Shri Trimbakeshwar Jyotirlinga, Trimbak near Nashik

Trimbakeshwar (Trambakeshwar) is an ancient Hindu temple in the town of Trimbak, in the Nashik District of Maharashtra, India. It is 28 KM away from the city of Nashik and 40 KM from Nashik Road. One can easily reach to this place via road from Nashik, Mumbai, Pune and Shirdi. It is advised to visit the place early in the morning as temperature is very high during the midday mostly. After our last day - Sula Vineyard trip, We visited the temple early in the morning as we stayed in Nashik only. We had the car to reach the place. VIP darshan is available at 200 INR though we did not go for it as it wasn't much crowded. Soak yourself in the holiness and purity of the place which washes away all your regrets and sins; and brings wisdom and spirituality.

Trimbakeshwar temple is dedicated to the Lord Shiva and is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas. The origin of the sacred Godavari river is near Trimbak. Plenty of parking is available for private vehicle. The temple is located between three hills namely Brahmagiri, Nilagiri and Kalagiri. When you reach the place you see the ancient and old temple building from far. This is a black stone structure or turned into black shade due to atmospheric effects of Sun and waters. You can carry phones and take pictures inside premise but not inside the sanctum. The Shivalinga is small and located in a garbha griha that is down in a flight of stairs. However, a mirror is placed for easy darshan by devotees. It is not allowed by the priests to touch or go down to bow head. Usually one can stay there just for a few minutes. 

Kusavarta, a kunda (sacred pond) in the temple premises is the source of the Godavari River, the longest river in peninsular India. The current temple was built by Peshwa Balaji Baji Rao (Nanasaheb). Outside the temple premises, you can see plenty of shops and stalls so you can enjoy and even stay nearby as there are a lot of hotels including a few good ones. This place is also famous for doing many poojas to remove different types of doshas. People from India and all across the world visit this place for this purpose. These poojas are performed by Pundits in the temple complex and their homes during day time. 

At Nashik, you can visit other temples like Sita Gufa, Muktidham, a temple of hundreds of Gods. We visited only Muktidham temple and It has really wonderful depicting of lots of Indian Mythologies and Stories in temple premises. En-route to the temple are Coin Museum, Anjneri, Swami Samarth Temple and Gajanan Maharaj temple. Surrounded by hills one can plan to spend a day here visiting nearby places like caves and other temples. 

Maharashtra Jyotirlinga Tour is considered to be a very sacred pilgrimage and thousands of pilgrims travel to these holy places every year to get blessings of lord Shiva. In total, there are twelve Jyotirlingas in India. To cover all five Jyotirlingas in Maharashtra, you can start your trip either from Mumbai, Pune or nearby places. These cities are well connected by rail, road and air. It usually take four days to cover all the places. There are five Jyotirlingas in Maharashtra. 

1. Shri Trimbakeshwar Temple, Trimbak near Nashik

2. Shri Grishneshwar Temple, Aurangabad

3. Shri Bhimashankar Temple, Bhimashankar

4. Shri Aundha Nagnath, Hingoli 

5. Shri Vaijnath Temple (Parli Vaijnath), Parli near Beed

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Sula Vineyards Tour at Nashik

Quote of the Post: "Enjoy the place with your partner in crime, and invite your friends to Sula vineyards to taste its wine." - Quote about 'Sula Vineyards Nashik' - Sachin Kumar Gupta

Several years ago I've visited the Guinness Brewery and Storehouse in Ireland, and so I had little high expectations. I visited Sula Vineyards with my family. As soon as I entered, It was superb feeling. We took few photos at entrance only. Overall, I was pleasantly surprised that the experience was at par or even better in many aspects. We visited the place in the month of April. The experience would have been better if visited in Feb-Mar during the harvest and wine festival season.

Address: Gat 36/2, Govardhan Village, Off, Gangapur-Savargaon Rd, Nashik, Maharashtra 422222

Daily Opening Hours: 11:30 AM to 10:30 PM (Subject to change at times)

Entry ticket is of two hundred rupees (when we visited) but that can be redeemed if you purchase any thing like wine there inside. We used it for wine tasting tour. The wine tour, the professionals, well informed wine tour guide, the wine tasting and of course the souvenir shop was a great experience at Sula Vineyards Nashik. The wine tour was informative as well as interactive. The wine tasting ceremony towards the end was quite nicely designed and they gave extra information on how to hold glass of wine, taste it, and so on. One of the picture depicted there, also shows the art and science of Wine Barrel Making. At the Sula tasting room, you can enjoy good food and music along with different types of wine to taste. Just beware of that you shouldn't start rhyming Madhushala or Shayaris, and shouldn't share your secrets after drinking Sula Wines. 

Just before the tour, our son need some water, so we requested for a bottle, but at restaurant, team mentioned that you have to make minimum 1000 INR bill, that's the only area, I would request Sula team to look into. Given the location of the vineyard it's good that there is a rooftop restaurant on site. Good Place to relax with few glasses of wine and food. They also offer stay. Hope to stay here sometime in future. 

Enjoy some of the photos taken during our visit. Our son also enjoyed the place, though he couldn't taste the wine :) Away from the hustle bustle of places like Mumbai, Pune, this place will not only put rest to your wine temptations but also allow you sometime amidst the stunning expanse of vineyards. Best time to visit is around Feb as they have famous Sula Fest every year. I must say, This is a must visit place for wine lovers, if you are in Nashik, Maharashtra.

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Bhimashankar Jyotirlinga near Bhorgiri MH

Quote of the Post: "Bhimashankar is definitely God's unique creation worth visiting for jungle lovers, trekkers as well as devotees." - Quote about 'Bhimashankar Maharashtra' - Sachin Kumar Gupta 

Bhimashankar is a wildlife sanctuary. In the heart of this is Bhimashankar temple (Bhimashankar Shiv Mandir) which is one of the 12 Jyotirlings of India. This temple is very famous in Pune and people from all around the world come to visit this temple. Many devotees visit this place almost every year. This was my second visit here and the serenity and spirituality remained intact. It is overcrowded on weekends and Mondays of Shravan month. My last visit was during weekend, however couldn't visit the main temple due to long queue. Still with an awesome weather, we enjoyed the place with Meenal, Anmol and Anshul. 

This time, i.e. during my second visit, we visited on Tuesday to get sometime inside the temple and ample time to visit the main Jyotirling place. The condition of the road is good and best time to visit is during monsoon (July - Sep). Though any time of the year is good to visit Bhimashankar. With clouds touching your feet and scenic views all over, it's a delight to visit this place. Bhimashankar Temple, located in the village of Bhorgiri. It is approx 3-4 hours drive from pune (130 KM) and 4-5 hours from Kalyan, Mumbai (180 KM) and 5-6 hours from Nashik (210 KM). 

Don't forget to carry an umbrella and also some good anti-skid footwear. It really gets very slippery while climbing up and down the steps. Ghats are really good for trekking and road-trip. You will also get colorful bodycover polysheets in monsoon (20-30 INR per sheet). One drawback is the temple is overcrowded and a lot of mismanagement happens for parking on weekend and Sravan month Mondays. You may also have to walk 1-2 km on the roads from parking during peak timings. Once you reach main entry point named and tagged as 'Shree Kshetra Jai Bhimashankar', you'll have to step down nearly 300+ steps to reach main temple. But steps are well built so that nobody have any difficulty in walking through the steps. For the old age and sick peoples there are some arrangements of palki with reasonable rates.  

The temple has the Nagara style architecture, however one cant capture it in lens as Photography is strictly prohibited inside the temple. Don't forget to see a giant 17th Century bell inside the temple. We were also happy to see two Nandi closely. You can also have waterproof cam specially if visiting during monsoon. It is also the origin place of river Bhima. At times during monsoon, visibility becomes almost zero with fog all around. It is the beauty of the place, which makes you feel so heavenly. We enjoyed rain and fog the whole time during both our visits.  

Three worship services are offered every day. Mahashivratri is a season of great festivity here. Temple schedule is as follows:

04:30 AM Kakada Aarti

05:00 AM Nijarup Darshan

05:30 AM Regular Pooja,Abhishek starts

12:00 PM Naivedya Pooja (No Abhishek inside)

12:30 PM Regular Pooja,Abhishek starts

03:00 PM Madhyan Aarti (No Darshan for 45min)

04:00 PM to 9.30 PM Shringar darshan (No Abhishek inside)

07:30 PM Aarti

09:30 PM Mandir Closed

Note: Except Monday, Pradosh, Shravan Mass, Mahashivratri - Present Abhisheka (Abhishek inside temple ) till 2.00 PM.

On Monday, Pradosh, Shravan Mass, Mahashivratri - Present Abhisheka (Abhishek inside temple ) till 6.00 PM

Once you are out of the temple after visit the jyotirling, you can also hike towards the hills behind the temple, where we took a short trip during our first visit. We found streams of natural falls that wipe away journey's fatigue. Places that can be visited in are Hanuman Lake, Gupt Bhimashankar, Origin of River Bhima, Nag Phani, Bombay Point, Sakshi Vinayak and a lot more. The picturesque beauty of the place cannot be captured with mix of rain, fog & mist weather, and done justice using a camera for sure. During stair-way, there are many vendors selling yummy crispy hot vada pav, corns, fresh sweets and other snacks. We had lunch at Natraj Restaurant, which had good quality food with decent price. (The place is 10 KM away from Bhimashankar temple)

The other Jyotirlinga shrines in Maharashtra are Vaidyanath near Parli Dist Beed, Trimbakeshwara near Nashik, Grishneshwar near Aurangabad and Aundha Nagnath Temple in Hingoli. One day visit to Bhimashankar clubbing one of the places nearby and during monsoon to explore nature at it's best. 

Recommendation: You can also visit Lenyadri caves at Junnar or Ozar Astivinayak temples or Shivneri fort and come back by Narayangaon Nasik Pune highway.

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Shree Vighanahar Ganpati Temple, Ozar

Yippee, our Monsoon Express moved towards the north of Pune to pay regards to Ganpati at Ozar (Shree Vighnahar Ganapati Mandir), Lenyadri Caves and Bheemashankar. The Ganapati Temple at Ozar is one among the Ashtavinayak shrines of Maharashtra, called as Vigneshwar (The Lord of Vigna/obstacles). Lord Shree Vighanahar (can be searched at google) defeated the demon of obstacles, Vignasura; hence the name.

It is about 90 km from Pune and 140 from Nashik. The holy place is about 110 km from Ahmednagar in east, and 125 km away from Kalyan near Mumbai in west. Another Ashtavinayak shrine of Lenyadri, is just about 9 km, that we covered the very same day. Below map shows the routes from different directions, along with the one which we followed from Pune as: 

Pune - Rajguru Nagar Toll - Khed - Manchar - Pimpalgaon Tarfa Narayangaon - Ozar

View Shree Vighanahar Ganpati Temple, Ozar in a larger map

The day started with August showers. With eye-soothing and heart-loving views, the journey was easy and within no time we were at Ozar Ganpati. Just near the parking area we noticed an adorable view of Vighnahar Boating Center; which was closed due to heavy monsoon. This area comes within Yadegaon Dam. 

The temple's entrace is well decorated and eye-catchy, with two large stone gatekeepers, two elephants, two sages, and four musician sages on the wall. As you enter, you will find two giant lamp towers on either sides of the gate. Could only imagine the beauty of all the lamps glowing together! The colorful temple walls, possess en-carved sculptures and different images of Lord Ganesha. The main temple located at the center of premises, has three tiny entrances and inside that you can worship all eight Ashtavinayak Ganpati painted on the ceiling. One can view Shivneri Fort and Lenyadri Caves hill from the huge walls marking the premises. Not to worry on the climbing bit, they do have ladders! 

Just outside the temple, you can have quick visit to Gablibaba temple, and Hanuman temple. Ganesha Chaturthi is celebrated in great splendor and thousands of devotees come over to pay regards. Once out of the temple, our creativity took its turn and we were all set again for clicking and posing for pics. Post a quick explore of the Dam, we paused for a cup of tea and homemade sandwiches. With the start of day with Ganapati Darshan, day was bound to be good. And there it went.  :) We started for Lenyadri Caves Ganpati Temple and the showers too.  

Visit another famous AshtavinayakRanjangaon Mahaganapati near Shirur.

P.S. Just to give an idea to the readers, you may want to plan a full day trip nearby as below:

Cover Ozar Ganpati, Lenyadri caves Ganpati and Shivneri Fort. or 

Cover Ozar Ganpati, Lenyadri caves Ganpati and Bheemashanker.

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Visit to Shri Sai Baba Temple at Shirdi

Quote of the Post: "Shirdi Saibaba Temple truly attracts millions of devotees of all religions, castes and creed from all over the world and deserve to be in India's most famous shrines." - Quote about 'Saibaba Temple, Shirdi' - Sachin Kumar Gupta

If you are searching for Shirdi Sai Baba visit, what you should know about, what to keep in mind, what places to visit in Shirdi Temple, what instructions to follow, what are the Puja timings, you are at the right place. The Shirdi Saibaba Temple, located at Shirdi, Maharashtra, India attracts millions of devotees of all religions, castes and creed who come to pay homage to Shri Sai Baba from all around the world. The temple is a beautiful shrine that was built over the Samadhi of Shri Sai Baba. Shirdi is a small village in Kopargam taluka, in Ahmadnagar District of the Maharastra State. Shirdi is located about 270 kms from Mumbai (MH) and about 190 kms from Pune (MH) in India. If you are planning to travel by train, Kopargaon (KPG), Manmad Jn (MMR), Nasik Road (NK) and Aurangabad (AWB) are 4 nearby train stations near Shirdi.

Important Instructions for Shirdi Sai devotees: These points I have collected after my visits to this place, and also includes family and friend's experiences.

- If you have not visited this place before, make sure on arrival at Shirdi, devotees should immediately get in touch with one of the Niwassthan Office for booking of their accommodation which will be made available after registration of name and other particulars. No deposit is required for accommodation.

- Sai Devotees are requested that they should not keep of their  foot wears any where except Chappal stand. it is near Darshan 'Q' entrance.

- Sai Devotees are requested not to carry their cell phones and cameras in Samadhi Mandir. Please keep it in lockers provided by Sansthan in Mandir Premises.

- All the devotees, especially women and diabetic persons, are requested to eat some food before joining the darshan queue as during heavy rush days time required for darshan will be from 2 to 3 hours.

- It would be best to keep all your belongings in your vehicle only, so you can save some time. 

- Thursday is the day Saibaba is specially worshipped. On this day devotees from all over India visit Shirdi for Darshan of Saibaba.

- For VIP pass, only one family member need to be in queue, and now cashless (card) payments are also available. It may take more than an hour on weekdays and more than 2 hours on weekend, and important dates. 

- Now Online Darshan Booking has introduced for Sai devotees which are providing them an option of not standing in a queue for several hours to have darshan of Siababa Samadhi Mandir. Refer this link https://online.sai.org.in. Devotees need to be first register themselves in the Website and create an Account, after that they can select the Online services like Darshan, Accommodations, Donation, etc and make their payments online.

- It was good to see that the devotees were being offered free tea/ water / coffee while they waited in queues.

- As the Samadhi Mandir is overcrowded at the time of Aarti, devotees should safeguard their ornaments and purses from pick-pocketers and take care their children.

- All the necessary assistance and guidance is readily available to the devotees at the Niwassthan Office of the Shri SaiBaba Sansthan Trust, Shirdi.

- As the various dealers and vendors of Pooja articles are not connected with the Shri SaiBaba Sansthan Trust, Shirdi, devotees should first fix the price before buying these articles to avoid any trouble thereafter.

- Medical facilities are available at the well-equipped  Hospital run by the Shri SaiBaba Sansthan Trust, Shirdi.

- The Laddu counter is always very crowdy. Free dry boondi also distributed in similar 50 gms packet per head.

- The three main festivals in Shirdi are of two to four days each. They are Ramnavami (March/April), Guru Purnima (July),and Vijayadashami (September). 

- There are programme running throughout the year of puja, music (bhajan) public parayana (reading of scriptures and devotional texts) and exuberant processions with the palanquin and the Rath (cart).

Make sure to visit all places within the Shirdi temple boundary. 

Sri Sai Baba Samadhi Mandir

Shri Saibaba Sansthan Temple

Dixit Wada Museum

Lendi Baug

Maruti Mandir

Dwarkamai Masjid

Baba's Chavadi

Adul Baba Cottage

Literature about Shri Sai Baba containing authentic information in various languages has been published by the Shri SaiBaba Sansthan Trust, Shirdi at reasonable prices and is readily available at its Book shops near the Samadhi Mandir.

Khandoba Mandir: Khandoba Mandir is situated on the main road. In front of this temple Baba was welcomed by Poojari Mhalsapati of this temple, who said "Aao Sai (Come Sai)", when Baba stepped in Shridi. In this temple there are icons of Khandoba, Banai and Mhalsai.

Daily Sai Darshan Puja Timing: The worship schedule at Shirdi Saibaba temple begins early in the morning that continues till late in night. (As of 2016 - It may change.)

·         4:30: Dwarkamai, Gurusthan, Chavadi open

·         5:00: Mandir opens, Bhupali, Abhishekam at Gurusthan

·         5:15: Kakad (morning) Arati, Naivedyam of butter and sugar to Baba in Samadhi Mandir, Oil offered to the lamps in Dwarkamai

·         5:40: Bhajan in Saibaba Mandir

·         6:00: Mangal Snaan (washing) of Statue and Samadhi in Samadhi Mandir

·         7:00: Darshan begins in Samadhi Mandir

·         9:00: Naivedyam in Samadhi Mandir and Dwarkamai

·         8:00 -10:30: Satyanarayana Pooja

·         11:30: Dhuni Pooja with rice and ghee in Dwarkamai

·         12:00: Mid day Arati

·         12:30: Naivedyam in Samadhi Mandir, Dwarkamai and Gurusthan

·         4:00: Pothi (Devotional reading/Study) in Samadhi Mandir Sunset: Dhoop (evening) Arati

·         6:30: Naivedyam in Samadhi Mandir, Dwarkamai and Gurusthan

·         8:00 - 9:00: Devotional Songs in Samadhi Mandir and other Cultural Programs (if any)

·         9:00: Chavadi and Gurusthan close

·         9:30: In Dwarkamai water is given to Baba, a mosquito net is hung and the hanging lamp is lit

·         9:45: Dwarkamai (the upper part) closes

·         10:30: Shejarati -Shej (night) Arati, after this , a shawl is wrapped around the statue in the Samadhi Mandir, a Rudraksha mala is put around baba's neck, Mosquito net is hung, and a glass of water kept there

·         11:30: Samadhi Mandir closes after night Arati

Apart from these there are other nearby destinations like Trimbakeshwar jyotirlinga, Shani Shingnapur, Renuka Mata Temple, Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga, Ajanta and Ellora, Vani Saptashrungi Shakti peeth devi temple, Muktidham & Panchvati Temple in Nashik are located within 150 km from Shirdi that can be visited by the tourists here.

Om Shirdi Sai.

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