Places of Pilgrimage

Maharashtra has a long tradition of tolerance and interaction with different religious faiths. To the south lies the basin of the Godavari, and the territory from Nashik to Nanded which is regarded as sacred. A majority of saints and poets were from here. Trimbakeshwar, the place from where the Godavari originates has a sanctity of its own. Nanded is a pilgrim point for the Sikhs as it has a mausoleum of Guru Gobind Singh.

Besides Haji Ali, Haji Malang, Churches of Bassein and Mumbai, Syngogues of Pen and Alibag, Jain and Buddhist temples, Maharashtra alone has five of the twelve Jyotirlingas. Maharashtra embodied the cultural and religious influence of the northern Aryans and southern Dravidians. Thus both Vaishnavism and Shaivism flourished in the region. Shaivism extended its ambit to worship Ganesh, son of Lord Shiva. In fact the elephant headed god is one of the most popular deities worshipped by the people in Maharashtra.

The advent Varkari Sampradaya has inspired lakhs of people for centuries to realize god and taught them that no barriers of caste, creed and sex obstruct the path of the realization of God through devotion. Even today people visit these places with great faith and participate in Wari and Dindi.

Holy Places	Area / Town / City	Information
Vajreshwari Devi Temple	Bhiwandi	Click Here
Jivdani Temple	Virar	Click Here
Vithoba Temple	Pandharpur	Click Here
Khandoba Temple	Jejuri	Click Here
Mahalaxmi Temple	Kolhapur	Click Here
Sai Baba Temple	Shirdi	Click Here
Swami Samarth Math	Akkalkot	Click Here
Tulja Bhavani Temple	Solapur	Click Here
Mumba Devi Mandir	Bhuleshwar, Mumbai	Click Here
Mahalaxmi Temple	Mahalaxmi, Mumbai	Click Here
Mount Mary Church	Bandra, Mumbai	Click Here
Babulnath Temple	Charni Road, Mumbai	Click Here
Siddhivinayak Mandir	Dadar, Mumbai	Click Here
Temple of Goddess Renuka	Mahur, Nanded	Click Here
Gajanan Maharaj Mausoleum	Shegaon	Click Here
Shani Shingnapur	Aurangabad	Click Here
Global Vipassana Pagoda	Gorai, Mumbai	Click Here
Trimbakeshwar	Nashik	Click Here
Bhimashankar	Pune	Click Here
Ghrishneshwar	Aurangabad	Click Here
Parli Vaijnath	Beed	Click Here
Goddess Saptashrungi Temple	Nashik	Click Here
Aundha Nagnath	Aundha, Marathwada	Click Here
Narsobwadi (Shree Dattatreya Temple)	Kolhapur	Click Here
Ambajogai	Parbhani	Click Here
Saint Eknath Mausoleum	Paithan, Aurangabad	Click Here
Saint Dnyaneshwar Temple	Nevase, Ahmednagar	Click Here
Ambernath Temple	Ambernath	Click Here
Saint Dnyaneshwar Mausoleum	Alandi	Click Here
Vithoba Mandir, Amalner	Amalner	Click Here
Jyotiba Temple	Kolhapur	Click Here
Kalaram Temple	Nashik	Click Here
Shrine of Shree Dattatreya	Audumbar	Click Here
Tungareshwar	Vasai, Mumbai	Click Here
Haji Ali Dargah	Worli, Mumbai	Click Here
Balaji Temple	Nerul, Navi Mumbai	Click Here
Pataleshwar Cave Temple	Pune	Click Here
Prati Balaji Temple	Ketkawale, Pune	Click Here
Sri Sathya Sai Panduranga Kshetra	Hadshi	Click Here
Hazur Sahib	Nanded	Click Here
Dagdusheth Halwai Sarvajanik Ganpati	Pune	Click Here
Kailasa Temple	Ellora	Click Here
Dahanu Mahalaxmi Temple	Dahanu Road	Click Here
Swami Nityananda Math	Ganeshpuri, Bhiwandi	Click Here
Nageshwar Temple	Pune	Click Here
Ramtek	Nagpur	Click Here
Tekdi Ganesh	Nagpur	Click Here
Wai	Satara	Click Here

TEKDI GANESH

Every village has his own deity and Nagpur’s god is Tekdi Ganesh.

The temple of Lord Ganesha is located in the middle of Nagpur on Sitabuldi hillock. The temple was built during 80’s but the idol of Shree Ganesh in the temple is ancient. The idol is self-existent and its trunk is in the right direction. The height of the idol is 4.5 feet and width is around 3 feet. Behind the idol is Ficus religiosa tree locally known as Pimple tree.

The Tekdi Ganesh is well-known as “Navsala Pavnara Ganpati” therefore it has a very strong following. It is believed to draws 10-15 thousand pilgrims daily and during Sankashti and Vinayaki, the number goes above 1 Lac.

Temple Timings

The temple is open for pilgrims from 4.30 am in the morning till 00.00 am.

Note

The Morning Prayer held at 6.30 am is telecasted live daily by U.C.N. Channel.

How to reach Tekdi Ganesh

Nearest Railway Station : Nagpur Railway Station
Distance : Nagpur Station to Tekdi Ganesh – 1.34 Kilometers

RAMTEK

Ramtek town lies round the foot of a detached hill forming the western extremity of the small Ambarnath range. The name ‘Ramtek’ signifies the hill of Prabhu Shree Ram. It is believed to be the place where Shree Ram spent some time during his exile with Devi Sita and Shree Lakshmana.

On the hill standing about 350 feet above the town are a cluster of temples, about 600 years old. Here in surrounding of temples you will find many harmless monkey’s jumping here and there.

It was here that prolific Sanskrit poet Kalidasa wrote his epic, Meghdootum. Besides Ram Temple and other Hindu Shrines there is an ancient Jain temple with various ancient statues of Jain Tirthankara.

Other Attractions

The nearby Khindasi Lake is a hotspot for water sports and activities.

How to reach Ramtek

Nearest Railway Station : Nagpur Railway Station
Distance : Nagpur Station to Ramtek – 56 Kilometers via AH 43/ NH 7
Journey Time : Approximately 1 Hour

Nageshwar Temple

Nageshwar Temple, the temple of Lord Shiva, is located in Somwar Peth, Pune. The Nageshwar temple is one of the oldest temples in Maharashtra and was built dates back to the 14th century in Yadava style of architecture. The entire structure of the temple is made of wood while the sanctum Sanctorum is made of stone where the Shiv Linga is installed. The spire of the temple is made in the Nagara Style of Architecture with gypsum, lime and plaster. In the premises of the temple you can also find many other shrines includes Lord Vishnu, Almighty Maruti and Shree Dattatreya. Today the temple lies hidden in the maze of buildings, it is visited by very few people.

How to reach Nageshwar Temple

Nearest Railway Station : Pune Railway Station
Nearest Airport : Pune Airport
Distance : Pune Railway Station to Somwar Peth - 1 Kilometer

* Pune Municipal Corporation has undertaken the restoration work of the Temple and it will be completed by the end of 2013.