Person · avadhuta saint
Gajānan Mahārāj
Also known as Gajanan Maharaj, Shegaon Gajanan Maharaj, Gajanan Maharaj of Shegaon
An avadhūta who first appears in the record at Shegaon in February 1878, eating food thrown out after a feast, and about whose origin, name, caste and age nothing is known. He lived in Vidarbha until 1910. The samādhi at Shegaon is now one of Maharashtra's largest pilgrim destinations.
- Date
- appeared 1878 – died 1910
- Function
- Religious institution & practice
- Tradition
- Gajānan Vijay; devotee accounts
- Confidence
- Established / referenced
Worth knowing
The trust that runs Shegaon is cited across India as a model: lodging at nominal cost, no paid darshan queue, and a hospital and engineering college run from the offerings. An institution that will not sell priority is rare enough in Indian temple administration to be the thing people remark on.
Connections (1)
- Samadhi atShegaon
Gajānan Mahārāj took samādhi at Shegaon in 1910, and the shrine built over it now draws several million a year to a small Buldhana town. Nothing is known of his origins; the Gajānan Vijay begins with his arrival in 1878 already grown, which leaves the biography starting in the middle.
Sources
Wikipedia, “Gajanan Maharaj”. The subject’s own writings where they survive, and the standard biographical literature.
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