Shree Pundalik Mandir — Attraction in Maharashtra

At a distance of 500 m from Vitthal Rukhmini Mandir, and 3 km from Pandharpur Railway Station, Pundalik Temple is a Hindu temple located in the sacred town of Pandharpur, Maharashtra. Situated on the banks of River Chandrabhaga, it is one of the must-visit places in Pandharpur as part of the Pandharpur packages.

Bhakt Pundalik Temple is devoted to Lord Vitthal or Vithoba, generally considered a Vaishnava deity identified with the deities of Vishnu and Krishna. Sage Pundalik or Pundarik is a central figure in the legends of the Hindu God Vithoba. He is credited to have brought Vithoba to Pandharpur, where the central shrine of Vithoba stands today. Pundalik is also perceived to be the historical founder of the Varkari sect, one of the two major sects centered on the worship of Lord Vithoba. Pundalik was one of the earliest Kundalini Yoga practitioners.

Pundalik Temple in Pandharpur is a monument to the devotion of his service to his parents. According to legend, Pundalik was a devoted son who served his parents with the utmost care. Once, he was visited by Lord Vishnu, who came to bless him for his service. However, Pundalik was busy attending to his parents and asked Lord Vishnu to wait outside on a brick. Vishnu was impressed by his devotion and agreed to wait. Pundalik later came out and apologized to Vishnu for making him wait. Vishnu was pleased with his humility and asked him what he wanted as a boon. Pundalik requested Vishnu to stay on the brick and bless all his devotees who came to Pandharpur. Vishnu agreed and took the form of Vitthal, standing on the brick with his hands on his hips.

The main shrine of Pundalik Temple is a five-story building with a pyramidal gun spire, where the statue of Jaya and Vijaya flanks Lord Vitthal. There is a Shivlinga at the entrance of the temple. On the Shivlinga, there is the idol of Pundalik. It also has an attractive tower. Priests from Koli society are the worshipers of Pundalik.

There is a customary practice in the temple that devotees should do their darshan of the Lord only after bathing in the Chandrabhaga River, then do darshan of Pundalik and then only proceed to Vitthal Rukmini Temple. The festival of Mahashivratri is celebrated on a grand scale on the...

In the Bhakti tradition, there is a highly revered Saint known as Pundalik. Pundalik has come to be known as a symbol for Supreme, Unconditional Love. His heart was so open and his Love forgot no one. Pundalik’s devotion caused God to go looking for him.

Pundalik lived in Maharashtra and he was not always a Saint. His profession was that of a local goon who used to harass people. He mistreated and abused his own parents and cared little or nothing for no one, except himself. One day Pundalik met a Saint who initiated him into the path of Bhakti Yoga. Pundalik began his spiritual practice but was unable to change his evil ways. He could not still control his mind and was not able to experience any inner peace. So, he went back to his Guru, the Saint who had initiated him, and asked for further instruction.

His Guru told him to serve his parents and assured him that, in serving his parents wholeheartedly, with complete unconditional love and surrender, he would attain eternal peace. Pundalik followed the Saint’s command and began to serve his parent’s every need. He looked after them and nursed them. Through his service to his parents, Pundalik learned the art of Devotion and caused Lord Vitthal to go looking for him.

It is said that the devotee Pundalik founded Pandharpur. His father Janudeva and mother Satyavati lived in a thick forest called Dandirvan.

Pundalik was a devoted son but soon after his marriage he began to ill-treat his parents. To escape from this misery, The parents decided to go on a pilgrimage to Kashi. When Pundalik’s wife learnt about this, she also decided to go. She and her husband joined the same group of pilgrims on horseback. While the son and his wife rode on horseback, the old couple walked. Every evening when the party camped for the night, the son forced his parents to groom the horses and do other jobs. The poor parents cursed the day they decided to go on...

Pundalik (Marathi: पुंडलिक) or Pundarik is a central figure in the legends of the Hindu God Vithoba, generally considered a Vaishnavadeity identified with the deities Vishnu and Krishna. He is credited to have brought Vithoba to Pandharpur, where Vithoba's central shrine stands today. Pundalik is also perceived to be the historical founder of the Varkari sect, which is centered on the worship of Lord Vithoba.

Pundalik was one of the earliest KundaliniYoga practitioners. As He was the master of Kundalini Yoga, people used to call him "Kundalik". Later, after several years, Kundalik become Pundalik. He symbolised Kundalini energy in the form of Lord Vitthal also knows as Lord Pandurang after his name Pundalik. Pandharpur's Vitthal was not an incarnation of Lord Vishnu or Lord Krishna but the symbol of the Kundalini Energy, although spiritually, the same energy dwells in all.

The brick on which Lord Vitthal is standing is the basic chakra of Kundalini energy known as Muladhara Chakra. Both hands, like bows, represents Ida and Pingla nadis which cross over at the central body of Sushumna or Brahma nadi.Body represents purusha means Vishnu or Krishna and the tilaka or the mark on the head represents Ajna Chakra or guru chakra or third-eye chakra is the subtle center of energy, believed to be located between the eyebrows, located behind it along the subtle (non-physical) spinal column, as said by Lord Krishna in Bhagavad Gita.

Many Kings and other noblemen were devotees of Pundalik and they built the famous Vitthal temple at Pandharpur. The age old practice of the Kundalini Yoga converted the shrine into a holy place and truth seekers from all over the world were directed here by the divine to activate and raise their Kundalini energy by the very natural process of Bhakti, the highest form of Love...