One evening at the Vishwanath Temple in the Shivananda Ashram..

Sitting there in dhyaan, in the front of the Idol while on my left side a very powerful Shiva’s statue in sitting posture beckoned my attention. I find a young priest paying his obeisance with prostrating in front of it and then going on one side to meditate. I look at him and find him full of peace and his eyes fixed to the radiating face of Krishna while he prepared himself to sit comfortably in lotus asana and start his daily routine of meditation. The wind out side was blowing its coldness through the chinks in the window and I shivered. The light outside was slowly fading into darkness and the light from the garbh griha (the sanctum sanctorum) was making it presence felt more strongly. Slowly all these things started fading away from my thoughts and I started feeling the goose pimples that usually spring up when ever I am on the way of touching that internal switch of the soul. My spine become erect and slowly I find with e3ach of my breath, the sphere of light started rising slowly to my heart chakra and then it started expanding. I find my self slowly drawn within and then break free like a flying bird outside the ashram. I find my self, hovering around the confluence of Dev Prayaag and the winding river Ganges calling me to merge within it. I take a sudden swoop down and plunge deep into the night stillness and very cold water… All the surrounding lights submerged in the flowing river and I was totally blinded slowly I saw a light emerging at the far end and I saw the beautiful face of Krishna radiating with joy. Things slowly came back into focus and I find my self thrilled with joy and a sense of internal bliss while I saw that the devotee sitting in my front is gathering his books of chants and is drawing his shawl around him in preparation of getting up to go back to his room to sleep.

I also left the place walking around the statue of Shankaracharya, which is installed in the Vishwanath temple. What a true yogi he was, who attained his smaadhi at the age of 32 in Kedarnath after traversing the width and breadth of India at such an young age. A true beacon of light of Hindutva who at the time of deep depression in the Hindu Sanskrit came to the land and made its real self known to the thousands of devotees with his sheer perseverance, devotion and hard work. I remember some one saying that he was a great yogi and above all a great trekker who traveled all the Dhams on foot and revived many of the great places in its present glory.

Om Namah Shivaya

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