Shirdi
Shirdi, a small village in Kopargam Taluk, in Ahmadnagar, Maharastra is regarded to be an important pilgrimage place in India as sage Sai Baba lived here till his death. It is about 285 km, which is 6 hours drive from Mumbai.
After his death, Sai Baba’s fame has spread far and wide. Sai Baba believed and respected all religions. Samadhi Temple was started during the lifetime of Sai Baba, with a view to having a temple of Sri Krishna. But later, Sai Baba himself decided to live there. So, after Sai Baba attained Nirvana (eternal peace), His mortal remains were buried at the place. The articles and valuables, which were used by the Baba, are exhibited in a room here.
Dwarkamayee Masjid is the place where Baba lived for almost for 60 years. There is also a place called Chavadi where Sai Baba used to visit every alternate night. Gurusthan is the place where Sai Baba used to sit under a neem (Margo) tree. It is said that the leaves of this tree lost their bitterness with to the grace of Sai Baba. Samadhis of Baba’s devotees like Abdul Baba, Nanavalli, Bhau Maharaj and Tatya are also there in Shirdi. There are also interesting and holy places related to Sai Baba.
Location:Shirdi.
How to Reach:
Rail:
Shirdi now has a new railway station called “Sainagar Shirdi”, which became operational in March 2009.
As of 2011, there are trains from Chennai, Mumbai, Visakhapatnam via Secunderabad, Mysore and other cities/states that have Shirdi railway station as their terminal stop. Trains also run from Manmad railway station which is 87 km and Ahmednagar railway station which is 83 km from the heart of Shirdi, alternatively from Kopargaon station which is 15 km from Shirdi, or Nashik city, which is 119 km from Shirdi or Nagarsol. Daund railway station is 200 km from Shirdi.
Road:
Buses and taxis ply from these railway stations and locations to and from Shirdi. Shirdi can be reached by bus from any of the following cities in Maharashtra State (India): Ahmednagar, Mumbai, Pune, Thane, Nashik, Akluj, Dhule, Nagpur and Aurangabad.Also from Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh from where maximum pilgrims reach every day and year to seek blessings from Sai Baba. Currently, four-laning of State highway Nagar-Manmad highway is in progress on BOT basis.[citation needed] Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation has been assigned to execute the works of internal roads in Shirdi.
Air:
Shirdi Airport is being constructed at Kakdi (Kopargaon taluka), 14 km south-west of Shirdi.[6] Root for shirdi airport is shirdi – Nandurkhi bk(4 km)- Korhale(8 km)- Kakadi(14 km).
