Shri Govind Maharaj was the first saint in the line of gurus who established “Anandvan Sansthan” at Songir, a small village in Khandesh, near Dhulia in Maharashtra.

Around the year 1860, he appeared out of the blue, in Songir. No one quite knew from where he had come as he had taken a vow of silence.

He had an awesome personality. He was 6 ft. tall well built, of fair complexion, and exuded an intense spiritual aura.

As he was a Digamber saint, he wore no clothes. Around one wrist he wore a heavy silver bracelet kada. Around his neck he wore necklaces of rudraksh and silver. About his waist he wore a military belt. And he always carried with him a sword and a stick. All over his body he seemed to have sword wounds. In fact, people couldn’t decide if he was a soldier or a saint.

His fierce personality intimidated people and no one dared to go near him. For twenty long years he didn’t say a word to anyone. He always sat under one tree, by a lit dhuni (fire) and a kamandalu (a gourd water container).

His vow of silence was eventually broken when at the time of taking census, some officials asked his name and he muttered something that sounded like Govind. And since that day people started calling him Govind Maharaj. He would reveal nothing about his past, but when in a good mood would narrate stories about the mutiny of 1857. (Some people thought he was Tatya Tope, a freedom fighter, but there is no credence to this belief)

Songir became a place of pilgrimage because of him and people came like bees to honey to take darshan. He preached in simple Hindi. He said “Be humble and have love and compassion for your fellow human beings. By living simply and remembering God’s name at all times, you will achieve ultimate salvation”.

Shri Govind Maharaj was a contemporary of Shri Sai Baba of Shirdi and Gajanan Maharaj of Shegoan.

In 1920, Shri Govind Maharaj took a live Samadhi in Songir. His last words were
“स्थिर रहो। आनंदमे रहो। गोविंद गोविंद गाया करो।”

Meaning, remain always calm and composed, through happy and sad moments in life: remain in a state of bliss by continuously chanting the name of God.

Anandvan, the place of his Samadhi is a living monument of his love and compassion. His energy is palpable even to this day, to all who seek it as a place of rest and solace. Everyone is welcome whether he is a seeker of knowledge, of wealth or someone seeking to be relived of pain of mind or body.

All those who have been to the Samadhi, vouch that visiting it even once has shed new light on their lives.