Hello readers,
I hope you’re well and teeming with life, and not feeling dreary this TwosDay.
Did you realize that today’s date is both a palindrome and an anagram! I was looking forward to it simply because it is such a nice date. 22022022.
Today’s brief blog is about my visit to The Isha Foundation, Coimbatore. Nestled at the foothills of the Vellianagiri Hills, the Ashram is a large area of tranquility. I went with my parents, and we boarded a train from Bangalore Cantonment station. Our first train journey since 2015, when they came to drop me off at my college in Pune. I got into the train at ten thirty and reached Coimbatore around 6.45. From there we took an auto our destination.
We stopped for coffee enroute the long journey. It was a refreshingly strong but sweet coffee, and it took me back to my childhood favorite- Coffee Bite.
Coffee disappeared from my life for a really long time. After relishing those coffee bite days as a toddler, my tryst with coffee only rekindled in Engineering, almost twenty years later I guess. And now, I treasure my drink without going overboard, and love it most when I make it myself.
I digress. So we reached Isha, curious and excited. You have to understand that my Dad is an attentive listener of almost all of Sadhguru’s videos. My mum isn’t so vocal, and I was just a blank canvas. Making the most of a trip, happy to have someone to guide me around.
So we checked in to the Naadi cottage allotted to us, a spacious room for four, and freshened up. One thing you automatically do after reaching there is address everyone as Akka or Anna. I met my friend and she took me to the Bhiksha Hall for brunch.
We entered at around 9.50, sat cross legged, the volunteers began serving and sharp at ten, everyone closed eyes and bowed heads to invoke the divine before eating a morsel.
The meal itself was simple yet there was so much variety and it was nutritionally so wholesome that I was mind-blown. I started with a bitter kashayam, then had boiled peanuts, some of the freshest cucumbers that I’ve had the opportunity of eating, green veggies palya, sambhar and millets, along with rasam, brown rice, pickle, and a laddoo at the end. They also had Ragi Ganji for people who wanted it.
After a rather sumptuous lunch, Subs took us around exploring. We went across the lotus pond to the Surya Kund, and then Linga Bhairavi’s Devi Temple. You’ll see a priestess here, dressed in vermillion sarees. All attendants within are female. There’s an interesting statue of a woman kneeling outside the temple, which explains the way one is supposed to pay obeisance to Goddesses to receive the maximum blessings.
After this, we bought some Payasam and sat under the trees, relishing the fresh air and unique construction around – a fascinating study in stones, structures, and stories.
At 11. 40, we made our way to the Dhyanalinga. We cross over the three huge steps, enter a pathway lined with rock panels depicting important devotees of Shiva.
The Dhyanalinga was consecrated in 1999 and is the only place in the world with the power to energize all the seven chakras within oneself. The womb like structure is made only of natural elements, and no concrete. Usually, people come in and go out in absolute silence except for musical offerings that happen twice a day. We went in for a twenty minute nada aradhana… You close eyes, and just absorb the feelings and throughs during the musical invocation. I must say I expected a crescendo, but it was not to be. I had the impression I kept going off to sleep but my body would jerk up and push me, and i had to shift my legs. It was an interesting experience for sure. After getting back home, I read up all about it and now I want to go back and witness it again.
After this, we went to the Goshaala, met a few calves and cows and just sat on the grounds and talked. At two, we got a refreshing drink of hot lime, so so good.
I had to take a nap after this to be fresh and ready in the evening. So after a brief respite from the heat, we woke up around four and checked out the Isha Life store, bought a couple of things from there and had a filter coffee.
Around five, we walked to the Adi Yogi statue. It’s a rather long walk and we went bare foot, nicely giving me good some good accupuncture therapy.
You’ll see so many different homages to snakes.. in the pillars, over the gates, as accessories on buildings, in the shape of the ponds, there’s a lot of depth and history to the use of snakes around the campus. My dad piques up and adds, where there is Shiva, there have to be snakes. And Subs adds on, where there is Shiva, there are also lots of spirits and ghosts around for he does not discriminate among the living and the disembodied.
You can avail a bullock cart ride if you don’t want to walk the distance from the gates to the statue.
Adi Yogi Shiva might be the reason hordes of tourists flock to Isha, and it may well be the reason you would go as well. I would urge you however to stay at the Ashram and experience Isha in all its elements. At 6.40 everyday, there is a Musical and Light show that’s pretty amazing, and with Sadhguru’s voice to add a different dimension, you’ll be left pretty awed.
We spent the evening here and tried our best to walk it up for the 7.45 slot for dinner which we ended up just missing. We went in finally at 8.10 and i must say had a heartful again.
We spent some time after dinner at a different lotus pond and went to bed early. The night couldn’t go fast enough for me. We woke up well before five for the Guru Pooja and Om chantings, and it was so inspiring to see so many people, Indians and foreigners alike, doing Yoga all over the place… on empty grounds, on stages, near the pond, in the practice hall, just outside the temple.. it was incredible. We then walked again to Adi Yogi. Well, he is arrestingly beautiful and no time spent staring at him feels enough.
We checked out soon after, had brunch and then left Isha, with the promise of being back soon.
In Coimbatore, Subs took me shopping to this place, Sree Devi Textiles, with so many dress materials to choose from, that Mum and me, we went a little bit crazy. We went to this amazing sweet shop / restaurant as well, Shree Anandhas where again, Dad and Me felt like we were in candyland.
We boarded our train at 4.05, after standing at the wrong platform for fifteen minutes and finally got back to my city beautiful by night.
So that was that… I’ve been reading ‘Sadhguru, More Than a Life’ since being back and I have a few more pages to go.
Let’s see where this association takes us…
If you’re planning a trip to Isha, hit me up maybe and I could tell you what to lookout for. Either way, just go and have fun.
Until next time.
Adios, amigos.❤️
PsychedSpurti 