மகாகணபதி கோயில், ராஞ்சண்காவ்Mahaganpati Temple, Ranjangaon

Sthala Mahātmyam

Mahaganpati at Ranjangaon, on the Pune-Ahmednagar road in Shirur taluka, is the eighth and, by tradition, the most powerful of the Ashtavinayaka. Sthala mahatmya: before setting out to destroy the demon Tripurasura, Lord Shiva invoked and worshipped Ganesha at this spot to remove all obstacles; empowered by that worship he vanquished the three-citadelled demon, so Ganesha here is also called Tripurarivade Mahaganpati, and the town Shiva founded was Manipur, now Ranjangaon. Mahaganapati is depicted seated on a lotus, flanked by his consorts Siddhi and Riddhi, and described in tradition with eight, ten or twelve arms. A folk belief holds that the original, more powerful idol, Mahotkat, said to have ten trunks and twenty arms, lies concealed in an underground vault, though temple authorities do not confirm this. The temple is architecturally aligned so that during Dakshinayana the sun's rays fall directly on the deity. The ancient shrine received Peshwa patronage. Festivals: Ganesh Chaturthi and Maghi Ganesh Jayanti are principal, with grand processions.