Tag: Ashtavinayak

  • Siddhivinayak Temple, Siddhatek

    After the visit to Morgaon, we were wondering where to go next. I went down the rabbit hole of Ashtavinayak orders and lists but finally decided to follow the list given on Wikipedia.

    We visited the Siddhivinayak Temple, Siddhatek on 17 January 2026.

    We left from home later than usual. We drove out through Nagar Road, went past Theur, past Daund, and reached Siddhatek in two hours.

    The roads, both the National Highway and the State Highway after Daund were really good. Most of the traffic was agricultural machinery moving from one field to another or transporting to the traders.

    On the State Highway between Daund to Siddhatek, we were flanked by the Bhima River on one side and the railway line on the other side.

    The parking at the temple was on the road. It was a light day and hence we did not face too many other pilgrims and got parking space quite easily.

    The darshan was calm and quick. We went in and came out after our prayers.

    We wanted to do the feri around the mount. The information online varied about the time the feri would take. It went from 10 minutes to 1.5 hours. It’s much closer to 10 minutes than 1.5 hours, and then it would depend on your speed. We completed the feri in 15 minutes.

    We got somethings from the shops outside the temple. We had sugarcane juice and wada pav. There seem to be quite a few tannaries around the area. I got two belts made for myself – one in black for work and one in brown for casual wear.

    We returned from Siddhatek on mid-day. We stopped at Savla Veg for lunch. Google Gemini suggests Kkanchan Veg but there is also a Vitthal Kamat on the other side. It seems to mostly have breakfast options, though.

    The journey back home was uneventful.

  • Mayureshwar Temple, Morgaon

    My family and I drove to Morgaon on 4 January 2026. It was the first long drive I undertook after the operation in the second week of December. It was a two-hour drive one-way.

    The drive to the temple was on mostly good roads except for a stretch between Hadapsar and a little beyond Phursungi. After that the roads were good and mostly empty. We made a stop at Kamat’s at Khalad on NH 965 for tea and our bathroom break.

    We didn’t make any stops on the way back. We stopped after we crossed Magarpatta to snack on some makhana.

    I first heard about Mayureshwar Temple associated with the Ashtavinayak pilgrimage circuit. It is the starting and ending temple to visit on that circuit. There are some fascinating myths associated with the temple.

    The temple was really well planned. It had good parking space, not too many heckling commercial establishments, and really well kept temple surroundings. We had a good darshan after a small waiting time. I found it hard to pray though the darshan was relaxed.

    I did not notice too much on this journey because I was really focussed on driving and my own driving comfort.

    Addendum: 16 January 2026

    I watched this post on Instagram that gives the story of Khandoba at Jejuri. This is near Mayureshwar. While standing in line, we saw several people who seemed bathed in turmeric and we were curious to learn more.

    Khandoba was a version of Shiva who came to fight Mani and Malla’s terror. Mani surrendered. Malla refused to surrender and was beheaded.

    After the war, Khandoba’s battle wounds were smeared with turmeric and the temple at Jejuri is still bathed in a sea of yellow.