Pilgrimage to Saipuram, Shirdi of the South

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On the outskirts of Madras, in a calm and serene atmosphere is located the

Shirdi Sai Baba Temple. The green wooded land rising from the sea, on the new

Mahabalipurarn Road seems to have been waiting for centuries, in anticipation

for his arrival. The inspiration to build the temple was Sri C.B Satpathy's

visit to Madras on April 19, 1993.The construction of the temple was completed

in a record time of four months, braving storms and heavy rains by thousands of

workers who were inspired to work night and day to fulfil the task. The temple

was inaugurated by Shri C.B Satpathy between the 5th and 9th of December 1993,

with a Mahakumbhabishekham, a ceremony invoking the Divine presence with the

participation of thousands of devotees chanting Baba's name.A visit to Saipuram

is like a pilgrimage to Shirdi, the place where Sri Sai Baba lived. The moment

one enters the property of

Saipuram, one enters a veritable paradise where one forgets the drudgeries of

the day to day world. In fact, in the word of Sai there are no worldly

miseries, misgivings or sorrows and anxieties for there is ever flowing love

and joyousness. One is reminded of Sri Sai Baba's favourite sayings. "Whoever

puts feet on Shirdi soil his sufferings would come to an end.The wretched

and miserable would rise into plenty of joy and happiness as soon as they climb

the steps of my mosque".This is the experience of Saipuram. The temple complex

has a number of buildings and temples in an area of seven acres of pristine

land facing the sea. The panoramic view of the sea shore from the temple is a

sight to be experienced and enjoyed by one and all. There is a wide stretch of

sandy beach which is so charming that anyone who would like to spend a quiet

time in solitude would not find a more appropriate place.At the entrance of the

Saipuram complex is the Guest House Which house seven well-furnished rooms. It

also has a lobby, an office, and a library which has an exhaustive collection

of books on religion, philosophy and Sri Sai Baba. As one proceeds to the

temple one comes across the shrine of Lord Ganesha. The Lord Ganesha resides

here to ward of all obstacles. No task is begun without the blessing of Lord

Ganesha.Next is the bigger shrine of Lord Dattatreya, the three -headed from

representing the Holy Trinity - Brahma the Lord of Creation, Vishnu the Lord of

preservation, and Mahadeva the Lord of Destruction.Dattatreya is the symbol of

the primordial guru, the dispeller of darkness who manifests all the three

qualities of the Holy Trinity, such as Sri Sai Baba who is said to be the

incarnation of Lord Dattatreya.Further on the side we come to the temple that

houses the symbols of power according to the Hindu pantheistic tradition,

sculpted in

black stone.The Shrine of Shivalingam and ParvatiThe Shrine of Maha DurgadeviThe

Shrine of Lord HanumanThe Shrine of Lord Rama, Sita, LaxmanThe Shrine of Lord

VenkateswaraThe Shrine of the Nava Grahas (Nine Planets) The Shrine of Lord

Krishna & RadhaThe Shrine of Lord Subramanya with his consorts Valli and

DevyaniThe main temple of Sri Shirdi Sai Baba is a large hexagonal structure

built to a height of I 00 feet and made of white marble. The statue of Sri Sai

Baba is in his famous sitting posture known all over the world, sculpted by

hand in pure white marble. The mosque, Sri Sai Baba called by the name of

Dwarakamayee (Lord Krishna's birthplace) is here a replica of the same in

Shirdi. It is the place where Baba used to reside. He kept a constant fire

(Dhuni) burning from which the ash or Udi is collected and distributed to the

devotees. The holy fire which was brought from Shirdi, has been burning

uninterruptedly since Baba's days and is kept burning at Saipuram. The Chawdi or

resting place is a replica of the one at Shirdi, is a place for pilgrims and

Baba used to spend some nights there with the devotees, singing and dancing.The

wish - fulfilling tree is a very important spot at Saipuram temple. On Thursdays

and Fridays devotees visit this spot and tie a turmeric dipped string around the

tree. Miraculous solutions to difficult problems and wishes being fulfilled here

have been expressed by many devotees.The Trust publishes 'Sai Chetana' a

quarterly magazine. Articles are invited from Sai devotees and others who

desire to write on spiritual and religious matters. Donations to this

charitable cause may please be sent by Demand Draft / Cheque in favour of Sri

Sai Baba Spiritual and Charitable Trust, Saipuram, Injanibakkam, Madras - 600

041, India.There are various amenities available such as a gowshala which

houses a few cows, a Meditation Hall, a free Health Care Centre, a stall selling

pooja items, a book shop selling Sai paraphernalia, a canteen, generator,

tubewell, telephone and transportation facilities. Besides the Aarti, special

poojas are performed on request and arrangements for feeding of the poor are

available. Marriage ceremonies, thread ceremonies and other Hindu functions are

also conducted, on request.The very ambience of the place is not its temples or

deities or the buildings but the serenity and the invisible divine presence of

Sri Sai Baba, with a pervading feeling of love and compassion that was Sai Baba

himself. As you join in the morning aarti you see the first golden hues of the

sun emerging from the sea, fall over Sri Sai Baba's statue as if the sun god

has himself joined the devotees in praise of the Supreme Being.Captain Chandra,

the Manager and a resident of Saipurarn says, "When I come to

this place, I made a candid statement that I have no devotion, no such spiritual

inclinations. But now hardly a day passes when I do not go to Sai, with folded

hands a number of times. One is reminded again of Sri Sai Baba saying, "I draw

my devotees even from thousands of miles away like a boy drawing a bird to

whose foot one end of a string is attached while the other is held by him".

this article is been forwarded to me by mr .Nitin Raj Sinha

Arun Reddy Nukala

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