Khandoba Mandir Shirdi (Sai Baba's 1858 first-arrival site).
Pilgrims arrive at Shirdi for the Sai Baba Samadhi darshan and rarely visit the Khandoba shrine where the Sai story actually begins. Most tour packages skip it as a 1km outlier.WHY NOBODY KNOWS
A village Khandoba temple on Nimon Road, Shirdi — in 1858, when a 16-year-old fakir arrived in Shirdi and stood at this gate, the priest Mhalsapati (himself a Khandoba devotee) declared "Ya Sai!" ("welcome Sai") — the moment that gave the saint his name. This is the first documented Shirdi site in the Sai narrative, predating Dwarkamai by months. Maintained by the Sai Sansthan since 2003; smaller crowds than the main Samadhi complex. Open 5am-9pm; free entry.
