Alandi a town in Pune district, Maharashtra is popular as a place of pilgrimage for being the resting place or (Samadhi) of the 13th century Marathi Bhakti saint, Sant Dnyaneshwar.
Maharashtra State, like many others in India, has a rich tradition of saints. These saints in Maharashtra were not just the sages and seers staying as recluse and preaching renunciation; but were rather visionary reformists. The first among them was Saint Dnyaneshwar who founded the Bhagwat Sect in the Hindu religion in an attempt to eradicate all sorts of discriminations in society. The Bhagwat Sect is best known as the sect of the devotees of Lord Pandurang in Pandharpur in Maharashtra.
Also known as Dnyandev or Mauli, he was a poet, saint and philosopher who was born in Apegaon in 1275 and took samadhi in 1296 in Alandi.
The most significant work of Saint Dnyaneshwar is ‘Bhavarthdeepika’ also known as ‘Dnyaneshwari’ which is a simple commentary and critic written on sacred Bhagvad Geeta in Marathi. The work is also considered to be an excellent piece of Marathi poetry.
Saint Dnyaneshwar, after translating the Hindu scripture, Bhagavad Gita attained sanjivan Samadhi under the Siddheshwar temple in Alandi, Pune district. A temple complex has been built at the spot of his samadhi. It is visited by thousands of pilgrims, and in particular, those of the Varkari Sect.
Fairs
Two melas are held here annually: on Ashadh and Kartiki Ekadashi, the eleventh days of Ashadh and Kartik (Hindu months).
Every year, in the month of Jeshtha (June- July), a procession carrying Paduka (symbolic sandals) of Dnyaneshwar on a Palkhi starts from Alandi to reach Pandharpur on Ashadhi Ekadashi. The procession is joined by thousands of Varkari devotees for the 150 km journey on foot.
The biggest festival in Alandi is held every year on Kartika Vadya Ekadashi (eleventh day of the dark fortnight of Hindu month of Kartik). The festival falls close to the day saint Dnyaneshwar entered Samadhi. This festival or yatra is attended by thousands of Dnyaneshwar devotees.
Pilgrims perform Circumambulation around the whole town during their visit. The places of interest to pilgrims in and around Alandi include:
- The Dnyaneshwar Samadhi Complex that includes the Samadhi,the Shri Sidheshwar templeand the famed Ajanvriksha tree
- The Ghats on the banks of the Indrayani River
- Ram Mandir close to the banks of the Indrayani River, located south of the Samadhi mandir, is one of the many large temples in Alandi
- Laxmi Narayan Mandir – is smaller, located South to Samadhi mandir, adjacent to Ram mandir, near to ghats
- Vitthala-Rakhumai Temple
- Dnyaneshwari Mandir – modern temple nearing completion, located little to the west of Dnyaneshwar Samadhi Complex
- Narsinha Sawaswati Math – is located west of Dnyaneshwar Samadhi Complex en- route to Dnyaneshwari Mandir
- Shree Gajanan Maharaj Temple complex, Alandi – located south of Dnyaneshwar Samadhi Complex
- Dnyaneshwar’s Wall – Legend says that when the formerly arrogant Sant Changdev came to visit Dnyaneshwar on a tiger, Dnyaneshwar and his siblings went to meet him riding on a wall that moved.
- Sant Jalaram Temple: This temple was built in 1960s with the same architectural design as the one in Virpur Gujarat, which is very popular. There is also a temple of Santoshi Mata in the same temple complex
Source:
http://www.sid-thewanderer.com/2016/11/alandi-yatra-sant-dnyaneshwar.html
https://indiantempleslist.blogspot.com/2016/02/alandi-dnyaneshwar-maharaj-samadhi-mandir.html
http://saiamrithadhara.com/pune%20temples.html
https://www.magzter.com/stories/Lifestyle/Dignity-Dialogue/Alandi-A-Place-of-Pilgrimage