Dwarkamai

[Guest guest]

Dwarkamai

 

Dwarkamai is the mosque where Baba lived during his sixty years of

stay at Shirdi. This is the place where He lived His divine advent

and performed Leelas (Divine play). The feeling of His physical

presence persists even today most overwhelmingly. In Dwarkamai only

Shri Sai assembled His 'darbar' the royal court where He fulfilled

their material needs, extended solace to His devotees and conferred

spiritual benefit on them.

 

The sacred fire 'dhuni' lighted by Shri Sai, is burning perpetually

for more than a hundred years now. It is maintained by the Trust by

regularly putting wooden logs as fuel into it with full sanctity.

The sacred ash 'Udi' is collected twice a day from this perpetual

fire, to be distributed to the devotees as a token of his blessings.

 

There is a life size of portrait placed at the very spot where Baba

used to sit untiringly surrounded by his devotees. Shri Jayakar of

Mumbai did this portrait in oil when Baba was living in physical

body. The picture assumes almost a three dimensional reality with

his dynamic presence in it. The eyes have a lustrous brightness

penetrating deep into the soul of the devotee and the smile is so

gentle and vivid, that it is not a painted smile. This portrait is

placed on wooden throne like seat. On the west wall there is a

niche 'nimbar' towards which muslims turn for prayers.

 

On one corner of the masjid the grinding stone used by him is kept

covered with an iron grill. The other items are an earthen pot,

kolamba(an earthenware in which Baba used to put all the food he

would receive in alms), bath-stone, a bold square black stone which

was presented to Baba by a devotee to sit on it while taking bath

(which he never used), a few brass lamps and bells.

 

In the foreyard of the masjid is the same blessed stone on which

Baba used to often sit. There is another portrait hanging over it

featuring the same pose in which Baba used to sit on it. This stone

is flanked by the statues of a tiger and a horse, as living momento

of the compassion of the Master. The palanquin and chariot used in

his royal procession are housed in an adjoining enclosure of the

masjid, which are used on Thursday and all important occasions.