As one steps into the Ramana Ashram in Tiruvanamalai, one experiences peace and silence. I had heard about Bhagwan for many years but it was only in October 2017 that I was able to make the pilgrimage to His Ashram. No where have I seen such order and organization in silence!
On our arrival at 2 in the afternoon, we were greeted by 'Doctor' who should have been having his siesta at the time. He handed us our room keys and told us since the kitchen was closed we should have our lunch at the famous Nilgiri Restaurant nearby. I didn't want to step out of the Ashram, but I was hungry. We checked into the simple clean room across the road, had lunch and after a short lie down - we had driven six hours from Coimbatore!
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| Padma talking to the peacock |
Padma chaperoned me back to the Ashram. There were many people in the Ashram but there was silence around. I saw the fabled peacocks unafraid of people. Unfortunately the monkeys mesmerized me and I couldn't take a photograph of the monkey who drank at the tap as a resident held the tap pressed for him. Yet when a visitor offered his services to the monkey, the monkey snarled at him!
As I stood outside the room where the Maharishi spent his last hours in his mortal coil, I couldn't believe I was finally at the place where this great man lived. We spent sometime in the meditation hall, each one looking for himself within through silence.
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| Bhagwan's Samadhi |
The experience at the Samadhi Hall cannot be captured in words, it has to be experienced. Devotees sitting in nooks and alcoves in meditation. Some crossed legs, some in Vajra Aasan, some with their legs stretched out - that is the greatness of the saint He did not prescribe physical actions. Padma told me that once during Bhagwan's lifetime, a devotee sitting with his legs outstretched during meditation was asked to sit crossed leg, it seems that promptly Bhagwan too crossed His legs. Since Bhagwan had arthritis, he would sit with this His legs stretched. Bhagwan had said one rule for everyone, and so the rule applied to Him as well. Since devotees many adopt any posture they like as long as they are connected with Him or within in silence.
The Samadhi Hall was filled with the chanting of the vedas. Other devotes in silence were circumambulating the Samadhi for long stretches of time, lost in their own world I witnessed the puja at the Samadhi. I truly felt blessed as I drank the 'tirtham' from the Samadhi. Later I heard the chanting of the Aksharmanmalai, one of the many compositions of the master. The form of chanting - one verse by the ladies followed by the gents, carried me to a plane I had never been before.
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| A bird's eye view of the temple |
The next morning we visited the great Arunachala Temple at the foot of the Arunachala Hill. The temple was Bhagwan's first stop when he came to Tiruvanamalai. I got a bird's eye view of the temple when we climbed the Arunachala Hill to see Skandashram and the Virupaksha cave. The Arunachala Temple spread over 25 acres is dedicated to the fire element, here Shiva is worshipped as Agni.
This was my first visit by with His Grace it wont be my last.
