Shri Vasudevanand Saraswati Tembe Swami Maharaj

A compact Biography.

• Idol
  Towards the end of his stay at Wadi, Lord Dattatreya communicated to Shri Vasudeo Shastri his plan to “reside in Mangaon for seven years”. Soon thereafter Shastriji set out for Mangaon for the necessary preparations for the Lord’s stay. After paying his respects to the Mother of the Universe (Mahalaxmi) at Kolhapur, he was passing through the market of a town called Kagal, thinking about the idol of Lord Dattatreya for the proposed temple at Mangaon. Suddenly his eyes fell on a sculptor’s shop when the sculptor himself came out of the shop and after salutations started saying, “Shastriji, please give me the specifications of the idol you want and I shall make exactly what you want. Please do not worry about money.” The sculptor had received instructions from the Lord to make the idol for Shastriji. Consequently, Shastriji stayed at Kagal for a couple of days. As per his instructions, the sculptor made a brass idol about seven fingers width tall, sitting in siddha posture with two arms signalling bestowal (var) and protection (abhay). The sculptor’s charges amounting to about 20-25 rupees were paid collectively by some local gentlemen.