Dagdu Seth Ganapati Temple - Pune

Site Name: Dagdu Seth Ganapati Temple
Site Type: Hindu temple
Location:  Pune, Maharashtra state, India
Highlights: One of the most popular temples of Pune; probably the richest temple of the city
Nearest Railway Station: Pune
Nearest Airport: Pune
How to reach: Well connected by road, rail and air
Hotel: A lot of options across the entire Pune city
Restaurants: Varieties of options especially delicious Maharashtrian food across the entire city

Pune is the second largest city of Maharashtra state of India. The city which exists since the 9th century CE was the first capital of the great Maratha Emperor Chhatrapati Shivaji. Pune is also considered as the cultural capital of Maharashtra. The city has many attractions and most of them are religious sites. Let us explore an important temple of the city, Dagdu Seth Ganapati temple, in this article.

Highlights:

  •  God – Ganesha
  • One of the most popular temples of Pune
  • Probably the richest temple of Pune
  • Tilak got the idea of celebrating Ganesha festival in this temple; it has spread to all over India and became a famous festival nowadays.

History:

Dagdu Seth Ganapati Temple, which is located near Shaniwar Wada monument in Pune, is one of the most popular temples of Pune. It is visited by millions of people everyday.

Dagdu Seth Halwai was a rich sweetmeat seller in Pune. He lost his son in a plague epidemic. Both he and his wife sank into depression. To shun away this grief, his Guru Madhavanath Maharaj advised him to construct a temple for Ganapati. Thus, he built this temple in 1893 CE. Lokmanya Tilak, the famous Indian freedom fighter, was a good friend of Dagdu Seth. He got the idea of celebrating public Ganesha festival in this temple. Later, he started the first Ganesha utsav from Vinchurkar Wada. It has become a major festival all over the country now.

Temple Layout:

The east facing temple located on the busy road of Pune is constructed in such a way that the devotees can get darshan of Lord Ganesha even from outside the temple.

The 7.5 feet high idol of Lord Ganesha is extremely beautiful. He is found in the sitting posture and has four arms. The temple is one of the richest temples of Pune; hence, Lord Ganesha is always found to be decorated with gold and silver ornaments.

The temple also houses a small shrine for Lord Siddeshwara (Shiva Linga) with a tortoise and Nandi facing him.

The colorful vimana of the main shrine is very tall and very attractive.

Happy travelling.


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