Bageshwar Dham Popularity: Bageshwar Dham is being discussed across the country for the last one week. The same name has been used in the media as well. People want to know about the miracle of Dhirendra Shastri of Bageshwar Dham. Today we will talk about what and how is Bageshwar Dham, why the Baba here has become so popular.
After walking about fifteen kilometers on the four lane road from Chhatarpur towards Khajuraho, a road cuts on the left hand, which leads to Gada village. From the boards and hoardings on the way, it can be guessed that this way is not common. E-rickshaws and tempos standing at the crossroads make noises to take them to Bageshwar Dham Sarkar for ten to twenty rupees.
Bageshwar Dham is situated on the hill, two temples are built
After walking two kilometers on a road full of ups and downs and potholes, Gada village begins, where there is a camp of devotees and sad people these days, but we will not talk about Gada village now. First we will talk about Bageshwar Dham. There is a small hill on the other end of Gada village with a population of thousand people and Bageshwar Dham is located here. After climbing the hill, you will see two small temples. One of these is Lord Bageshwar Maharaj i.e. the small Madhiya of Shankar ji. It is so small that a man can hardly go even bending down to touch the Shivling.
Story behind the name of Bageshwar Dham
Sevadar Dipendra here tells that this is an ancient temple of Chandel period. But why it is called Bageshwar, he told that since there was a dense forest around this mountain in which tigers used to roam, it was called Bageshwar which is now being called Bageshwar. The new temple of Balaji Dham Hanuman Ji Maharaj has been built near this temple of Mahadev. Acharya Dhirendra Shastri of Bageshwar Dham Maharaj is a worshiper of this Balaji and says that he has got success in him and on his strength he tells people’s past and future.
People were found screaming and hugging trees
There is a big tree planted adjacent to Balaji’s temple, clinging to which people keep on shouting. Dipendra says about this that these are people suffering from evil spirits who come here on Tuesdays and Saturdays. This tree has positive energy and by touching it or clinging to it, the negative energy on the mind of these people goes away. Here we also saw some people who were chained and were rolling on the ground. Barricade has been put up around these three places and interestingly, black, red and yellow bundles are tied on the barricade itself to keep distance from the temple. There are different requests or wishes of the devotees in these bundles. In black, to get rid of evil spirits, in yellow, to pray for marriage, and in red, to apply for normal work.
Unbreakable faith in people, whatever you ask for, you will get
The family of Shailendra Singh, who came from Gumla district of Jharkhand, was tying a coconut in a red cloth and tying it to the barricade. We asked what are you doing, then smilingly said that you are applying in the court of Balaji Maharaj. asked for something. We asked who told us to do this, then we told that everyone is doing it, so we are also doing it. Trust that you will get what you asked for. Yes, so many people have got it, so we will also get it. Most of the people coming here are the ones who are coming after hearing what they have heard.
Dhirendra Shastri meets in the community building
After visiting these two small temples, we come down, then the place of Acharya Dhirendra Shastri is built there where he lives and meets the public. Just below the hill, this two-storey building is the community hall of the village panchayat, in which Dhirendra has made a place for the convenience of the people. People come to this complex from one side and leave after having darshan from the other side. With the help of token system, Dhirendra Shastri also meets those whom he wants to meet by giving time. After listening to the problems of the people coming, they are called on the muscle. Peshi does not mean coming to the court, but five or ten times to the temple built on the hill in front. This is where the hearing takes place after the application is made. People believe that after seeing Peshi and Balaji, their sorrows and pains will go away.
Dhirendra Shastri’s court grew like this
Where Dhirendra sits, his grandfather Sanyasi Baba’s sitting place is at the back side. When asked how Dhirendra Shastri, who used to live in a very simple way, came to be known as Bageshwar Dham Sarkar, his friend Rinki Singh says that there was priestly work in his family. His grandfather also used to do the same work i.e. the work of telling past future by writing something on the paper. After the minor priesthood of the initial days, Dhirendra started doing Ramkatha. They used to keep what they got from the stories in the nearby villages. Meanwhile, due to some alleged achievements, the things told by him started coming true, then his court kept getting bigger.
Corona period and YouTube made it popular across the country
Whatever was left unturned by the Corona period and the promotion of social media. People listened to a lot of stories while sitting at home, watched live broadcasts and YouTube took them across the country. What was it then that Maharaj’s typical Bundeli dialect, his boyishness, his unwavering faith in his Balaji, made him very popular in the last two years. A fair is held in Gada village every Tuesday and Saturday. Dhirendra Shastri’s Ram Katha has full bookings for the next two years. A TV channel broadcasts his stories uninterruptedly. Dhirendra believes that what he does is not a miracle, it is just the grace of Hanuman Ji Maharaj.
(The story of Baba’s village and the people of the village in the sequel)
Read also