Padma Purana and Skanda Purana briefly describe why the Lord traveled to Pandharpur and why he stays there in this way. Once, Srimati Radharani, the wife of Lord Krishna in the village of Vrindavana, visited Dvaraka, where Lord Krishna lived as a king. At that time, Rukmini Devi, Lord Krishna’s queen, noticed that Krishna was dealing more intimately with Radharani than he had ever done with her. Upset, he went to the Dindirvana Forest near Pandharpur.
Lord Krishna followed Rukmini to apologize, but her apology left her indifferent. Thus, the Lord traveled to Pandharpur to visit one of his devotees, Bhakta Pundarika, now popularly known in Maharashtra as the Pundalika.
Lokanath Maharaj mentions in his book that Pundalik at a young age never met the needs of his father Janudev and his mother Satyavati. Janudev and Satyavati were great devotees of Lord Krishna. When Pundalik got married, he started abusing them even more. Tired of their tyranny, the parents decided to go to Kashi / Varanasi. It is said that those who die in Kashi get salvation and liberation from the cycle of birth and death. It is still believed today and many people travel there when they feel that their end is near. Upon hearing his parents’ plans, Pundalik and his wife decided to join them. His betrayal continued so much that he had his elderly parents walk during the trip while he and his young wife rode horses.
On the way, they found the hermitage of the great sage, Kakkut Muni. Tired of the long trip, the group decided to spend a few days there. That night, Pundalik stayed awake and witnessed something extraordinary. Just before dawn, he saw a group of beautiful young women dressed in dirty clothes, entering the hermitage of the sage. They did tasks such as cleaning the floor, fetching water and washing the Sage’s clothes. After that, they went to the prayer room. When they left, their clothes were spotlessly clean and disappeared. Pundalik was not alarmed to see this, but he felt at peace. He kept thinking about the incident the next day. He wanted to be sure he was not dreaming, but had witnessed such a glorious incident. Then he stayed awake again. But this time, he approached and decided to talk to the women.
“Who are you?” “We are the Ganga, the Yamuna and all the sacred rivers of India, people bathe and bathe in us to cleanse their sins, the impurity of their mind, body and souls dirty us, that’s why we see our clothes so dirty. ” Pundalik was amazed at his answer. “But you are the greatest sinner of all because of the way you treat your devoted parents.”
It was a brutal awakening for Pundalik. He realized his mistake and changed his habits. He served his parents well and took care of all his needs and comfort. Seeing the sincere devotion and service of Pundalik to his parents, Lord Krishna was extremely happy.
When the Lord arrived at the Asrama of Pundarika, Pundarika served his elderly parents. So Pundarika gave the Lord a brick siege and asked the Lord to wait. The Lord did what he was told. He stood up, his lotus hands on his hips, waiting for Pundarika to come back.
Meanwhile, Rukmini, having forgotten his anguish, came from Dindirvana and joined him. Both stayed in Pandharpur in the form of Deity. To this day, the Lord is in the same brick, but now He is waiting for all His devotees to come and see him.
Meanwhile, the Lord seems to say to the devotees, “Do not be afraid.” For those who have given themselves to Me, I have reduced the depth of the ocean of material suffering. Look, it’s just as deep. ”
It indicates the superficiality of the ocean by placing his hands on his hips.
Elegantly dressed in yellow and other colors, Lord Vitthala has around his neck a garland of vaijayanti and tulasi, whose aroma permeates the darsana room and the surroundings. His right hand holds a lotus flower and has left a conch shell. In his chest, he bears the mark of Bhrgu’s foot. His ears are adorned with shark-shaped earrings and on his forehead, under his crown, a large brand of tilaka. The smile of the Lord irresistibly enchants his faithful. Each pilgrim who approaches him has a glimpse of his smiling and peaceful face and considers it to be the perfection of life.
Pundalika Temple:
The Pundalika Temple is about half a kilometer from Vitthala Temple. This temple marks the place where Pundalika, the devotee of the Lord, spent the last years of his life and is also the place of his Samadhi. It is on the bank of the Chandrabhaga River.
