Ashtavinayaka Temples And Route Map

Temple Locations

1. Mayureshwar Temple -  Morgaon, Pune district
2. Siddhivinayak Temple -  Siddhatek, Ahmednagar district
3. Ballaleshwar Temple -  Pali, Raigad district
4. Varadavinayak Temple - Mahad, Raigad district
5. Chintamani Temple - Theur, Pune district
6. Girijatmaj Temple - Lenyadri, Pune district
7. Vighneshwar Temple - Ozar, Pune district
8. Mahaganapati Temple - Ranjangaon, Pune district

Ashtavinayaka literally means "eight Ganeshas" in Sanskrit. Ganesh is the Hinduism/Hindu deity of unity, prosperity, learning, and removing obstacles. The term refers to eight Ganeshas. Ashtavinayaka yatra trip refers to a pilgrimage to the eight Hindu temples in Maharashtra state of India that house eight distinct idols of Ganesh, in a pre-ascertained sequence. The Ashtavinayak yatra or pilgrimage covers the eight ancient holy temples of Ganesh which are situated around Pune. Each of these temples has its own individual legend and history, as distinct from each other as the murtis in each temple. The form of each murti of Ganesh and His trunk are distinct from one another. However, there are other temples of eight Ganesh in various other parts of Maharashtra; the ones around Pune are more well known than the former.

It is believed that to complete the Ashtavinayak Yatra, one must revisit the first Ganpati after visiting all the eight Ganpatis

Traditionally, Moreshwar of Moregaon is the first temple visited by the pilgrims. The temples visited in descending order are Siddhatek, Pali, Mahad, Thevur, Lenyandri, Ozar, Ranjangaon. The pilgrimage is concluded with a second visit to Moregaon.

All these murtis are called Swayambhu effigies, or the self-existent in Sanskrit. This is to indicate that they were not sculpted but they were found formed by nature.