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PANDHARPUR

Pandharpur, a town in Maharashtra on the west coast of India, is a famous pilgrimage centre. Thousands of people from far and near visit Pandharpur round the year for a bath in the Chandrabhaga River and darshan of Vithal, the presiding deity. For several hundred years, the saint-poets of Maharashtra have sung in praise of Vithal. The compositions of Sant Gyaneshwar, Sant Eknath, Sant Namdev, Sant Tukaram and the poetess Mukta Bai, though written hundreds of years ago, are current even now. These compositions guide one to the path of piety, truthfulness, devotion and dedication.

Pandharpur is famous for the image of Vithal in the temple. As the legend has it, Pundlik, an obedient and dutiful son, lived in Pandharpur ages ago. For him the sole purpose of life was attending to his aged parents. Nothing else mattered. It is said that Lord Vishnu was so impressed by his devotion to his parents that he decided to express his appreciation in person. He, therefore, came to Pandharpur and announced himself. But Pundlik had no time for Him because he was busy attending to his parents. He threw a brick and asked Lord Vishnu, who had appeared in a human form as Vithal, to stand on it and wait. So, Vithal has been standing ever since on the brick, with his arms akimbo, waiting for Pundlik to find time for Him!

Both the dutiful son and the God, who has been waiting patiently for several millennia for the day when the son will find time for Him have been the subjects of devotional poetry in Maharashtra for hundreds of years. The compositions, in the language of the common man, are sung by one and all - be it a farmer or a housewife. The emphasis of all the saint-poets has been the unity of mankind and the equality of all men and women. No wonder then that they are popular among all classes. The educated read Gyaneshwari, the treatise of the BHAGWAD GITA by Sant Gyaneshwar, while the unlettered recite the compositions of Sant Tukaram and women sing the compositions of poetess Mukta Bai. For the people, Vithal is an object of veneration. They come to the place as often as they can, particularly during the monsoons when the gods are believed to descend here for rest. Though all means of transport are utilised for visiting the shrine, the most common way of making the pilgrimage is on foot. From the countryside the pilgrims or warkaris as they are called, form groups known as dindis and head for Pandharpur, carrying flags and festoons and singing devotional songs. The pilgrims come from all classes of society. The rich and the poor, the educated and the unlettered all go there in search of inner peace. Not only that, devotion to Vithal also transcends the barriers of faith as people belonging to other religions are also found among the dindis.

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