Tuljapur – Pandharpur – Akkalkot – Ganagapur Trip

The year-end trips are my favourite ones. In previous years, most of the year-end trips were unplanned. Last year in the month of November, I along with my wife Varsha planned to visit Tuljapur-Pandharpur-Akkalkot-Ganagapur temples which are close to Solapur city.

We finalised the trip dates considering the Christmas holidays. The trip was planned from 24th Dec 2019 to 27th Dec 2019. Our plan was to reach Solapur on 25th Dec, visit Tuljapur and Pandharpur on the same day. On 26th Dec, visit Akkalkot and Ganagapur. And late-night take a train back to Kalyan.

We had booked 2 Tier tickets of GADAG Express from Kalyan for 24th Dec, departing at 10.15 pm and return ticket from Solapur of the same train for 26th Dec, departing at 9.16 pm. Our return tickets were RAC while the 24th Dec tickets were WL (Waiting List) 17,18,19,20. We thought these tickets are likely to get confirmed.

For almost 20-25 days, the WL numbers didn’t change. We were a bit worried as our tickets were not confirmed yet. But we were confident that WL 17-20 are definitely going to get confirmed. One day prior to the journey, the WL numbers were 8,9,10,11. Our alternate plan was to hire a vehicle to reach Solapur. On the journey day, till afternoon the numbers were the same. When the chart was prepared, our tickets stuck at WL 2,3,4,5 which were obviously not confirmed.

Lesson learnt: Never rely and plan your trips on WL tickets.

On 24th Dec at 10.30 pm, we started our journey from Kalyan to Solapur by Ola taxi. It was almost 9 hours of travel, we reached Solapur at 7.30 am on 25th Dec. After unpacking our bags at Vaishanvi Hotel, we were ready by 9.30 am for our day one temples trip.

DAY 1 – Tuljapur and Pandharpur

As we had already traveled by car on the previous day, so we wanted to explore the public transport such as MSRTC Bus or local Auto rickshaw to visit Tuljapur. Just outside the hotel, we met this guy named Bhairavnath Mane with his 5 seaters spacious Auto rickshaw. He agreed for a return fare of INR 1000 to Tuljapur and Pandharpur in INR 1500. It was a very reasonable fare considering the holiday season.

Shri Tulja Bhavani Temple of Tuljapur

We started our journey to visit Tulja Bhavani Temple. The Tulja Bhavani Temple (Marathi: श्री क्षेत्र तुळजा भवानी देवस्थान) is a Hindu temple dedicated to the goddess Bhavani (Durga Or Parvati). It is located in Tuljapur in Osmanabad district of Maharashtra. This temple is considered as one of the 51 Shakti Pithas. It is situated 46 km from Solapur. The temple was built in the 12th century CE.¹

It was almost an hour’s journey on the wide roads of Solapur. The roads are really well maintained. We reached the Tulja Bhavani temple at around 11.00 am. There was a long queue being a public holiday. It took almost an hour and a half in the queue and take darshan of Shri Tulja Bhavani. After taking prasad and lunch in the temple premises, we headed towards Pandharpur via Solapur.

For more details of the temple, visit the official website of the temple – Shri Tulja Bhavani Sansthan.

Shri Vitthal-Rukmini Temple of Pandharpur

The Vithoba Temple, officially known as Shri Vitthal-Rukmini Mandir (Marathi: श्री विठ्ठल-रूक्मिणी मंदिर ) is a Hindu temple in Pandharpur in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the main centre of worship for Vithoba, a form of the god Vishnu or Krishna, and his consort Rukmani. It is the most visited temple in Maharashtra². The distance between Tuljapur and Pandharpur is around 113 Km, almost 2 hours journey.

We reached Pandharpur at around 4.00 pm and found that there was a very long queue at Shri Vitthal Temple. The queue starts from the small residential lanes opposite the temple on a foot over bridge. We were worried as the warkaris in the queue told us that it would take at least 2-3 hours for the darshan. Most of the warkaris in the queue were chanting “Vitthal” bhajans. It was a nice devotional feeling to be with them in the queue.

It was 5.15 pm, we were in the same place in the queue. Some people informed Shri Vitthal Aarti was going on and hence the darshan was stopped for devotees. Around 5.30 pm the queue started moving. At 7.00 pm we reached inside the temple and took darshan of Shri Vitthal & Rukmini. After doing some shopping and having quick snacks at the temple premises, we headed back to Solapur.

We reached Solapur at around 9.30 pm. Although, we were happy that we completed the planned temples visit by taking darshan of Shri Tulja Bhavani and Shri Vittal & Rukmani, our first day turned out to be very hectic as we travelled around 200+ Km (5 hours) in Auto rickshaw. In addition, 4 hours in queue for darshan.

Lessons learnt:

1. Avoid planning trips to famous temples on public holidays as you will land up standing in darshan queue for long hours.
2. If possible, cover only one temple in a day so that you get enough time to see other places nearby temple and surrounding areas.
3. If you have any health issues, specifically back issues then avoid traveling in Auto rickshaw. Simply hire a Cab/Taxi or private vehicle.

For more details of the temple, visit the official website of the temple – Vitthal Rukmini Mandir.

Day 2 – Akkalkot and Ganagapur

Due to very hectic travel on the previous day, I was down with fever. Varsha was not ready for the second day trip as I was unwell. But I convinced her that I can manage by taking paracetamol tablet and some rest during travel. Mane, our Auto rickshaw driver, runs a travel agency as well. He managed to get a Maruti Swift car for the second day journey.

On 26th Dec 2019, it was a Solar Eclipse day. Most of the Hindu temples are closed during the eclipse period. According to Hindu texts, during an eclipse, heavenly bodies, particularly the sun and the moon, emit abnormal negative energies. Therefore, the doors of the temple housing the main deity are closed to prevent and minimize these negative energies that could disturb the effects of the divine energy on the devotees⁵.

The eclipse timing was 8.06 am to 11.13 am. Therefore, we decided to visit Ganagapur first instead of Akkalkot.

Shri Datta Temple of Ganagapur

Shri Datta Temple is located at Deval Ganagapur in the Afzalpur taluka of Kalaburagi district in Karnataka. The Ganagapur is a kshetra (place of pilgrimage) associated with Sri Narasimha Saraswati Swami, the second incarnation of Dattatreya.³

The distance between Solapur and Ganagapur is around 111 Km. Almost two and half hour journey. We started our journey from Solapur at around 9.30 am and reached Ganagapur at 12.00 noon. Here too there was a very long queue for darshan. Devotees were chanting “Digambara Digambara Shripada Vallabh Digambara”. It took almost 2.30 hours in the queue and take darshan of Shri Datta Guru.

We had some delicious vada pav and mirchi bhajjis outside the temple. In addition, we also had a glass full of watermelon cubes to fill the tummy. After these quick snacks, we headed towards Akkalkot at 3.00 pm.

For more details of the temple, visit the official website of the temple – Shri Kshetra Ganagapur.

Shri Swami Samarth temple of Akkalkot

Shri Swami Samarth also known as Akkalkot Swami of Akkalkot, was an Indian Guru of the Dattatreya tradition (Sampradaya), widely respected in Indian states of Maharashtra as well as in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh with Shripad Shri Vallabha and Narasimha Saraswati.⁴

We reached Akkalkot around 4.00 pm. Surprisingly, there was no big queue near the temple. At one point in time, I thought is this the same temple we wanted to visit. But as we went closer to the temple, we saw around 30-40 devotees in a queue which was moving fast. Luckily, we could take Shri Swami Samarth’s darshan in 10-15 mins.

The temple is covered by a huge banyan tree. It is known that the Shri Swami Samarth Maharaj used to meditate and preach the followers under the same banyan tree. We rested for some time in the temple premises and after shopping headed back to Solapur. After almost an hour journey, we reached the hotel at around 7.00 pm. Within 30-45 mins, we had some snacks and checked-out for our return journey to Kalyan by GADAG express from Solapur.

For more details of the temple, visit the official website of the temple – Shri Swami Samarth.

Looking back at these two days’ fast track journey of covering four temples, we realised that we adhered to the travel schedule and covered all four temples. However, we spent more time in travelling and less time in temples. On a positive note, taking darshan of Shri Tulja bhavani, Shri Vitthal & Rukmini,
Shri Narshima Saraswati and Shri Swami Samarth was our final goal of this journey. Also, spending time with my family during travel and meeting different people added to the memorable experience of this journey.

Here are some photos captured by me:

How to reach:
Solapur is a very popular city in Maharashtra. You can reach Solapur by railway, road and air.

By Train: Solapur (SUR) Railway Station is well connected to major cities of the country.
By Road: This city is also well connected through road to other cities.
By Flight: Solapur Airport is operational. However, only limited flights are available. Pune Airport
is the other closest airport to Solapur.

Distance from Solapur:
Solapur to Tuljapur – 46.7 km
Solapur to Pandharpur – 71.6 Km
Solapur to Akkalkot – 38.9 km
Solapur to Ganagapur – 119 Km
Solapur to Pune – 254 Km
Solapur to Kalyan – 405 Km
Solapur to Mumbai – 402 Km

Travel Tips:
1) Plan your trip well in advance as there are four temples to be covered.
2) If travelling by train, make sure your tickets are confirmed.
3) Visit official websites of the temples and check if accommodation is available in ‘Bhakt Niwas’ 2-3 months in advance.
4) Alternatively, plan your stay in Solapur and visit these temples.

The following possible travel options and recommendations are based on my two days trip experience. I hope it will help you to plan your trip to these temples.

Option 1
If you are planning to travel by train or bus to Solapur and hire a car Or if you are driving your own vehicle/hired car.
Reach early morning to Solapur
Day 1 – Tuljapur and Pandharpur
Day 2 – Akkalkot and Ganagapur

Or

Day 1 – Akkalkot and Ganagapur
Day 2 – Tuljapur and Pandharpur

Recommended for those who have a time constraints and want to cover all four locations in two days. However, it will be a hectic trip. Be prepared for the same.

Option 2
If you are driving your own vehicle or hired vehicle, reach early to Pandharpur so that you can cover all other temples along with Shri Vitthal & Rukmini temple.
Day 1 – Pandharpur
Day 2 – Tuljapur (plus Solapur city)
Day 3 – Akkalkot and Ganagapur

Recommended for those who are travelling with family along with kids.

Option 3
Along with own car/hired vehicle, if you have no time contraints and no specific budget constraints then spend the whole day at each location. You’ll have more time to visit the temple, see the surrounding areas near the temple and try the local food.
Day 1 – Pandharpur
Day 2 – Tuljapur
Day 3 – Akkalkot
Day 4 – Ganagapur

Recommended for those who are travelling with family along with kids. Highly recommended for photographers who want to explore Temple Photography.

Option 4
For those, you have no time constraints but a very low budget. Reach Solapur by train or bus. Check for local MSRTC buses or auto rickshaw to reach these locations.

Just sharing Bhairavnath Mane’s contact number, in case you require to book Auto rickshaw or car in Solapur. You may contact him on 9588614043.

References:
1) Shri Tulja Bhavani Temple
2) Vithoba Temple
3) Ganagapura
4) Swami Samarth
5) Hindu temples closed during Eclipses