Sree Astavinayak Yatra
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
The Ashtavinayak Yatra is a pilgrimage tour of eight ancient holy temples of Lord Ganesha who is very holy to the Hindus and considered as the remover of all obstacles of life. Hindus believe Him as the god of wisdom who completed the writings of the Mahabharata being dictated to him by Sri Ved Vyas. He is prayed to first before any other Hindu god. This was a boon given to him by Lord Shiva.
These temples are spread over three districts of Maharashtra, namely Raigad, Ahmednagar and Pune. The Ganeshas idols of these temples were not erected they were discovered in this form naturally.
I went for this yatra with my mother and my grandmother. It was a 3 days and 2 night's tour. The tour originated from Mumbai.
The eight places are as follows:
Shri Mayureshwar, Moregaon is situated at a distance of 55 km from Pune, next to the river Karha in the village of Moregaon. The temple is surrounded by four minarets and appears like a mosque from a distance.
Shri Siddhivinayak, Siddhatek is situated off the Pune-Sholapur highway about 48 kms away from the town of Srigonda in Ahmednagar district. It is located next to the river Bhima. This is the only murti with the trunk positioned to the right.
Shri Balleshwar, Pali is located in the town of Pali off the Mumbai-Pune highway, about 11 kms before Nagothane on the Mumbai-Goa highway. This idol of Ganesha has diamonds embedded in the eyes and naval.
Shri Varada Vinayak, Mahad is located 3km off the Pune-Mumbai highway near Khopoli.This Ganesha is known as the giver of bounty and success.
Shri Chintamani, Theur is located 22km.It is situated in the village of Theur, which is at the confluence of the three major rivers-Mula, Mutha and Bhima. The idol in this temple also has a left trunk with diamonds in the eyes.
Shri Girijatmaj, Lenyadri is situated just 12 km from Narayangaon, which is about 94 km from Pune – Nasik highway. The idol faces the North with its trunk to the left and has to be worshipped from the rear of the temple.
Shri Vignahar, Ozar is located just off the Pune-Nasik highway, in the town of Ozar.It is situated on the banks of the river Kukadi. The idol in this temple which fces the east and has its trunk towards the left has rubies in its eyes and a diamond on its forehead.
Shri Mahaganapati, Ranjangaon is situated 50 km from Pune on the Pune-Ahmednagar highway in the village of Ranjangaon. The idol in this temple faces the east and the lord is seated in a cross- legged position with a broad forehead and with its trunk pointing towards the left.
The places that we visited were not only divine but was an unusual experience .I was impressed to see and learn about the life of the people in the villages who are settled near these temples. It was a mind blowing experience. I feel delighted and complete after the tour.
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