'SHANI SHIGNAPUR ' (India) - by Sreekumar

Have you heard about a place where there is no thieves and theft happening? Yes there is one place, "SHANI SHIGNAPUR".

Shani Shingnapur or Sonai is a village in the Indian state of Maharashtra, situated in Nevasa taluka in Ahmednagar, which is 90 km away from the famous "Shirdi". I visited Shirdi 4-5 times and Shani Signapur once.

Once you visit these places you will want to visit again and again, that is the magic of " Shirdi & Shani Signapur". On the way to Shirdi and Shani Mandir, there are a lot of other places of worship in Nasik, like:

1) Panchavati ( The same panchavati mentioned in Ramayan the period of Ram's Vanavasam). You can see the place where 'Maricha' the rakshasa was killed by Lord Ram

2) Place called Sita Guha - Where Sita Devi was kept under the safe hands of Lord Agni. Actually the Sita Devi stolen by Ravan was not original, but it was Maya Sita because the Devi was under the safe hands of Lord Agni. That is the actual reason Ram asked Sita Devi to perform Agni Pareeksha ( to Bring back Actual Sita Devi out and send back the Maya Sita to Agni) after saving her from Lanka.

3) Lakshman Rekha - The line drawn by Lakshman to keep Sita Devi safe from Dangerous Rakshas.

The presiding deity of Shinganapur, Sri Shaneshwara or Shanidev- the personification of the planet Saturn is worshipped with utmost reverence and devotion by multitudes of people from all over the world. The spectacle of the deity in black stone is overwhelming. A unique aspect of this place is, that no temple structure houses the Shanidev. There is only a simple platform on which stands the 'Swayambhu' idol, in black stone. Like Shabari Mala here also ladies are not allowed to enter where the Swayambhu idol is kept. Even Gents have to wear saffron coloured clothes and have a head bath in the holy water close to the temple before entering it. There is no priest to perform the pooja. The pooja is carried out in the form of offering Pradakshinams, chanting specific prayers such as Shani Gayathri and shlokas. Devotees also perform Abhishekam with water and gingelly oil. The wonderful thing is that even the vendors will not ask for money for the service, but accept whatever paid by the devotees.

Shingnapur is also famous for the fact that no house in the village has doors, only door frames. Despite this, no theft is reported in the village. Villagers never keep their valuables under lock and key. Villagers believe that the temple is a "jagrut devasthan" (lit. "alive temple"), meaning that the god here is very powerful. They believe that God Shani punishes anyone attempting theft. Devotees, pilgrims and tourists arriving in Sonai can leave their valuables in a car or bus with all the doors unlocked and not worry about anyone stealing it. The only barrier to enter a house are curtains which keep out stray animals. People believe that nobody dares to steal anything because they are punished by Shanishwara, the local deity, and the owner has always got the stolen things back – if any such thing ever happens.

- by Sreekumar (03Jun2010)