Shriram Temple of Kargani

Kargani is a village in Atpadi tahasil of Sangli district of Maharashtra. Here is a very beautiful temple of lord Shriram. There are idols of Shriram, Sita, Laxman and Hanuman inside the temple. There is a Shivlinga also in the temple. According to the folktale, lord Shreerama came here and the sword of Laxman felt from his hand here. Consequently the  Shivlinga appeared. Then Shreeram worshiped this Shivlinga.
Very beautiful design has been inscribed on the walls of the temple. The finishing of the stone  pillars is so smooth that you can see the mirror images of your fingers inside the black stone!!!.
I love the village because this is my birthplace. Here are some of the pics of the temple, you may like.

Shreeram Temple of Kargani

Design inscrideb on the walls of the temple

Design inscribed on the walls of the temple.

Shivneri : Shivaji Maharaj's Birthplace

Fort Shivneri, as seen from Junnar

Shivaji is known as the ideal king in the world. The great king Shivaji was born on this fort.  It is situated near Naneghat and in the valley of river Kukadi (Kusumavati). It is surrounded by the robust forts like Hadsar, Chavand, Jeevdhangad etc.  

Caves and water reservoir in the way to Shivneri via sakhali route.

There is temple of Hindu goddess Shivai. The name Shivaji was derived from the name of goddess Shivai. 
The history of this fort dates back to Satvahana era. After that it was under Yadava rule till it was captured by Malik Uttujar 1n 1443. Then it was under Mughal rule. In 1650 sixty rebel members, all from Koli  community were slaughtered on this fort. The place where the slaughter was carried out is still on the fort and is known as Koli Chauthara.

Sakhali Route to the fort.

   The main points on the fort are seven gates(Mahadarwaja), Ganga - Jamuna  twin water reservoir, Godawn (Ambarkhana),  Idgah, Badam  lake and the statue of Shvaji Maharaj, Jijabai mother of king Shivaji, birth place of King Shivaji.

How to go?
Junnar is the base station for Shivneri. Above photograph has been taken from Junnar. You have to go to Junnar so as to visit the fort.
From Pune: Pune--> Narayangaon ---> Junnar.
The distance between Pune and Junnar is about 103 km. The fort is about 2km from Junnar. You can trek to top of the fort by Sakhali route or have a vehicle to drop you at the main entrance.

Birth Place of king Shivaji

Birth place of king Shivaji

Ruins of the buildings

Badam lake

Place of Kadelot. This is the place from
where offenders were thrown down in the
valley as punishment.

One of the gate of fort

Fortification of Shivneri

Temple of goddess Shivai 

Kulup Gate

Mena Gate

Ganesh Gate

Sajjangad : The fort of good people

  

            Saints have contrbuted a lot in creation of Swaraj, and Sajjangad is the witness of one of the devotions. Sajjangad is the holy place where Samarth Ramdas used to live. The tomb of Samarth Ramdas increases the importance of the place.

The fort was formly known as Parali. ‘Ashwalayangad’, ‘Navarasatara’ was another name of the fort in ancient time.  In Marathi ‘Sajjan’  means good people and ‘gad’  means fort, so in Marathi Sajjangad means ‘Fort of good people’. It was under Aurngzeib's rule for some time. Chhatrapati Sambhaji (son of King Shivaji) had spent some time here.

        Sajjangad  is situated in Satara district of Maharashtra. It is about 10-12 km from Satara, and one day trip to this fort from Satara can be arranged. You can reach very close to the fort through a vehicle, public transport is also available. There are two entrances (Mahadarwaja). There are two water 

reservoirs near temple of godess Aanglai.  It is said that, the idol of godessa Aanglai was found in the river Krishna near Angapur, a nearby village. There is a temple of god Ram on the fort.

These are the gates (Mahadarwajas) to the fort. Upper one if Shree Samarth Gate, named in the memory of Samarth Ramdas. Lower one is Chhatrapati Shivaji Gate, named in memory of King Shivaji.

This is drinking water reservoir. This is in use since ancient time. Today also people on the fort use this water for drinking.

The residence of Samarth Ramdas contains some artifacts that were dedicated to Samarth Ramdas by King Shivaji. These include the bed, some vessles etc.

The above picture shows the temple of god Ram. There is tomb of Saint Samarth Ramdas. Special thing about this temple is that, there is an idol of god Ganesh behind the Hanuman idol. The Hanuman idol is before the idol of god Ram. This arrangement is never seen anywhere.

This is the western side of the fort. The temple in above view is Dhabyacha Maruti temple. It is temple of  god Hanuman.. The road visible in above picture heads to Thosegar which is famous for waterfalls.

      Other interesting places on the fort are 'Dhabyacha Maruti', 'Brahmapisa temple', 'Ghodale lake', a mosque, 'Sonale lake' and 'Ramghal  buruj (a bastion).