subject: A Spiritual Journey To Shirdi [print this page] I never thought I would be visiting Shirdi with my family. I was never a spiritual person but it was my idea to go for a visit to Shirdi. My family was amused but they didnt reacted much and agreed for the trip. We planned to visit Shani-Shingnapur first and then Shirdi as we had our accommodations booked at Hotel Sai Sahavas in Shirdi. It took us four hours to reach Shani-Shingnapur and it was one pleasant ride. The monsoon had just begun so our journey was very comfortable considering the fact that there was hardly any humidity in the air.
We reached Shani-Shingnapur by 12.00 pm and were lucky to get a quick darshan. My mother said that there were many changes to the temple since she visited it last time. The moment I entered the temple I felt a sudden change in myself. I was quite and I could sense that my mind was clear and it had hardly any thoughts in it. I came to know what exactly does peace of mind mean. After our darshan and offerings we were soon on our way to Shirdi. It was just a two hour drive as we also halted to visit another temple in the route. The temple was of some Goddess and it was empty apart from the only priest. The temple had a unique ritual of tossing the coin in to the vessel placed a floor below the temple. It is said that if we manage to put the coin in to the vessel our wish will be granted. I dont know if it is true but I took a turn to toss the coin and unfortunately I missed the target. Our next stop was directly at Hotel Sai Sahavas. After checking in the hotel we proceeded straight to hotels restaurant.
We had no idea of the hotel as the booking was done by my friend who works in Panoramic Universal Limited (PUL) that manages the hotel. Its only coz of him that we managed to get some discounts while booking the accommodations. We decided to rest for the day and to take early darshan next day. The rooms were big enough and it had some good decor. We went for a little shopping in and around the city but we were surprised to see that the prices charged were very exorbitant.
The next day we went for the darshan early morning. It was amazing feeling being in the temple and seeking the blessing of Lord Sai Baba. It took us about an hour to get darshan but it was worth the effort. After our darshan we went for a quick trip nearby temple. We visited Lendi Baug, Dwarkamai and the museum where belongings of Sai Baba are preserved. There were some people who amused us with Sai Babas stories. We went back to the hotel and prepared for checking out. One of the staffs requested us to even visit the meditation hall before checking out. The moment we saw the meditating hall we were asking each other why didnt the staff told us about it yesterday itself. The hall had a statue of Lord Sai Baba and there were few people chanting shloks. This was another reason of enjoying the trip, the first one being the darshan at the temple. I can say the experience in shirdi by relaxed routine in Hotel Sai Sahavaswas memorable!
