Puttaparthi Prasanthi Nilayam Darshan Best Guide for You

Puttaparthi is a town in Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh, India. The original name of Puttaparthi was Gollapalli. The town is located on the banks of Chitravathi River which is a tributary of Pennar River, and is surrounded by undulating hills. While this small town may not have much to offer in terms of natural splendour and beauty, the place is a religious destination popularly known by the world at large as the birthplace of Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba, and for the ashram which he founded, known as Prasanthi Nilayam.

• Best time to visit: September to February 

• Altitude: 800 m (appx.)

About Puttaparthi Prasanthi Nilayam Darshan

The main ashram in Puttaparthi is known as Prasanthi Nilayam. Prasanthi Nilayam means "the abode of highest peace", the name given to the ashram of Shri Sathya Sai Baba in Puttaparthi. In 1950, on his 25th birthday, the seer inaugurated this ashram. This heavenly abode comprises splendid temples, public relations desk, post office, canteen, bakery, kitchens, dining halls, guest houses, dormitories etc. It also houses a huge 'Darshan Hall', a place where Sri Sai Baba gave darshan to his devotees.The samadhi of the guru on 24 April 2011 led to decline of business. Apart from the main Ashram, other places of interest in Puttaparthi as per the ashram website are as follows: 

• Sanathana Samskruti Museum

• The Sri Sathya Sai Space Theater, the Planetarium

• Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences, Prasanthigram, a free of charge for all

• Sri Satya Sai Hill view stadium

• Shivalayam, Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba’s Birth Place

• Samadhi (Sepulcher) of Sri Satya Sai’s Parents

• Lord Dattatreya Temple

• Gopalaswami Temple

• Sathyabhama Temple also fondly called as Sathymma temple

• Hanuman Temple

• Vata Vriksha or Meditation Tree

• Kalpatharu, the Wish-Fulfilling Tree tamarind tree

About Sathya Sai Baba:

A great spiritual leader, Sri Sathya Sai Baba preaches the path of spirituality to one and all. His main aim in life is to serve the mankind and provide them with proper guidance, towards which he has been working since the age of 14 years. Devotees from far and wide visit Sathya Sai Baba Ashram, situated at Puttaparthi, to seek His blessings. Read on this biography of Sri Sathya Sai Baba to know about His life history. 

Birth & Childhood:

Sathya Sai Baba was born in Puttaparthi, a small village in South India, on November 23, 1926. As a child, he demonstrated exemplary qualities of compassion, generosity, and wisdom, which clearly distinguished him from the other children of his village.

His Mission:

His mission was further amplified in a letter he wrote to his brother in 1947. “I have a task,” he said, “To foster all mankind and ensure for all of them lives full of bliss. I have a vow: To lead all who stray away from the straight path again into goodness and save them. I am attached to a work that I love: To remove the sufferings of the poor and grant them what they lack.”

His Abode of Peace:

Sai Baba's ashram, built by his devotees close to the village where he was born, was inaugurated on November 23, 1950. It is called Prasanthi Nilayam (the Abode of Divine Peace). It has been the gathering place of millions of spiritual pilgrims of various faiths from all over the world. Every day, Sai Baba graciously walks among them to guide, comfort, console, and uplift them. The small temple dedicated in 1950 has grown into a spiritual oasis of unprecedented magnitude. The temple and the dharshan area in front of it, which is completely covered by a beautiful roof, together encompass an area that is over 10,000 square yards.

A Highly Popular 'Godman':

During the period 14-23 November 1995, the celebrations of the 70th birthday of Sathya Sai Baba took place in Prasanthi Nilayam. More than one million people, including the President and Prime Minister of India, assembled in Prasanthi Nilayam to pay homage to Sathya Sai Baba during the 70th birthday celebrations.

The Champion of Social Development:

Sri Sathya Sai Baba believed that it is the duty of every person to ensure that all people have access to the basic necessities for sustenance of life. Indeed, no spiritual leader could achieve so much in one life in terms of serving people through developmental work.
Sathya Sai Baba's trust has presence in 186 nations and operates about 1,200 organizations worldwide. The Sathya Sai Central Trust owns or manages colleges, schools, publication houses, general as well as super-specialty hospitals, women's welfare and many social service organizations. Besides, there are famous social welfare schemes such as the Anantapur drinking water scheme, a piped-water project that benefits 750 villages in the dry and barren district of Andhra Pradesh.
Sai Baba passed away after prolonged illness on April 24, 2011 (Easter Day) at the age of 84. He will live on as an inspiration to people of all faiths for his mission of love and humanitarian service.
 

Puttaparthi Railway Station Code:

The Puttaparthi railway Station code is as below:

PRASHANTI NILAYAM: SSPN

Puttaparthi to Bangalore:

By Car: Take a car or hire a cab from Puttaparthi to Banglore, a journey of about 2 hours and 30 minutes. Fast and comfortable; suitable for families travelling with senior citizens and kids.

By Train: Many trains ply between Puttaparthi and Banglore, a journey of about 3 hours. Vijayawada Pass (56503) and Prasanthi Express (18464) runs on all days and arrive at Sri Sathya Sai Prasanti Station. The station is about 8 km away from the ashram. You can reach the town in 20-25 minutes from the railway station by hiring auto rickshaws and cabs. You can also use the APSRTC buses.

Puttaparthi Samadhi Darshan Ttimings:

Timings for the Darshan of Maha Samadhi of Sathya Sai Baba have been given. The morning session would begin at 0800 hrs. with Vedic chanting for an hour followed by Bhajans till 0930 hrs. and Darshan would continue till 10:15 hrs.

Evening session begins at 11600 hrs. with Vedic chanting followed by Bhajans to end with Mangala Arathi at 1830 hrs. Darshan in the evening will continue till 1930 hrs.

Meanwhile, devotees who are willing to visit Puttaparthi may take notice that life in in the township has come to normalcy and buses and trains are plying as per schedule. Shops and other establishments are also open and working normal.

Darshan Timings:

Morning

5.00 am. Temple bell rings 9 times
5.10 am. Temple bell rings 5 times
5.20 am. One temple bell – 21 Omkars, Suprabhatham
5.40 am. Veda chanting around the ashram, nagarSankirtan
8:00 am. – 9:00 am. Vedam chanting – Darshan Hall
9.00 am. – 9:30 am. Bhajans – Darshan Hall
9.30.am. – Mangal Arati – Darshan Hall
9.30 am. -10:15 Darshan of Samadhi of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Evening Timings:

4:00 pm. – 6:00 pm. Vedam chanting – Darshan Hall
6:00 pm. – 6:30 pm. Bhajans – Darshan Hall
6:30 pm – Mangal Arati – Darshan Hall
6.30 pm. – 7:15 pm. Darshan of Samadhi of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Puttaparthi Sai baba Hospital:

The Sri Sathya Sai Institutes of Higher Medical Sciences also popularly known as Super Specialty Hospitals are tertiary health care hospitals established by Sri Sathya Sai Baba to provide patient care facilities to all irrespective of caste, class, creed, gender, religion or nationality totally free of charge. There are two super specialty hospitals, the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences, Puttaparthi, Andhra Pradesh and the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences, Whitefield, Bangalore, Karnataka, India.

Puttaparthi Accommodation:

Puttaparthi is most visited by Sri Sathya Sai Baba’s devotees. The kind of places to stay you may find in Puttaparthi is ashrams, lodges and hotels. The prices of the hotels in the town range from mid-range to low priced options, with basic facilities and clean and comfortable rooms. Most popular stay amongst devotees is the Sri Sathya Sai Village. This place has decent, air conditioned rooms with basic facilities. Hotels in Puttaparthi 

Most of the hotels mentioned here are two-star hotels with facilities like A/C rooms, internet accessibility, room service, attached bathrooms, running hot and cold water, telephones, colour TV with satellite channels and laundry services. 

One of the most popular three-star hotels is Kota Sathyam which is situated opposite Ganesh Gate, Main Road. The hotel offers splendid service and well furnished and lovely interiors. The hotel has 42 rooms and provides numerous facilities including internet access (complimentary), refrigerator, good parking area, 24-hour front desk and room service, and play park for children, among other things. 

The two-star Sai Renaissance Hotel located at the bypass road Puttaparthi has good and luxurious accommodation facilities. The ground floor of the hotel has in-house restaurant. The first three floors include 31 hotel rooms and other three floors have apartments. 

The Sai Heritage Hotel is a two-star hotel. The property is very near to Prasanthi Nilayam Ashram with a nearby local bazaar. The hotel with 30 rooms is traditionally decorated and well equipped with modern facilities. The internet accessibility comes as complimentary facility. 

The Sai Towers is an up-scale hotel with pleasant ambience and modern comforts. The hotel is located opposite Sai Baba's Ashram on the main road. The hotel has 17 rooms with all two-star facilities. Like Sai Heritage this hotel also has options for rooms and apartments in the same building. The hotel has fast food restaurant and a shopping complex. 

Hotel Chaitanya International with 42 rooms is located near Sri Sathya Sai Baba Ashram. The hotel has good dining option with all basic amenities provided. Sayee is the North Indian in-house coffee shop of the hotel that offers various food options. 

The two-star Sri Sai Sadan has 40 rooms and is well-equipped with basic facilities and air-conditioned rooms. It has its own restaurant with bright and spacious rooms. The bedrooms in the hotel have handcrafted beds, comfortable sofas and coffee table. The hotel has a covered veranda, a handicrafts emporium and music and book store, where you can go shopping and pick some good stuff. 

Shree Sai Plaza Hotel is also situated near the Sri Sathya Sai Baba ashram. The hotel has double rooms, deluxe double rooms and air conditioned categories. 

Lodges and Guest Houses in Puttaparthi 

The lodges in Puttaparthi provide decent and low-priced rooms to stay and are good enough if you don’t want to spend much on lodging.  You can check out the Madurai Sai Lodge, Om Kumar Lodge, Sai Ganesh Lodge, Sunshine Lodge and Dharmavaram Guest House near Sri Sathya Sai Baba ashram.

Other Major Attractions:

Puttaparthi:

Chaitanya Jyoti Museum

This museum is architectural museum that depicts the early childhood life of Sai baba. The museum was initially inaugurated on the 18th of November 2000. The unique museum visualises the development of Sai Baba through the techniques of multimedia presentation, describing the incidences related to Sai Baba that reveals the divinity. The place is raised on the top of the hill and is the medley of various architectural methods, presenting beautiful synthesis of traditional and modern style. The Chinese roofs of the museum are oriented with Gothic arches and Moorish spires which simply allures the travellers with its aesthetic beauty. Museum is open all the days except on Monday and the timing is fixed between 9am to 11.30 am and between 3-5.30am.

Sri Satya Sai Space Theatre (Planetarium)

It is a planetarium with the capacity of 200-250 people that aims at providing information about Mathematics, Physics. A show is also conducted every Thursday both on English and Hindi. The planetarium simulates night sky and uses the Spitz Space System-512. It is a superb marvel of astronomy which was established for educational purposes. Located in the campus of Sri Sathya Sai Vidyagiri and the tickets are available.

Sathya Sai Ashram

The holy abode of Sai Baba is also known as ‘Prashanti Nilayam’ which implies ‘the abode of peace’. The ashram is a crowd puller which is the symbol of nest religious organisations. Previously inaugurated in 1950, the ashram harnesses stadiums, educational institutions, hospitals and all the modern amenities that suit the wants of the devotees. The huge complex can harbour thousands of devotees and has its own rules and regulations that need to be followed by the visitors. There is an assembly hall where Sai Baba himself gives ‘darshan’ to the devotees. The stunning edifice creates history by accumulating large number of people on the occasion of Prasanthi Nilayam, Sai Baba’s birthday which offers tranquil and serene ambience. The Sai Baba Ashram is the huge complex itself comprising of rooms that can accommodate thousands of devotees. It has canteen and the hall where Sai Baba gives ‘darshan’ twice is especially popular. The income of the ashram is used for establishing a number of services useful to public. Although you cannot find too many places in Puttaparthy to see, the ashram of Sai Baba itself holds the attention of the masses. It has varied attractions and it belongs to the South Indian Bangalore Circuit. Being at Puttaparthy, the best thing one might do is to visit ashram and pay reverence to Sri Satya Sai Baba. The ashram of Sri Satya Sai Baba is now world famous which was set up in the year 1950. It is also known as Prashanthi Nilayam and is the most spught after religious destinations.

The Museum of Sri Satya Sai Baba Ashram

One of the profusely visited spot in the ashram is the museum. It is superbly perched on nearly hillock. The museum harbours models of several temples encompassing Golden Temple of Amritsar, Mecca Mosque. The entire story of Satya Sai Baba from the moment of his birth till the time he attained Nirvana is depicted properly here. You can find innumerable pictures of Sai Baba depicting the various stages of development. The museum remains opened from 10-12 noon. You can find a fascinating and detailed display over the major faiths with amazing quotations and illustrations from the sacred texts which are punctuated by Sai Baba. Within the campus of the beautiful and holy museum you can discover a planetarium as well.

Veerbhadra Temple

While travelling from Bangalore to Puttaparthi, you can find the famous Veerbhadra Temple located at Lepakshi. At the temple entrance of the town of Puttaparthi you can find huge monolithic Nandi which is the sacred bull of Lord Shiva. This temple is around 500 kilometres away.

Anjaneya (Hanuman) Swamy Temple

Anjaneya temple at Gopuram road is covered by two pretty shrines and presents a sacred and serene ambience to the longing souls. Entrance to the temple is superbly marked by amazing Siva Lingam which was brought by Sai Baba himself from Kasim. The most alluring part of the religious site is the sanctum where deity is engraved on the cavern. The temple shows the pool of water at the foot of God which shows that Hanuman was devoted to Lord Rama. The pool of water symbolises tears of Lord Hanuman. The temple holds the magical anecdote of Sai Baba. As per the popular folk tale Sai Baba was stopped by the deity while he was circumambulating the temple saying that it is the deity who is to pay the respect and reverence.

Gopuram (Ganesh Gate)

Every point of this particular ashram is Ganesh Gate with which Sai Baba leaves and comes back to the temple. The magnificent facade to the superb ashram was constructed in the year 1975 to commemorate the Baba. This is a very daunting and exciting gate which shows the marvellous idol of Lord Ganesh and so the place is popularly known as Ganesh Gate. Gopuram is made in the form of South Indian style that itself reveals the structural grandeur, magnificence of architecture and artistic skills. The site is very alluring that reminds one of the facts that Lord Ganesha is known for removing hindrances.
                  

Meditation Tree

This is a famous banyan tree planted by Sai Baba within the serene premises of holy Ashram. The place has gained immense significance in routine life of inmates of Ashram. There is a thick metal plate in the root of the tree which is said to be materialised by Sai Baba in order to enhance the brooding spirit among those who contemplate under the tree. The area features very special zone which is thoroughly meant for meditation and overlooks the outstanding ambience of Ashram. The place has distinct areas for men and women and women are not allowed to walk under the tree after sunset and before sunrise. The surrounding of the tree is the silent zone where devotees spend hours contemplating. It is thought that Banyan tree has the immense power of purifying the surrounding air and so almost every temple in South India comprises Banyan Tree.

Wish Fulfilling Tree

The famous wish fulfilment tree is situated over the slope of Obuladevara Gutta hill and it is a chief sentinel point over the River Chitravathi. The place is one of the milestones of Sai Baba where the tree situates are seen by thousands of visitors who flock the area. You can access the place from Chitravathi Road as the holy steps to this religious place starts. It is tree that holds fabulous stories of Sai Baba’s childhood and the tamarind tree has already witnessed too many miraculous stories of Sai Baba’s childhood life. As per the stories, Sa Baba took his friends up to the hills and asked them to think of any fruit. The moment they thought of the fruit, the friends got that very fruit from tamarind tree.

Sri Satya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences

The famous Sri Satya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Science became operation in the month of November, 1991. The place is renowned for it has performed around 4000 heart surgeries within the duration of just 4 years. The best part of the place is that it runs its services without charging anything. Irrespective of caste, creed, religion and colour you may enjoy the services. The centre is rapidly becoming the leading centre for cardiac surgery, sophisticated diagnostic. It follows the latest technique of diagnosing and curing the diseases. Therapeutic methodologies used here are highly sophisticated and modernized. It comprises of a team of technical staff members who are at the service always. Within the support facility is included blood bank, sterilization department, diet kitchen, clinical laboratories, central stores and laundry. Here you can also find a nurse school which was opened in the year 1992 to offer vocational training to skilled personnel. The institute is equipped with uro-nephrology department, x-ray unit, ophthalmology department, body scanning unit, vitreoretinal services spot even.
                  

Sri Satya Sai Institute of Higher Learning

This Sri Satya Sai Institute of Higher Learning was founded by Sai Baba himself in 1981. It is an autonomous body and it has now been recognized by Government of Indian and the Ministry of Education and even by UGC or University Grants Commission. Hostel living here is made compulsory in order to shape the future of student. Personality of student is groomed here. Students’ living is patterned here in the form of ancient Gurukula style.
Well, the best time to visit the holy place Puttaparthy is during Novembers. On 23th of November, the birthday of Sai Baba is celebrated in the ashram. On the very day Sai Baba amazingly delivers his message to the devotees.  The day is considered very holy by devotes. The place Puttaparthu witnesses tropical climate featuring humid and hot summers. You can also visit the place during October to March. Carry cotton clothing if you are visiting it during summers. Light woollens can be worn at winter season

Best Time to Visit South India

You can pay visit to South India and their popular tourist destination during the months of December to February when the climate is at its most pleasant. If you like to pay visit in between May to October in Kerala and on the east coast of Tamil Nadu, it is better to carry an umbrella and be prepared for shower at any time.

Shopping at Puttaparthi

You can take a walk around in the local markets and get a good overview of the local handlooms and the boutique or you may visit places famous among the locals. Puttaparthi is a place well known for its silk sarees. People here are mainly weavers. The city has a blooming handloom industry. The world famous Puttaparthi Silk Sarees are made with best quality Mulberry Silk threads. The brightness and sheen of the silk sarees are unmatched. A huge variety of colours and designs, beautiful Zaria work (gold polished threads) and the durability makes the sarees must have for a lady's wardrobe. You should not miss the opportunity to pick some for yourself or to gift. But check on the silk mark!

How To Reach

By Air: When coming from abroad, Bangalore is the nearest city to which one can fly to reach Puttaparthi, rest of the journey being done by taxi or car. For domestic travelers, place has Sri Sathya Sai Airport which is only 4 Km away from the Ashram.

By Train: Sri Satya Sai Prasanthi Nilayam railway station connects with major Indian cities like Mumbai, Bangalore, New Delhi, Bhubaneshwar and more.

By Road: Bus services are easily available from most of the cities and towns like Bangalore, Hyderabad, Anantapur, etc.

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