Three Jyotirlingas and a Living Pilgrimage Tradition
Maharashtra contains three of the twelve Jyotirlingas — Bhimashankar, Trimbakeshwar and Ghrishneshwar — more than any other state. But its most distinctive spiritual contribution is the Warkari movement: a 13th-century bhakti tradition centred on Lord Vitthal (Vithoba) of Pandharpur, whose devotees (Warkaris) walk hundreds of kilometres twice a year to Pandharpur in one of the world's oldest continuously practiced pilgrimages.
The poet-saints of the Warkari movement — Dnyaneshwar, Namdev, Eknath, Tukaram — are among the greatest figures in Indian spiritual literature. Their abhangas (devotional poems) in Marathi remain central to Maharashtra's cultural identity. The state also hosts Shirdi — home of Sai Baba, one of India's most universally revered saints — which draws more daily visitors than almost any other shrine in the country.