Siddhagiri Gramjivan Museum (Kaneri Math) at Kaneri, Kolhapur district,

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...

, is a sculpture museum. The full name is Siddhagiri Gramjivan (Village life) Museum. It is situated at Shri Kshetra Siddhagiri Math, a campus built around the Moola-Kaadsiddheswar

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

temple.

Museum description

This museum showcases different aspects of ''Gramjivan'' (village life). ''Gram'' means ''village'' and ''jeevan'' means ''life'' in the

Marathi language Marathi (; ''Marāṭhī'', ) is an Indo-Aryan language predominantly spoken by Marathi people in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the official language of Maharashtra, and additional official language in the state of Goa. It is one of t ...

. This initiative was the dream of

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

, and was created through the vision and efforts of Siddhagiri Gurukul Foundation co. The history of self-sufficient village life in Maharshtra, before the invasion of the

Mughals The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...

, is depicted in the form of cement sculptures. Each sculpture is lifelike and represents activities performed in daily village life. There were 12 Balutedars (essentially artisan castes), and 18 Alutedars who provided equipment to carry out domestic and professional tasks. The museum is spread over , and the surrounding countryside is beautiful, with lush greenery. Every aspect of village life has been depicted in almost 80 scenes that showcase more than 300 statues.

Village scenes

The scenes of village life include: * Village priest’s abode. The first scene is the house of a highly educated village priest. He performs his duties, rites and rituals like weddings and thread ceremonies, and is tasked to find auspicious days and times for any major activity such as house-building and house-warming activities, digging wells, sowing seeds, piercing nose or ears. He earns his livelihood from '' Dakshina'' (donations) he receives. He consults the ''Panchaang'' (almanac) for finding auspicious dates. * Goldsmith at work * Ironsmith shoeing a bullock * Barber shop * Village well - villagers fetching water from the public well. * Nursing an elder family member * Grocer’s shop - a woman visiting the grocery shop with her son. The shop-keeper is weighing items in an old weighing machine. Items like jaggery, sugar, chillies, salt, wheat, and rice are stocked. The son is asking his mother to buy kites for him. * Farmer’s '' wada'' (house) * House of ''

Vaidya Vaidya (Sanskrit: ), or vaid is a Sanskrit word meaning "traditional practitioner of Ayurveda", an indigenous Indian system of alternative medicine. Senior practitioners or teachers were called ''Vaidyarāja'' ("physician-king") as a mark of respe ...

'' * Grandma stitching a ''godhadi'' (quilt) * Farmers ploughing his farm using a bullock-drawn plow * Shepherd boy with his herd of sheep * Villagers performing Bhajan and Kirtan (singing Hindu devotional songs)

Shiva temple

The museum has an old

temple on the grounds. It is related to the Inchegeri Sampradaya, to which

Nisargadatta Maharaj Nisargadatta Maharaj (born Maruti Shivrampant Kambli; 17 April 1897 – 8 September 1981) was an Indian guru of nondualism, belonging to the Inchagiri Sampradaya, a lineage of teachers from the Navnath Sampradaya and Lingayat Shaivism. ...

belongs. It is believed that a

Shivling A lingam ( sa, लिङ्ग , lit. "sign, symbol or mark"), sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva in Shaivism. It is typically the primary ''murti'' or devotional i ...

was installed by a Lingayat Priest on a beautiful hill in the 14th century. About 500 years ago, a Lingayat Priest, Shree Kadsiddheshwar Maharaj, developed and renovated it, and hence the place is now known by his name. The temple includes a -deep well, a Shiva idol, and a large

Nandi bull Nandi ( sa, नन्दि), also known as Nandikeshwara or Nandideva, is the bull vahana of the Hindu god Shiva. He is also the guardian deity of Kailash, the abode of Shiva. Almost all Shiva temples display stone-images of a seated Nandi, g ...

.Siddhagiri Gramjivan Museum (Kaneri Math)
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References

External links

Siddhagiri Museum

Shri Kshetra Siddhagiri Math

Kaneri Math

Gramjivan Museum (Kaneri Math)
{{Kolhapur district topics Museums in Maharashtra Kolhapur Wax museums in India History museums in India Inchegeri Sampradaya Tourist attractions in Kolhapur district Buildings and structures in Kolhapur Year of establishment missing