Dwarkamai Shirdi — Where Sai Baba Lived for 60 Years

What Does the Name Dwarkamai Mean?

When a young, beardless fakir arrived in Shirdi around 1858 and began living in an old, half-broken village mosque, the local people did not know what to call him or his lodging. Years later, after the fakir had become a beloved figure across western India, devotees gave the mosque the name Dwarkamai — literally “Dwarka, the Mother”. Dwarka, the city of Lord Krishna, suggested compassion and care; mai meaning mother gave the place its protective, maternal quality. Sai Baba himself used the name with affection.

The naming is striking because Dwarkamai is technically a mosque (masjid), and Sai Baba’s own background was always left deliberately ambiguous — he spoke and lived in a way that drew Hindus and Muslims equally close. Devotees of every tradition take off their shoes at the same doorstep, climb the same stone steps, and stand in front of the same dhuni fire.

The Mosque Before Sai Baba

The structure that became Dwarkamai was originally an old, broken-down village mosque on the outskirts of Shirdi, used occasionally by Muslim travellers passing through. By the mid-1800s it had fallen into disrepair — the roof was unsound, the walls were cracked, and most villagers avoided it. According to the Sai Satcharitra, when Sai Baba returned to Shirdi for the second time as a young man, he chose this neglected building as his shelter and began to live there.

The original mosque had two main parts — a raised inner room with a stone floor where Baba slept and meditated, and an outer courtyard where he lit his dhuni and received visitors. A wooden post (the kambli or central pillar) supported the roof. Sai Baba sat against this post for decades, leaning on it as he gave darshan, listened to grievances and dispensed udi to the sick.

The Eternal Dhuni

A fire that has not gone out

The single most famous feature of Dwarkamai is its dhuni — the sacred fire that Sai Baba lit when he settled into the mosque and which has been kept burning continuously ever since. As of today the dhuni has been alight for around 170 years without break, making it one of the longest-burning sacred fires on Earth.

Sai Baba used the dhuni in his daily routine. He cooked simple meals on it — a kind of communal khichdi or roti that he distributed to anyone who came hungry. He spoke about the dhuni as the fire that burns away ego and karma. From the ashes of the dhuni he scooped out Udi (sacred ash, never called Bhasm by his devotees), which he gave to those who came seeking healing for body or mind. Many of the most famous miracles recorded in the Sai Satcharitra centre around this udi.

Today the dhuni continues to burn at the same spot. The Sansthan Trust ensures it is fed and tended. Udi from the dhuni is collected, packed and given out as prasad to devotees who visit. Holding a small pouch of warm udi from the same fire that Sai Baba tended is, for many devotees, the single most moving moment of their Shirdi yatra.

Sacred Objects Still Inside Dwarkamai

Walking through Dwarkamai today is like stepping into a meticulously preserved museum of Sai Baba’s everyday life. The Sansthan Trust has kept the original objects in place wherever possible.

What Sai Baba Did Inside Dwarkamai

Dwarkamai was, in the simplest terms, the centre of Sai Baba’s daily life. Devotees who visit today often spend a long time simply standing in the courtyard trying to imagine the routine that played out here over six decades.

The Chavadi Connection

One of the most charming routines of Sai Baba’s life involved Dwarkamai and the Chavadi together. On alternate nights, devotees would carry Baba in a small palanquin procession from Dwarkamai across the courtyard to the Chavadi — a small wooden structure where he slept on a specially prepared bed. The Chavadi procession is still re-enacted every Thursday night by the Trust as a beautiful living tradition. Read more in the Chavadi procession guide.

Visiting Dwarkamai Today

You can enter Dwarkamai before or after your darshan at the Samadhi Mandir — most devotees do both in the same visit. Walk up the short flight of stone steps, fold your hands at the threshold (devotees of every faith do this), and step into the courtyard. The dhuni is on your right, the seat-stone and wooden post on your left, the grinding stone further inside.

Move slowly. Stand by the dhuni for as long as the queue allows. Touch your forehead to the seat-stone if you can reach it. Collect a small packet of udi prasad from the counter on your way out — this is one of the most cherished things any devotee takes home from Shirdi.

Etiquette Inside Dwarkamai

Dwarkamai retains the feel of an old living space rather than a formal temple — and devotees who understand this give it the right kind of respect. The Trust does not enforce a strict dress code here either, but a few simple practices help maintain the atmosphere.

For broader temple etiquette, read the full Shirdi yatra rules and dress code page.

Combine Your Dwarkamai Visit With

If you are planning your trip start to finish, read the full Shirdi darshan guide, decide on a VIP darshan pass if you are time-pressed, and book your Bhakt Niwas accommodation well in advance.