01Four hills and one Lord
The temple sits at the foot of four hills named Harihareshwar, Brahmadri, Pushpadri and Harshinachal. Inside, the lingas of Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh are worshipped with Parvati, so that Hari and Hara are honoured together and the place is named for both. Pilgrims first take darshan of Kal Bhairav in his own shrine, then of Harihareshwar. The pradakshina path leaves the temple and goes down to the shore, along the rocks carved by the waves, past a shallow tank in the stone called the Vishnupad, and back up; it can only be walked at low tide.
02The Peshwas’ deity
The Bhat family of Shrivardhan, a few kilometres up the coast, rose to be the Peshwas of the Maratha state under Balaji Vishwanath in 1713, and Harihareshwar was their kuldaivat. The Peshwas endowed and enlarged the temple, and Peshwa-era bells and lamp towers still stand there. The village is a quiet beach town now, and Konkan families come here for Shravan and Mahashivaratri.
The life of this place
- 1713Balaji Vishwanath of Shrivardhan becomes Peshwa; the family’s deity, Harihareshwar, gains royal patronage.
About 200 km south of Mumbai via Mangaon, or by ferry across the Savitri from Bagmandla. Walk the rock pradakshina only at low tide.
