all sorts of medicine to cure his malaria, but nothing worked and he had a raging fever. Baba gave him a curious prescription " Give a black dog some rice mixed with curd in front of the Laxmi temple” Shimpi wondered how he could carry out this instruction, but he found the necessary ingredients and took them to the temple. There he saw a black dog wagging its tail. The dog ate the proffered food and Shimpi quickly recovered. The temple has recently been restructured.
Narasimha Temple
This is near Chavadi next to where Sakharam Shelke's house used to be (one of those from which Baba took bhiksha), and was built by his descendants in the mid l960's Its compound houses the samadhis of Sakharam's son and daughter in law and that of Ramgiri Bua ("Babugir" of the Jamner leela).
Jain Temple
There are two Jain temples within close proximity of each other. The first is on the main Nagar-Manmad Road, by Sai International Hotel. It was built by Sri Jain Swethambara Theertha Trust and is noted for the absence of any iron-not even one nail- in its construction, as metal is held to be unconducive to meditation. The main idol is of Adeshwar Bhagavan.
The other temple is the Shesh Mahal which, as its name (shesh) implies, has its inside walls and ceiling covered with mosaic mirror pieces. The idol here is Sri Shantiniwas Maharaj l6th Teerthanka. The temple was built by the Shri Shantniwas Digambar temple Committee. To get there, continue along the main road in the direction of Nagar/Pune. and turn off down an unpaved track on the right, by the Municipal 0ffice. The temple is a few hundred metres down here on the right.
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Saibaba