Shani Shingnapur Temple
Shani Shignapur is a village located in Ahmednagar District of Maharashtra. It is about 35 km from Ahmednagar.
The presiding deity of Shinganapur, Sri Shaneshwara or Lord Shanidev- the personification of the planet Saturn is worshipped with utmost reverence and devotion by multitudes of people from all over the world. The spectacle of the deity in black stone is overwhelming. A unique aspect of this place is, that no temple structure houses the Shanidev. There is only a simple platform on which stands the swayambhu idol, in black stone.
Shani Shingnapur Temple
Unlike other pilgrimage centres, devotees here can perform puja or abhishek or other religious rituals themselves. One of the unique aspects of the village Shiganapur is that houses here have no door- frames or locks on them for safety. They are in fact not needed. The people here believe that it is the benediction of the god that no crime ever occurs in this village.
Shani Shingnapur Temple
Here are five things you may not know about the temple and the village it is situated in:-
Shani Shingnapur village
1) – Shani Shingnapur is the name of a village in Nevasa taluka in Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra; the village is known for its popular temple of Lord Shani – Shri Shaneshwar Devasthan Shanishingnapur – the Hindu god associated with the planet Saturn.
A village where houses do not have doors, locks
2)- Shani Shingnapur is globally known as the only village where houses do not have doors and locks, and the village remains theft-free. Even the nationalised UCO Bank’s branch in the village does not have locks on its doors. Belief has it that thieves cannot steal or burgle in the village which is protected by Lord Shani, and misfortune and divine punishment would befall anyone who attempts to steal.
Temple sans walls or roof
3) – The unique open temple has no walls or roof; a self-emerged (svayambhu) five-foot-high black stone stands on a platform and is worshipped as Lord Shanidev.
World-famous Shanidev temple
4) – The temple platform stands in the centre of the village, also known as Sonai and attracts millions of tourists and devotees from across the country and abroad.
Women not allowed ***
5) – Women devotees are not allowed to worship at this temple. The Shani Shignapur temple follows an old practice of not allowing women to enter the core shrine area claiming women to be impure. It is an ancient tradition that women are debarred from climbing up the temple steps to pour oil and offer prayers to Shanidev.
*** Since 2011, women had been allowed to enter the Shani Shingnapur temple though they were not allowed into the sanctum sanctorum. In April 2016, a major victory for women rights activists, the Shani Shingnapur temple trust in Maharashtra decided to allow women into the sanctum sanctorum, reversing a centuries-old ban