Already for a year or so, I was feeling really connected to Sadhguru ShriBrahma. I saw the documentary, pushed Prem anna to discuss the exact places in detail which helped me write the blog on all His pilgrimage spots and, in general, felt really connected. So, it was wonderful that I arrived in Coimbatore in March 2022 for Mahashivratri. And in April, the Sadhguru ShriBrahma Guru Pooja event happened at Yelanahalli, Nilgiris.

Happily, 3 Isha meditators from Coimbatore were heading there. So, I joined in. If you have read my travel adventures, I am predominantly a solo traveller. So, when I go for a group trip, it is always an unusual and interesting experience for me. 🙂 This was additionally special because I was with fellow Isha meditators – and we have many similarities. My enthusiasm about finding ancient temples / yogi samadhis and meditating there is shared by most of us meditators. Plus, the meditations we do are the same ones so it is always nice to find sync that way.

In this way, the trip was harmonious and fun. We reached after the Guru Pooja was over on Saturday. But the yagna mandapam was there. It was wonderful to sit there. And it felt like Isha ashram. This feeling of similarity between Isha ashram grew stronger on Sunday, when a lot more meditators, Isha samskriti kids and Isha brahmacharies also joined in. Sadhguru ShriBrahma swamis fully supported save soil and other Sadhguru JV initiatives. In the yagna mandapam entrance, there is a mural of Sadhguru JV previous life.

And of course, for Sunday, the final culmination Guru Pooja, I had a front seat. Coaxed by a fellow meditator, I was live streaming the entire event on YouTube. 😀 He also helped spread the word about it in meditator circles. Thus, I was not just part of the event but also participating in it in some way. We sat right in front. And the whole live streaming experience became really intense. It was pretty crazy.

Suffice to say, it was really overwhelming and crazy. After these experiences, getting back to usual life is very difficult for me. So, as the rest of my meditator friends made plans to head back, I told them to carry on. While I would spend more time here in the ashram, wait for the final culmination of the entire event. And only then I would leave.

I had been wondering about Yelanahalli – did Sadhguru ShriBrahma himself visit this place and if so, what did he do there? I checked with Vijaykumar anna, the key researcher behind the documentary, he said that Yelanahalli ashram came up much after Sadhguru ShriBrahma. So, no, Sadhguru never visited this place.

So, it was quite amazing that the Guru Pooja event was so powerful. I wonder what that means?

And then I asked whether the Guru Pooja yagna proceedings were being done as per Sadhguru’s instructions. But that is also a No. It is understandable because Sadhguru JV has hardly ever urged for a yagna-type event. So, doubtful Sadhguru ShriBrahma may have done the same. Vijaykumar anna mentioned what type of sadhana Sadhguru ShriBrahma used to prescribe, but I didn’t exactly understand. Cause he mentioned some other Yogis name, of whom I had no idea. But I think they are touching upon all this stuff in the Season 2 of the documentary.

So, this Yelanahalli ashram that came up much after Sadhguru ShriBrahma’s time, is now the central place to coordinate and help other Sadhguru ShriBrahma ashrams and shrines remain active. And it is such a lovely and powerful place too. So, amazing!

Interestingly, after I had the crazy intense Guru Pooja experience on Sunday morning, I happened to chat with a young 10-12 yr old girl. As we were standing together in the line for lunch, I asked her, how was it? “So much we had to sit. It was very difficult actually, I was completely bored. And had to keep sitting and sitting. Couldn’t wait for it to get over.”

Hahahha. 😀

Great thing, to bring it back to us, that these spiritual experiences are so completely subjective and internal.

And when we keep saying, “these places are so powerful to meditate in“. What are we really talking about?

I would like to think that while these experiences are subjective and internal, they are also real.