Tourism

Siddhagiri Museum:

As Swamiji took up the mantle as the Mathadhipati, his foremost mission was to build the hospital with ultra-modern health care facilities for the poorer section of the society. Raising the funds for this noble task was an uphill task and Swamiji accordingly came up with an ingenious idea of building a museum that would suffice to meet the financial requirements of the upcoming health care facility. Consequently, Siddhagiri Museum was established in a view of conserving the age-old traditions of Indian villages in 2007. Today, the museum is ranked as one of the top cultural institutions of Asia with a daily footfall of over 5,000 visitors. The revenue generated here is used for free and subsidized treatment of Siddhagiri Hospital’s economically backward and needy patients.

The biggest attraction of the Siddhagiri Matha is the Siddhagiri Museum. It is both a closed and an open-air museum which depicts village life that was a hundred or two hundred years ago. For more than a decade now, Siddhagiri Museum has proved to be the most popular tourist attraction of the State of Maharashtra. People from across the country visit this closed and open-air space and connect with their cultural roots.

Today, much of our enriched history is being erased or adulterated. The present young generation is daily distancing itself from the traditions of this land. Basic model of living which was 'village' has been losing ground. The village gave respect to everyone in the sense that every profession and every individual was respected. Each community in the village was allocated with certain roles and responsibilities and the whole community life was sufficient unto each other. The museum showcases the model of self-sufficient Indian village and its manifold demographic aspects. The museum is first of its kind attempt in India which preserves the convention of 'Balutedari', an economic yet socio-cultural model of living.There were 12 kinds 'Balutedar' (communities identified through their professions) and 18 kinds of 'Alutedar' (equipment providers). The museum throws light on the co-life of these 'Balutedar' and Alutedar'.

The first phase of the museum spans over 7 acres of area with almost 300 main scenes and around 3000 statues. Several subtle village lifestyles are taken into consideration. There is a unique combination of expression, accuracy and liveliness in the whole village. Each sculpture has a multidimensional effect and lifestyle theme. Swamiji personally oversaw the construction of every statue, the creation of every visual story.