Siddhivinayak Temple is one of the Ashtavinayak i.e. the eight sacred places of Lord Ganesha located in Maharashtra. This shrine is located on the bank of river Bhima which flows in Siddhatek in a taluka of Ahmednagar by the name of Karjat. In this temple, the trunk of Lord Ganesha is curved to the right. It is believed that a Ganesha whose trunk is towards the right is very influential and it’s very difficult to delight him.

This is the only Ashtavinayak temple in the world where Lord Ganesha’s trunk is towards right.

Location

The temple is located on a hummock of Siddhatek and it is surrounded by a thick forest comprising babul trees. This hummock is at a distance of about 1 km from the village. It is believed that Lord Shri Vishnu here in Siddhatek got siddhi from Lord Ganesha.

It is believed that this temple was initially built by Lord Vishnu himself. With the passage of time, it was destroyed and later a cowherd found the symbol of Siddhivinayak when he saw a magical dream of this ancient temple. In the late 1700s, this temple was rebuilt by Ahilyabai Holkar, who was the philosopher queen of Indore.

It is also said that when Lord Vishnu was encircled by brutal misfortune, he came here and on the mountain and performed self-punishment. Later, Lord Ganesha appeared and he gave him a boon. Upon receiving benefit from Lord Ganesha, Lord Vishnu killed two devils that went by the name of Madhu and Kaitabh.

Since Lord Vishnu got siddhi in Siddhatek, the idol of Ganesha here is called Siddhivinayak. It is believed that the Siddhivinayak form of Lord Ganesha leads to completion of all his work and is the awakened form of Lord Ganesha.
It is also said that a Morya Gosavi of Morgaon and Maharaja Narayan of Kedgaon got siddhi here.

Nowadays, this temple is under the supervision of Chinchwad Devasthan Trust. They also govern two more temples of Ashtavinayak by the name of Morgaon and Theur.

This temple has a 3 feet tall statue of Lord Ganesha, which faces the north. His trunk is towards the right in this idol.
Lord Ganesha is known to have a big belly. However, that is not the case in this temple. Instead, the idol has his wives Ridhi and Sidhi sitting on either lap of Siddhivinayak. The idol seems very peaceful and still.

It is said that the pradakshana of Siddhivinayak is very rewarding. To complete one pradakshana of Lord Ganesha, one has to travel 5 km as it is adjoined the hill. The statue of Ganapati is kept in a frame of brass. On both sides of Ganesha are brass idols of Jay and Vijay.

The temple hall was built by a landlord of Baroda. It was broken in 1939 and rebuilt in 1970 by devotees of Ganesha.

Aarti

The temple opens daily in the morning at 4 o’clock. Ganesh Aarti takes place from 4.30 am to 5 am. The temple closes for the day at 9.30 pm.

From the first to fifth day of Bhadrapada panchami, Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated at this temple on a grand scale. In the month of Magh Shudh Pratipada, Ganesh Jayanti is celebrated as the birthday of Lord Ganesha. Maha puja and Maha naivedyam are presented continuously for three days.