Gajanan Maharaj
Encyclopedia
Gajanan Maharaj from Shegaon
(Buldhana District), Maharashtra
, India
is a Saint from India. "Sant Gajanan Maharaj Sansthan" is the largest temple trust in the Vidarbha
region.
The early life history of Gajanan Maharaj is obscure, his birthdate being unknown. His devotees believe him as incarnation of Lord Ganesha and Lord Dathathreya (Gangapur). Biruduraju Ramaraju has tried to establish in his collection of books called "Andhra Yogulu" that he was a Telangana Brahmin. Some speculate that he might have in fact hailed from Sajjanghad, (which was the place where Sant Samartha Ramdas
had lived). Das Ganu Maharaj has written a 21 chapter biography, "Shri Gajanan Vijay," of Gajanan Maharaj in Marathi
. Contemporaries of Gajanan Maharaj identified him by several names like Gin Gine Buwa, Ganpat Buwa, and Awaliya Baba.
However, it is amply proved that as a handsome, tall lad of 18 years old he arrived at Akkalkot to meet Shri Swami Samarth. It is said that on seeing him Swami Samarth was overjoyed and made him sit in his lap and caressed him lovingly; people around Samarth who watched this scene sait to Swami that the boy was in his teens and not a child. Thereafter it is said that Swami asked the boy to go to holy place of Kapildhara near Nashik and perform austerities. As per the instructions, the boy performed severe austerities at Kapildhara and attained Atmadnyana and became a Supreme Yogi. Just before his Samadhi, Swami Samarth asked him to get himself 'polished' from Dev Mamaledar (yet another disciple of Swami Samarth and a realized soul) at Nashik. The boy did exactly the same and got blessings of Dev Mamaledar. Later he was asked to keep walking and the place where he stopped would become his Karmabhoomi and the name given by people around him would be his name. This is what happened exactly. After Swami Samarth's samadhi, the boy appeared at Shegaon. The evidence to this story comes from an old man who had seen the boy at Akkalkot with Swami Samarth and had come to Shegaon along with his son who was working in post office and was transferred to Shegaon. Maharaj accepting a human body is a mere pastime (Leela) as he is Brahmadnyani; that is why thousands of the devotees flock to Shegaon for his blessings. How he functions and transforms people from vile, wicked ways to great devotees is really unknown. None in his earthly days ever saw him chanting any special mantra holding japamala etc. But he is a supreme saint, whose blessings everyone must have.
According to a legend, a money lender named Bankat Lal Agarwal first saw Gajanan Maharaj in a "superconscious state" on February 23, 1878 on a street. Sensing him to be a saint, Bankat took him home and asked him to stay with him. Legends say that in his lifetime, he performed many miracles such as giving a fresh lease on life to one Janrao Deshmukh, lighting the clay-pipe without fire, filling a dry well with water, drawing sugar cane juice by twisting canes with his hands, and curing leprosy of a woman. He took samadhi on 8 September 1910. A temple in his name is built on his Samadhi
at Shegaon.
Head of the Gajanan Maharaj Sansthan-Shivshankarbhau Patil is the head of the trust and well known in India for his administration and management of the temple,bhojan kaksha,engineering and management college, Anand Sagar project and many other institution run by the trust located at Shegaon managed by shri gajanan maharaj sansthan shegaon affiliated to Amravati university. This college is one of the best institutes for engineering education. The Anand Sagar project is also developed by the trust over 650 acres for tourist with all facilities at nominal rates. The temple is famous in Maharashtra for its clean, neat, tidy environment and polite and respectful behaviour of the sevaks of gajanan maharaj trust who works there just for seva.
It is said by Gajanan Maharaj that he will appear again in Domak village (revealed in pothi) of Maharashtra (near Morshi) and his words proved to be true. He again reappeared in Domak village and giving darshan to the devotees since 13 years. Domak Gajanan maharaj looks same as Shegoan Gajanan Maharaj and has performed a lot of miracles in these 13 years. Devotees who seek for his darshan are growing day by day.
Shegaon
Shegaon is a city and a municipal council in Buldana district in the Indian state of Maharashtra.-Geography:Shegaon is located around 550 km east of the city of Mumbai and 300 km west from the city of Nagpur...
(Buldhana District), Maharashtra
Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
is a Saint from India. "Sant Gajanan Maharaj Sansthan" is the largest temple trust in the Vidarbha
Vidarbha
Vidarbha is the eastern region of Maharashtra state made up of Nagpur Division and Amravati Division. Its former name is Berar . It occupies 31.6% of total area and holds 21.3% of total population of Maharashtra...
region.
Ramdas
Ramdas or Ram Das may refer to:*S. A. Ramadass, a MLA from Karnataka, India*Samarth Ramdas or Samartha Ramdas Swami, a 17th-century Hindu saint from Maharashtra, who was a devotee of Lord Rama and the spiritual guru of Maratha king Shivaji*Ramadasu, a 17th-century Hindu devotee from Andhra...
had lived). Das Ganu Maharaj has written a 21 chapter biography, "Shri Gajanan Vijay," of Gajanan Maharaj in Marathi
Marathi language
Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
. Contemporaries of Gajanan Maharaj identified him by several names like Gin Gine Buwa, Ganpat Buwa, and Awaliya Baba.
However, it is amply proved that as a handsome, tall lad of 18 years old he arrived at Akkalkot to meet Shri Swami Samarth. It is said that on seeing him Swami Samarth was overjoyed and made him sit in his lap and caressed him lovingly; people around Samarth who watched this scene sait to Swami that the boy was in his teens and not a child. Thereafter it is said that Swami asked the boy to go to holy place of Kapildhara near Nashik and perform austerities. As per the instructions, the boy performed severe austerities at Kapildhara and attained Atmadnyana and became a Supreme Yogi. Just before his Samadhi, Swami Samarth asked him to get himself 'polished' from Dev Mamaledar (yet another disciple of Swami Samarth and a realized soul) at Nashik. The boy did exactly the same and got blessings of Dev Mamaledar. Later he was asked to keep walking and the place where he stopped would become his Karmabhoomi and the name given by people around him would be his name. This is what happened exactly. After Swami Samarth's samadhi, the boy appeared at Shegaon. The evidence to this story comes from an old man who had seen the boy at Akkalkot with Swami Samarth and had come to Shegaon along with his son who was working in post office and was transferred to Shegaon. Maharaj accepting a human body is a mere pastime (Leela) as he is Brahmadnyani; that is why thousands of the devotees flock to Shegaon for his blessings. How he functions and transforms people from vile, wicked ways to great devotees is really unknown. None in his earthly days ever saw him chanting any special mantra holding japamala etc. But he is a supreme saint, whose blessings everyone must have.
According to a legend, a money lender named Bankat Lal Agarwal first saw Gajanan Maharaj in a "superconscious state" on February 23, 1878 on a street. Sensing him to be a saint, Bankat took him home and asked him to stay with him. Legends say that in his lifetime, he performed many miracles such as giving a fresh lease on life to one Janrao Deshmukh, lighting the clay-pipe without fire, filling a dry well with water, drawing sugar cane juice by twisting canes with his hands, and curing leprosy of a woman. He took samadhi on 8 September 1910. A temple in his name is built on his Samadhi
Samadhi
Samadhi in Hinduism, Buddhism,Jainism, Sikhism and yogic schools is a higher level of concentrated meditation, or dhyāna. In the yoga tradition, it is the eighth and final limb identified in the Yoga Sūtras of Patañjali....
at Shegaon.
Head of the Gajanan Maharaj Sansthan-Shivshankarbhau Patil is the head of the trust and well known in India for his administration and management of the temple,bhojan kaksha,engineering and management college, Anand Sagar project and many other institution run by the trust located at Shegaon managed by shri gajanan maharaj sansthan shegaon affiliated to Amravati university. This college is one of the best institutes for engineering education. The Anand Sagar project is also developed by the trust over 650 acres for tourist with all facilities at nominal rates. The temple is famous in Maharashtra for its clean, neat, tidy environment and polite and respectful behaviour of the sevaks of gajanan maharaj trust who works there just for seva.
It is said by Gajanan Maharaj that he will appear again in Domak village (revealed in pothi) of Maharashtra (near Morshi) and his words proved to be true. He again reappeared in Domak village and giving darshan to the devotees since 13 years. Domak Gajanan maharaj looks same as Shegoan Gajanan Maharaj and has performed a lot of miracles in these 13 years. Devotees who seek for his darshan are growing day by day.
See also
- Gajanan Maharaj TemplesGajanan Maharaj TemplesThe Gajanan Maharaj Temples were built to honor Shri Sant Gajanan Maharaj, a late-nineteenth–, early-twentieth-century Indian holy man known to many people in Maharashtra, India. His birthdate is unknown; he lived most of his life at Shegaon, near Akola district in Maharashtra, where he died on 8...
- Located all over Maharashtra - Gajanan Maharaj Temple - KanhorGajanan Maharaj Temple - KanhorShri Sant Gajanan Maharaj is known to most of the people in Maharashtra. He stayed most of his life at Shegaon, near Akola district in Maharashtra and has taken "Samadhi" there. Therefore Shegaon has got a special significance for Maharaj and his devotees. Shegaon hosts a magnificent temple...
- Gajanan Maharaj Temple - Indore
- Gajanan Maharaj Temple - Betul
External links
- Official Website
- GajananDarshan.org Most Useful Website on Maharaj
- Yogi Gajanan Maharaj - Marathi Article
- Shree Gajanan Maharaj Mandir located in Kanhor, Badlapur, Thane District, Home Page
- Shri Sadguru Gajanan Maharaj Sevashram Mandir located in Indore, M.P, Home Page
- Gajanan-Shegaon.com
- Gajanan-Maharaj.com