Morya Gosavi - Death and Lineage

Death and Lineage

Morya continued to visit Theur, Ranjangaon (another Ganesha temple site) and Chinchwad. Morya had a son, whom he named Chintamani (Chintaman). Chintamani was venerated as a living incarnation of Ganesha. But before that according to some experts, he helped the deposed Mughal emperor Humayun (1508–1556) to escape to Kabul, when Humayun again became the Emperor of Delhi, he showered Morya with gifts. According to Dhere, Shivaji's father Shahaji (1594–1665) is recorded as a donor to Morya Gosavi.

After his wife's death and his guru Nayan Bharati's sanjeevan samadhi, Morya took sanjeevan samadhi by burying himself alive in a tomb with a holy book in his hand. Morya left strict orders that his tomb be never opened. Chintamani built a temple over his father's tomb. Chintamani is described to have shown his true form as Ganesha to the Varkari saint-poet Tukaram (1577 - c.1650), who called Chintamani a Dev spelt also as Deva or Deo (god). The lineage was henceforth known as the Dev family.

Chintamani was followed as a Dev by Narayan, Chintamani II, Dharmadhar, Chintamani III, Narayan II and Dharmadhar II. The Mughal emperor Aurangzeb (1658–1707) gifted Narayan the hereditary grant of eight villages, impressed by the latter's "miracle" of changing into jasmine flowers the piece of beef sent by the former. (Beef is considered unholy in Hinduism and killing of cows - considered sacred - is prohibited.) Narayan II violated Morya's orders and opened the latter's tomb. According to the tale, Morya who found still mediating in the tomb, was disturbed and cursed Narayan that his son would the last Dev. Narayan's son, Dharmadhar II - the seventh generation of Morya - died childless in 1810 ending the direct lineage of Morya, but a distant relative of Dharmadhar, Sakhari was installed as a Dev by the priesthood to continue the temple funding. Devotional poetry of all the Devs still survive.