Shri Sai Baba, Shirdi

History & Manyata

Shri Sai Baba of Shirdi first arrived in the village as a 16-year-old fakir around 1858 and made the dilapidated Dwarkamai mosque his abode for the next 60 years until his Mahasamadhi on Vijayadashami, 15 October 1918. He kept a perpetual dhuni (sacred fire) burning in Dwarkamai, the ash from which is distributed as Udi believed to cure all afflictions. Baba's universal message — 'Sabka Malik Ek' — drew Hindu, Muslim, Parsi and Christian devotees alike; he wore a kafni like a fakir, slept in a Hindu temple (Chavadi) on alternate nights, and read both the Quran and the Bhagavad Gita. The present marble murti of Baba at the Samadhi Mandir was sculpted by Balaji Vasant Talim of Mumbai from a single block of Italian marble and installed on 7 October 1954 by Sai bhakta Tendulkar. The Samadhi Mandir was originally a private wada built by industrialist Shrimant Gopalrao Booty as a Krishna temple; Baba reposed his body here on his own instruction. Today the Shirdi Sai Baba Sansthan Trust runs one of India's most-visited shrines, with daily darshan of 60,000-1,00,000 devotees and Annadan to all in Sai Prasadalaya.

Aarti Timings

• Kakad Aarti04:30 AM
• Madhyan Aarti12:00 PM
• Dhup AartiSunset
• Shej Aarti10:30 PM

Festivals not to miss

Suggested Itinerary

1. 1Kakad Aarti
2. 2Dwarkamai & Chavadi
3. 3Madhyan aarti and prasadalaya meal
4. 4Dhup aarti at sunset

Local Attractions

• Dwarkamai
• Chavadi
• Lendi Baug