Bankhandi Maharaj was meditating on a rock which was near Maha Lakshmi Temple in Mumbai. Maharajji was meditating before the world famous Maha Lakshmi Temple was constructed.
Annapurna Devi was pleased with the Bankhandi Maharaj’s devotion & meditation & therefore gave him a kalash ( utensil ) which you can see in the pictures. Since Maharajji was blessed by the Godess of Food ( Annapurna Devi ) , Maharaji was able to organize langar for thousands of people daily & the amazing thing was that there was never any shortage of food .Maharajji continued his social work throughout his life.
Later the Sadhu Bella Trust originally from Sakhar now in Pakistan constructed Sadhu Bela Mandir on the same rock where Mharajji was blessed with the kalash by Annapurna Devi.The Sadhu Bela Temple is close to Maha Lakshmi Mandir & all devotees who visit Maha lakshmi Temple do not fail to visit Sadhu Bela Mandir.In Sadhu Bela Mandir till today the Kalash which Annapurna Devi has given to Bankhandi Maharajji is kept .
Along with the Kalash , there is a lamp ( diya ) in the mandir. The lamp has never extinguished from hundreds of years & the ash( dhooni ) is collected as you can see in the pictures .The Dhooni is said to be very beneficial for health. It is said that a pinch of dhooni if eaten daily one may not fall ill .Also it is believed that if a person goes for Dhooni Darshan continuosly for 40 days the person’s knee problems like Arthritis gets cured. Many devotees have other experiences with Dhooni Darshan .
If you visit Mumbai & Maha Lakshmi Mandir at Bhula Bhai Desai Road ,do visit Sadhu Bala Mandir & you too will experience the Magic of Dhooni Darshan .