West India · Maharashtra
Pandharpur, Maharashtra
Sources: wikimedia
Before you go
Heart of the Varkari tradition; the Ashadhi Ekadashi Wari (June-July) brings hundreds of thousands of walking pilgrims -- extraordinary to witness, but expect the town to be at capacity.
About Pandharpur
- Riverside
Where it is
Pandharpur is a town in Solapur district of Maharashtra, on the Bhima river, known here as the Chandrabhaga, in the open Deccan plateau country west of Solapur city.
History
Inscriptions record a shrine to Vithoba here by the late 12th century, and a temple was built on the site in the 13th century. The poet-saints Dnyaneshwar and Namdev made Pandharpur the heart of the Varkari devotional movement, which later saints such as Eknath and Tukaram carried on, and much of the town was rebuilt under Maratha patrons in the 18th century.
People
Pandharpur is a Marathi-speaking town whose life turns around the temple and the pilgrim calendar. Varkari pilgrims, wearing tulsi-bead necklaces and carrying saffron flags, walk in groups called dindis singing abhangas to cymbals and drums, and the Ashadhi and Kartiki Ekadashi fairs are its great gatherings.
Known for
- The Vitthal-Rukmini temple
- The Ashadhi Ekadashi Wari from Alandi and Dehu
- The ghats of the Chandrabhaga
- Abhangas of the Varkari poet-saints
Did you know?
The Wari processions carrying the padukas of Dnyaneshwar from Alandi and of Tukaram from Dehu take about three weeks to reach Pandharpur on foot for Ashadhi Ekadashi.
Shrines and sites
- Shri Vitthal Rukmini Temple
- Chandrabhaga river ghats
- Pundalik Temple
- ISKCON Pandharpur
Traditions
- Hindu
We haven't written a guide for this place yet — you can still plan a trip here.