Mar 10, 2005 01:57 AM
15756 Views
(Updated Mar 10, 2005 02:02 AM)
Shirdi.......
When you think of Shirdi, you think of Shirdi ke SAI BABA.....
Whenever I face any problem and I feel that it is beyond my control, I close my eyes and remember Sai Baba and leave it upto him to decide my fate and most of time I get miraculous results.
Location;
Shirdi is approx 285 km away from Bombay and 200 km from Pune. Shirdi can be reached;
by train from Bombay to Nashik and from Nashik by taxi
by road (bus, hired vehicle or own vehicle)
There are many buses from Bombay to Shirdi and charge return fare of approx Rs. 300 ( Non-AC Bus) and Rs. 500 (AC Bus). If if is group of more than 5 people traveling together than, its more economical to hire vehicle (qualis/trax/sumo) which cost approx Rs. 2500 to Rs. 3000 (return journey)
There is also helicopter facility available from Bombay to Shirdi, but not everyone can afford it. It cost Rs. 1.25 lakhs for 5 people, which includes return fare and one day stay in hotel.
Hotels
There are people complaining of commercialisation of religious places including shirdi. I find almost every religious place and religious functions are commercialised and it is upto the user to decide whether he wants to use it or not.
In Shirdi the hotel facilities are available from Rs. 100 (Lodge or dharamshala) to Rs. 3500 (Sun n Sand).
After journey of 285 kms, if you want some relaxation, you can choose the hotel which suits your budget. the most economical, I find is Hotel Sai Leela, which Charges Rs. 1000 for AC Room and quite comfortable in all respects.
I don't find anything wrong in commercialisation of the place, since it equally gives comforts. Those who complaint about commercialisation, imagine, if there are no hotels or shops, can they stay in Shirdi comfortably.
Samadhi Mandir
I remember my first visit to Shirdi in 1992, when there were no buildings or facilities. Devotees has to stand in queue for hours in open space and were exposed to sun and rain.
During 1998 L&T constructed 4 Buildings of 2 floors each, which were connected to main samadhi mandir and the devotees now go thru these buildings and waiting of hours for darshan of Sai Baba is very much comfortable as compared to what it was in 1992.
There is enough seating arrangements in these buildings and also devotees get water, tea, cold drinks and snacks etc during wait period.
Thursday, Sunday and during holidays, the wait period some times goes beyond three hours. To sum up the wait period of long hours for Darshan is very much comfortable now a days and you dont get tired during long wait period.
The only thing, I dont like about it, after waiting for three hours, when you reach the samadhi mandir, you cant get darshan for more than 30 seconds. the security people will push you out in less than a minute of reaching near samadhi. Therefore, I dont like to visit Shirdi on Sundays/Holidays. I visit on any working day, when I reach samadhi within 10-15 minutes and gets to spend few minutes in main mandir and get proper darshan.
Trust
Like any other trust, the trust handling Shirdi Temple also abuses its power and mis-management of huge funds is a known fact to all.
The other thing I dont like about trust people is that they allow you to enter the main mandir directly (without standing in queue) if you pay certain amount of donation.
I also get many offers to go with special entry passes, which will allow me direct access to main samadhi mandir.
I feel that its a cheating with god and its better not to visit Shirdi rather than these unfair practices.
Beggars
Beggars is the biggest menace in Shirdi and causes lots of hurdles in smooth movements. It is the biggest business in Shirdi and if reports in media are correct, they are the richest people in Shirdi with huge bank balances and fixed deposits.
I personally feel that devotees are responsible for this menace and if we stop giving money to beggars, they will disappear.
The place is worth visiting again and again and you find peace of mind, when you are sitting in samadhi mandir.
Jai Sai Ram.....
