Composition of a new song 'Jaane Do' at Swami Rama Ashram

Gods above seem to be really happy with me. Within three months I got another chance to visit Rishikesh. This time all by myself and hence I decided to stay at SRSG (Swami Rama Sadhak Grama). Even in the peak of summer, this place felt like heaven. The foliage, blooming flowers, serene atmosphere and a Rudraksha tree outside my cottage bestowed me with a sense of divine peace.

View from inside my cottage

Every Saturday night at 8pm they hold a kirtan (singing devotional songs) and have this beautiful process where everyone not only participates by repeating what the main singer is singing, but also gets an opportunity to be the main singer. As a part of this process we suddenly discovered this phenomenon called Sophia! All of 19 years old and a cheerful young lady, half Russian and half English, she took us by the storm. When she started singing I checked twice to ensure I wasn't dreaming. Her voice had a hypnotic effect on all of us. Truly blessed with Ma Saraswati (Goddess of learning and Music) in her throat, I couldn't get her out of my mind when I returned back to my cottage.

Rudraksha tree outside my cottage

A couple of hours later, still unable to ignore her melodious voice singing in my heart, an idea struck me. Out of the few songs she had sung, one was the famous Beatles song 'Let it be.' Although I had never heard it before, the melody appealed to me. I decided to translate it in Hindi and the chorus 'Let it be' became 'Jaane Do.' Then I started working on the verse and chose words that would be easy for her to sing and within the next 15 minutes lyrics were ready. I wasn't even sure if she will be there the next day and if she was there would she like to sing it, but well!

Next morning when I woke up I had forgotten all about my madness last night. In fact I did my meditation practise in the cottage and was so late for breakfast that I did not even meet anyone. But later in the day when I spotted Sophia I remembered again and decided to ask her. She immediately said Yes and we decided to give it a try post dinner.

We both had to meet near Meditation Hall after dinner but when I went there Sophia wasn't to be seen. I searched around the whole area looking for her but couldn't find her. Thinking she will come I waited but she didn't. At that point of time I dropped the idea and decided 'Jaane Do!' I went back to the cottage to sleep and realized i needed to get water. So I went back in there and saw Sophia standing outside. She said she was delayed. Looking at the watch I asked her if she wanted to do it now because it was late but she said, "Yes." Her affirmative response revived me again and I brought out the lyrics for her to study.

She hadn't even spent few minutes trying to read Hindi when it was time for the next session at SRSG. I thought it was the end of it but an hour and a half and a few interruptions later we finally sat down to practising the lyrics. Under the moonlight night, and a small bulb allowing Sophia to read from the paper, we were ready for our first recording! Anita from Hungary became our willing audience. She thought we were practising a popular hit song and was shocked to know that it was being composed and put to tune right there in front of her!

Lyrics: Ik din subah Ishwar ne darshan diya
(One morning God appeared in front of me) Bola aisa mantra
(Spoke divine words) Har marz ki jo dawa
(A cure to all problems) Jaane Do- (8)
(Let it go)
Dard jab uthe
(When the pain rises) Apnon ne dukh diya
(Because of hurts caused by loved ones) Yaad karo har marz ki jo dawa
(Remember the divine words) Jaane Do- (8)
(Let it go)
Jab bas Mein Na ho
(When it is not in your control) Is duniya ki hawa
(The ways of the world) Yaad karo har marz ki jo dawa
(Remember the divine words) Jaane Do- (8)
Let it go

You can watch the song at the following link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_RNgY_IDDY&feature=youtu.be

Read Sophias' blog at http://www.lostinwanderlust.co.uk/

Swami Rama Sadhak Grama: Perfect Spiritual Retreat

With divine blessings of all the Gurus and Saints I got another opportunity to stay in Rishikesh within just two months of my first visit. The excitement was no less. My heart was full of gratitude as I stepped again on that celestial land. The trip was short with just five days to spare and I wanted to make the most of it.

The first day we landed again at Sivananda Ashram, just in time to attend Matri Satsanga and partake the divine nectar flowing so freely. It was amazing to meet the divine mothers, and the love they showered upon me was humbling.

Day two was spent near serene Ganga Ji and walking through the vibrant lanes near Gita Bhavan and Parmarth Niketan. Even when roaming in the 'bazaar' (market), one amazing quality of that place is its ability to not disturb your inner peace. Rarely have I felt that tranquility even when my senses are being bombarded with numerous sights, smells, and sounds. An added factor possibly was the lack of crowd, since this time of the year there are very few visitors due to freezing winter.

In the evening of day two, we arrived at Swami Rama Sadhak Grama (SRSG) "A village of spiritual seekers devoted to the teachings of Swami Rama of the Himalayas." where we had done our booking for the rest of the days. Built like a beautiful meditation hill village, this ashram was established by Swami Veda Bharati in 2002. We checked into our very clean, cosy and cheerful cottage; which was large enough for seven people to stay but it was only the two of us. It allowed a lot of privacy and just the right ambience to relax and rejuvenate.

Cottages

After freshening up we headed towards the Meditation Hall. There was already a meditation session in progress and the room was dark except for a little glow from a lamp in front of Swami Rama's photo. We quietly found a place to sit and made unsuccessful attempts to silent the mind. New place, impressions of the day and unprepared body did not cooperate, and fortunately for us the meditation session was over in a few more minutes. There was a bell, chanting of the Om and some lights were switched on. Next it was time for dinner and one of the teachers recognized we were new. He guided us to the dining hall and also asked us to come back to Meditation hall for an introductory session.

Now this was something that really came as a pleasant surprise; an introduction session where they made a genuine effort to understand who we are, what brought us to SRSG and if we are doing any practices. It made us feel more comfortable and welcomed. This was further followed by another session next day where the teacher spent good two hours with just the two of us to correct our posture, taught some very simple yet creative techniques to keep our spine erect (this helped us to immediately sit for at least double the length of time than we could earlier) and shared few breathing techniques. Just that session itself made it worthwhile for us to visit this spiritual centre. Our teacher (Ms Gita), answered all our queries with patience & joy, and guided us very well.

Other sessions of course were very good too but I specially enjoyed the meditation sessions where we just had to sit in the right posture with our spine erect and focus on breathing. With body now supple with various asanas we practised, and technique of sitting straight longer without discomfort under our belt, an hour long meditation session seemed quite short. A beautiful practise they follow is that for each meditation session the Gurus of the tradition also join in. It not only adds to the spiritual aura but also motivates spiritual aspirants to meditate longer.

Meditation Hall Building

Another very impressive aspect at SRSG is their acceptance of your ideology or practice. They do not make any attempt to change whatever you are doing and in fact are very open in sharing their techniques so these can further support your practice. At no time or point do they indicate that what they are doing is the best and you should also convert to it. While they are proud of being followers of the Himalayan tradition, they do not claim exclusive rights to it and in fact willingly acknowledge other schools and institutions which are all in some way or the other, inter-connected. There is an amazing respect for all traditions, schools and practices. When we talked about Kriya Yoga or our stay at Sivananda Ashram, they were happy to listen and spoke positively about both. 

The day at SRSG started at 4.45 am with a bell ringing to wake everyone up. The sessions started at 5.30am and continued till 9 am. Morning schedule from 5.30 till 9 remained the same everyday. After breakfast at 8pm, the schedule for the day was set up. Each session refreshed us a little more and the day used to pass like a breeze.

A lot of thought and care has been taken regarding the surroundings and food that is provided at SRSG. Variety of flowers and bushes add on to the heavenly set up. Food is sattvic and very tastefully prepared. Soul and stomach both felt immensely satisfied after each meal. They also have a library and a book shop where one finds a good collection of books on spirituality.

If you are visiting SRSG for the first time then either you attend a special retreat or attend continuous three regular days. They have many special retreats going on simultaneously and all this information is available on their website: http://sadhakagrama.org/