Sri Mayureshwar Mandir – Moragaon

 

Sri Mayureshwar Mandir is located in Moragaon in Pune district of Maharashtra state.

It is one of the Astha Vinayaka Temples

Mayureshwar is the presiding deity of this temple, who is an incarnation of Lord Vinayaka. The orange-colored idol of Lord Ganesha is seen in a sitting posture. The east-facing idol has three eyes with the trunk folded towards the left. Eyes and naval are adorned with diamonds. Nagaraj, the Snake king is seen on the crown of the idol. The idol of Lord Ganesha is flanked by brass idols of Siddhi and Buddhi. 

A Rat and a peacock are seen in front of the idol. It is said that originally, a small idol of sand, iron, and diamonds was enshrined by Lord Brahma. Pandavas enclosed this idol in a copper sheet and placed it behind the idol which is now worshiped. The idol of 'Nagnabhairava' seen on the left side of the main deity is worshipped first.

Two Deepmalas can be found in the courtyard, and in front of the temple is a 6-foot mouse. On the outside of the temple gates, there is a huge Nandi structure facing the Lord.

There are 23 separate idols in the area surrounding the assembly hall, each representing a different aspect of Lord Ganesha.

The temple has four gates, each facing a cardinal direction and with an image of Ganesha, each gate depicting him in the form that he appeared in each of the four ages (yugas). Each of the four Ganesha forms is associated with a Purusartha (aim of life) and accompanied by two attendants. The image of Ballalvinayaka at the eastern gate, accompanied by god Rama (Vishnu's Avatar) and his consort Sita, symbolizes Dharma (righteousness, duty, ethics) and embodies the preserver-god Vishnu. Vignesha at the southern gate, flanked by Ganesha's parents Shiva and Parvati (Uma) symbolizes Artha (wealth and fame) and embodies the dissolver – Shiva. Chintamani at the western gate – representing Kama (desire, love, and sensual pleasure) – is attended by the love god Kamadeva and his wife Rati and embodies the formless (asat) Brahman. Mahaganapati at the northern gate standing for moksha (salvation), is accompanied by Varaha (Vishnu's boar avatar) and his wife the earth goddess Mahi embodies Sat Brahman.

The garbhagriha (sanctum sanctorum) has a central image of Ganesha as Mayureshwar or Moreshwar, facing the North. The Ganesha image is depicted in a seated posture with its trunk turning to the left, four arms, and three eyes. He holds a noose (pasha) and elephant goad (ankusha) in his upper hands, while his lower right rests on his knee and the other one holds a medaka (a sweet). The navel and the eyes are embedded with diamonds. A cobra hood raised over Ganesha's head, shelters the Lord. The image is actually smaller than it looks as it is smeared with a thick level of saffron-colored Sindoor (vermillion), which peels off once every century. It last fell off in 1882, and before that in 1788. Ganesha is flanked by idols of his consorts Riddhi and Siddhi sometimes called Siddhi and Buddhi. These idols are made of an alloy of five metals or of brass. The deities are covered with crafted silver and gold. Like all Ashtavinayaka shrines, the central Ganesha image is believed to be svayambhu (self-existent), naturally occurring in the form of an elephant-faced stone. In front of the central image, the vahanas of Ganesha – the mouse and the peacock are placed. To the left outside the garbhagriha is an image of Nagna-Bhairava.

The space around the sabha-mandapa (assembly hall) has 23 different idols depicting various forms of Ganesha. The Ganesha idols include the images of the eight avatars of Ganesha described in Mudgala Purana – Vakratunda, Mahodara, Ekadanta, Vikata, Dhrumavarna, Vighnaraja and Lambodara – positioned in eight corners of the temple. One more noteworthy Ganesha idol is "Sakshi Vinayaka" who is "a witness" to the prayers offered to Mayureshwara. Traditionally, first "Nagna Bhairava" is prayed then Mayureshwara, and then Sakshi Vinayaka. This is the perfect sequence for prayers offered here. There are other images of Hindu deities around the sabha-mandapa including those of the regional deities Vithoba and Khandoba, personifications of Shukla Chaturthi and Krishna Chaturthi, and the Ganapatya saint Morya Gosavi. On the circumambulation path (Pradakshina path), there is a Tarati tree (a thorny shrub) near the Kalpavrushka Mandir. The tree is believed to be the spot where Morya Gosavi underwent penance. There are two sacred trees in the courtyard, Shami and Bilva.

According to the legends, Ganesha was born in Treta Yug to kill Sindhu, the son of Chakrapani, the king of Mithila, and his wife, Ugra. It is said that Ugra conceived due to the power of a solar mantra, but was unable to bear the extreme heat radiating from the fetus, so she abandoned it in the ocean. Soon, a son was born out of the abandoned fetus and returned to his grieving father, who named him Sindhu. When Sindhu was born, he got a boon from the sun god in the form of an ‘Amrit’ (nectar), which he swallowed immediately and that is how he got the power to terrorize people. People were scared of his deadly acts and decided to take the help of Lord Ganesha, who then cut open Sindhu's body, emptying the amrita bowl and thus killing the demon.

This temple was built in the 14^th Century.

On Ganesh Jayanti (Magha Shukla Chaturthi) and Ganesh Chaturthi (Bhadrapada Shukla Chaturthi) festivals on the 4th lunar day in the bright fortnight of the Hindu months Magha and Bhadrapada respectively, devotees flock to the Mayureshwar temple in large numbers. On both occasions, a procession of pilgrims arrives from Mangalmurti temple, Chinchwad (established by Morya Gosavi) with the palkhi (palanquin) of Ganesha. The Ganesha Chaturthi celebrations last for more than a month, until Ashvin Shukla (the 10th lunar day in the bright fortnight of the Hindu month Ashvin). Fairs and celebrations also occur on Vijayadashami, Shukla Chaturthi (the 4th lunar day in the bright fortnight of a Hindu month), Krishna Chaturthi (the 4th lunar day in the dark fortnight of a Hindu month), and Somavati Amavasya (a new moon night coinciding with a Monday).

Timings

5.00 am to 10.00 pm

7.00 am – Shodashopachar Puja

12.00 pm – Shodashopachar Puja

8.00 pm – Panchopachar Puja

7.30 pm – Samudaik Evening Aarti

10.00 pm – Shej Aarti

How to reach the Temple

75 km from Pune

17 km from Jeluri

15 km from Moragaon Railway Station

Nearby Temples

Jeluri, Khandoba Temple – 19 km

Yawat, Bhuleshwar Temple – 27 km

Theur, Shree Chintamani Vinayaka Temple – 63 km.