Credit: Special Arrangement
A man from the taluk has won accolades for his act of carrying his 102-year-old mother on his shoulders for the 220-km Pandharpur pilgrimage, fulfilling her life-long wish.
Sadashiv Bane from Kempatti village in Raibag taluk has been described as a modern-day Shravankumar, a character from the epics who carried his blind parents on a pilgrimage on a yoke and baskets placed on his shoulders.
Bane carried his mother Satyavva on his shoulders, braving the rains, and trekked the 220 km distance on foot to ensure that she has a glimpse of Lord Vithal, the presiding deity at Pandharpur in neighbouring Maharashtra. Bane is a devotee of Lord Vithal and has been participating in the ‘dindi yatra’ for the past 15 years.
He and his mother are part of a team from Kempatti, undertaking the ‘dindi yatra’ to Lord Vithal’s abode.
“Mother is god and we need to fulfil her aspirations. Due to the blessings of Lord Vithal, I did not face
any inconvenience while carrying her on my shoulders,” the devoted son said.
Satyavva said her life’s ‘last wish’ had been fulfilled by her son. “If there is rebirth, I want to be his mother again,” she added.