Dhareshwar Math Mandir is a cave temple located in Patan taluka, Satara district. Google Maps will show you directions.
It's a cave temple, hundreds of years old. Water always falls down on the outside 365 days a year without any apparent water source above. पाण्याची सतत धार म्हणून धारेश्वर.
Swayambhu idol of Lord Shiva was discovered by villagers inside this cave. Then they found out that it was a temple and restored it. The idol apparently grows a little every year. It was underground, now it has come overground.
The story goes that Lord Ram visited this temple after defeating Ravana.
There's a visit by Pandavas during Agyatvaas mentioned too.
The Pujari was a kind, gentle sort of guy. It's a Math. So there have been (22?) Swamis so far, many of whom took Samadhi there as well. While telling the stories, the Pujari mentioned that Pandavas restored the temple and then later Lord Ram visited it. I didn't have the heart to correct him on chronology :-).
Road leading up to it was horrible towards the end. Rocky and a little dangerous. We thought we would reach the Lord directly at a point in time :-).
Oh, and the monkeys! There are lots of them. So beware - keep car doors and windows closed. If you want to feed them - we did - then keep all the food ready to give / throw. They are fast, and will reach you in the blink of an eye. So just be alert. None of them troubled us, but they are always on the lookout for food.
It's just something about a cave temple that I like. And unlike some places this is not dark and gloomy inside, it's quite well lighted.
All in all, this place is definitely worth a visit.
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