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A Sacred Sojourn: Shatrunjay, Palitana
Updated: May 02, 2025
For the very first time in our lives, we stepped out of our home state without the security of a group—just me and my sister, hearts brimming with nervous excitement. Our maiden solo yatra to the eternal Jain Tirth — Shatrunjay, Palitana — was not just a physical voyage but an inward journey of faith, self-belief, and spiritual awakening.
🚍Chapter 1: A Rocky Start with Unshakable Faith
On July 1, 2024, we set off to catch our train from Bandra at 4:45 PM. But as with every great story, our adventure started with chaos. The bus from Junnar, scheduled for 11 AM, didn’t show up till noon. We stood the entire journey—no seats, no comfort—only the winding thrills of Malshej Ghat to keep our spirits high.
Time ticked away mercilessly. At 3:15 PM, we hadn’t even reached Kalyan. With just minutes left, we
begged our rickshaw driver to race against time. Miraculously, he weaved through narrow lanes, wrong
turns, and good karma to drop us at Bandra Station at 4:40 PM — just in time. We thanked him with
Cadbury, the sweet reward for a heroic deed.
With pounding hearts and relieved souls, we boarded our first ever 2AC. Laughter filled our cozy compartment as we opened our tiffin and began our "Laughter Chef" moment. We were soon joined by fellow yatris also headed to Palitana, with whom we bonded over food and shared aspirations.
🌧️Chapter 2: Divine Showers & Dharmshala Diaries
At 4:20 AM, we reached Songadh Station, soaked in the pre-dawn chill. With no prior booking, we hunted down a dharmshala near Taleti, drenched in rain and hope. After freshening up and lunch disguised as breakfast, we dressed in our pooja clothes and set out.
Our steps first led us to the Kesar Pooja at Taleti, serene and unhurried. We climbed a short 100 steps to Babu na Derasar, completed Pooja ritual at Adinath Dada derasar, visited Jal Mandir, Samovasaran, Saraswati Mata, and performed a heartfelt pooja at Sacha Sumtinath Derasar — where they say, a prayer guarantees your return to Shatrunjay again.
Our hearts were light, our souls content. Parents, though miles away, were already filled with pride. An evening of Ghagra-Choli shopping, Chovihar dinner, and temple visits wrapped our day in divine closure.
⛰️Chapter 3: Climbing the Eternal — Shatrunjay Awaits
What is Shatrunjay?
Satrunjay Hill, located in Palitana town of Bhavnagar district, Gujarat, is one of the holiest
pilgrimage
sites for Jains in the world. It is considered the eternal shrine of Jainism.
At 5:30 AM on July 3, we reached Taleti again, performed Chaitya Vandan, and began our ascent — 3,800 steps of spiritual surrender.
Every step echoed with chants, every breeze whispered blessings. Birds sang, the weather smiled. We reached Ram Pol, shouting with joy, “Jain Giriraj, Jai Adinath!”
Through Hathi Pol, we reached Shantinath Dada’s Derasar, completed another Chaitya Vandan, and sought blessings at Ambika Mata Mandir, praying for strength and dreams.
🥁Chapter 4: The Dream — Pakshal Boli
Even though for many years, my family and I had visited Shatrunjay twice a year and tried taking the Chadhava or Boli of Pakshal, it always remained out of budget. But this time, I arrived with a determined heart and a budget of my one-month salary.
At long last, we arrived at Adinath Dada’s Darbar, where the Pakshal Boli was about to begin.. Only 11 people get the honor of performing Pakshal with Dhol, Tasha, and Dundubhi. We had to form a group of 11. With courage in our hearts and a month's salary as budget, we began asking around. The bidding began, tension rose, and then...
All 11 of us had fingers crossed, and yes!! Yes, yes, yes!! We won the boli. All of us were dancing in happiness. The golden Kalash, the echoing stavan, the rhythmic drums, the sacred chants — the Pakshal of Adinath Bhagwan was nothing short of celestial. Every drop of water felt like a blessing. Every tear in our eyes glowed with fulfillment.
We received our pass and the lifetime wait was over. Singing, Dancing, Cheering we went inside the darbar and started the Pakshal with pure Gold made Kalash. The feeling was not less than being on Meru Parvat where God’s abhishek was done when he was born. Dhol, Taasha, Dundubi were continuously playing, pujariji was dancing with the chamar, people present there were singing the stavan and the pakshal dhara on Bhagwan — everything was surreal. This experience is a thousand times more than any other.
After the Pakshal, all of us had tears of joy in our eyes. It was the fulfillment of a childhood dream long awaited. We continued the pooja trail with Rayan Pagla, Pundarik Swami, and met our train co-passengers again. — who celebrated our joy like their own.
❤️Chapter 5: The Descent & The Divine Connection
After three more Chaitya Vandans, we bowed once more at Ambika Mata’s temple, thanking her for fulfilling our dream., we bowed once more at Ambika Mata’s temple, thanking her for fulfilling our dream. The moment we got network, we called our parents — their joy was beyond words. Their pride was our pilgrimage.
We had our first sip of water at 2 PM at Bhataghar, ate Sev-Bundi, and returned to the dharmshala with hearts brimming. As we needed to do the chovihar, we bought Jain Gota from the railway station — they were absolutely delicious and our dinner was sorted. Caught the train from Songadh at 7 PM, despite power cuts and delays, and finally reached Bandra the next morning.
🏡Epilogue: Coming Home, Carrying Heaven
At 5 PM, we stepped into our home, greeted by our parents’ glowing smiles and teary eyes.
From a shaky start to a soul-stirring finale, this wasn’t just a trip. It was a celebration of courage, devotion, sisterhood, and dreams turning real under divine eyes.
