The Pilgrims Tell Their Stories – Part 4: Babaji’s Cave

The Pilgrims tell their stories – Part 4: Babaji’s Cave

Durga: To reach Babaji’s Cave you have to travel into the Himalayas. A few hours from Ranikhet are the hills where Babaji and Lahiri Mahasaya met many years ago. This is the origin of our Kriya Yoga path. It was therefore important for us to also visit this place on our pilgrimage It took us two days by bus from Delhi to reach it. While in the other parts of the trip it was mostly summer temperatures (for a European), here in the Himalayas it is winter. So we had to put on our thick sweaters and hiking boots.

Being in the uplifted Presence of the Saint Paramananda Giri

Thomas: For me, it was definitely another highlight of our divine pilgrimage.

I’d love to share my experience here with all of you, but to understand it maybe on a deeper level, I would, first, love to talk about an important point.

I just realized, once again, the importance of how we approach a saint. When we know we are going to meet a saint we should consciously try to be open as much as we can. First of all, our perceptions are limited. Secondly, the infinite consciousness and divine expression of a saint is limited by his or her confined body. And thirdly, the exchange and interchange between the individual and the saint is also restricted. Those three restrictions – the present level of consciousness, the awareness of the individual, and many other factors determine the experience we’ll have in the presence of a saint.

I’ll try to make a long story short, because I know my experience was similar to those of other fellow gurubhais.

By trying to be as open and receptive as I could possibly be at that moment, I could deeply feel his loving energy.

Some of us, including me, asked more or less “seemingly complicated questions“ about Dharma, Karma, finding God and related topics.

His answers, again and again, were just … mind-blowing. Mind-blowing in a sense that, at least to me, his replies didn’t seem at all to correspond to the questions being asked. His replies were simply a word or a sentence only, accompanied by a tender smile and a radiant loving energy. His answers, in short, were beyond words, but were pure love. The answer he gave to my question just seemed totally inadequate at first. But at once I “got it“ that the “misunderstanding“ here must be about me, not the saint…

And as soon as I tried to tune in and touch a deeper level of awareness, by closing my eyes and focusing on my breath to center my energy and attention, my whole perception  and intuition shifted completely. I “got it“, his subtle & profound reply.

It was a beautiful encounter in the presence of this 135-year-old saint, who is still strong, energetic and alive like a 70-year-old young man. His secret, he told us, is meditating three times a day, always with a preceding relaxing shower…! (which his doctor told him to reduce to once a day…).

Finally, when we had to leave, it was as if we were going back through a portal into another world. For a few seconds I felt like I had become deeply rooted, unable to move, going away with a sense of sadness. Maybe one of the reasons I felt so connected to him is the fact that he is also a Kriyaban and knows (personally) all the Gurus of our lineage. I turned this into gratitude, asking him to bless my little Ganesha, which I brought to all the places of our pilgrimage. With this blessing, we continued our joyful journey.

Babaji’s Cave:

Durga: I had received the call to go to Babaji’s Cave many years ago. It was like an inner voice that had a lot of power and urged me to go to Babaji’s Cave. I was finally able to answer this call.

So when we took the bus from Raniket, I was very tense. What could I expect? It takes 2,5 hours to go to Babaji’s Cave just in one direction and I felt the inner call getting stronger and stronger every minute. The nature in the Himalayas is beautiful and the energy very high and strong, but I could hardly wait until I finally reached my destination. When we arrived it was already later in the morning and we would need another 30-60 minutes to walk up the mountain to the cave.

It used to be quite hard to reach Babaji’s Cave, but recently they paved a road that leads directly to the mountain.

We were at a little village with some houses and a little shop where you can buy Chai and water. We knew this was our last stop, so everyone drank a chai or went to the bathroom. A strong storm was raging inside me. I didn’t care about Chai or chatting with the others, I just WANTED TO WALK UP THE HILL. So strong was the inner voice now, that I walked to Arudra and asked if I could start alone. I had no idea where the path was or the cave, but I felt I needed to leave NOW. To my dismay, my request was rejected. Arudra said it was more important for everyone to meet in a circle first after finishing the chais. Now it was already midday. I had learned to be very patient on this trip and just to go with the flow but these were the hardest 30 minutes for me on the whole pilgrimage. At 12:30 we finally started to walk up the Hill. I walked at a great pace. I even overtook the people that took a jeep to the foot of the mountains. So strong was the call and the energy in me, that I just ran up the hill up to the Cave. I was first so I had no one to turn to for directions, but intuitively I found the right way. Fortunately, there are small signs that will help you.

And there it was. I was finally there. After so many years that I had dreamed of it. It is a tiny cave with space for maybe 10 people, but I felt like I had come home. Throughout the pilgrimage I had experienced it…In Yogananda’s little attic room, Lahiri’s Ashram in Varanasi but especially here. The same energy as in the Temple of Light in Assisi or on my little altar at home. Always the same feeling: HOME! Just in this place it was 100x times stronger.

When the others arrived, I had already meditated for 15-30 minutes. I can’t explain exactly what happened during this meditation, but I felt like I’m on another planet. Full of joy and peace.

It was very cold in the cave and we took turns. About half an hour each. At some point it also started to rain.

The blessing of the masters 😉

When we had to return at 15:30, I had the feeling of a broken heart and just didn’t want to leave. A friend didn’t feel well, and I had to help her down the hill. So fortunately I forgot about my pain. That is how Babaji made me leave this place that felt like home. Luckily, I was able to come back the next day.

Atul: As we were walking along the dirt road to begin our hike up to Babaji’s cave, I remember watching a gurubhai pick a flower off a tree, one that was not easy to reach and required quite a bit of effort to obtain. I realized he was getting the flower as an offering for Babaji, but I thought to myself, “why go through all that trouble, and does Babaji really need anything from us?” At first my mind was made up, and I was not going to pick a flower for Babaji. But as we continued our walk, somewhere along the way I saw a small yellow flower that was within easy reach, and thought to myself, why not? It would simply serve as a symbol of devotion.”

When we reached Babaji’s cave, I gently placed the flower inside and meditated, with gratitude in my heart for simply having the chance to be there. Looking back, I realized Babaji sure did give us the full Himalayan yogi experience, so to speak, as many of us sat just outside the cave, meditating in the cold and drizzling rain.

As we left the cave and made our way back down the mountain, a group of us saw some beautiful big red flowers hanging from select trees. We wondered what they were called, and we decided to ask some of the land workers nearby. Although they told us the name of the flowers, I can’t recall it at this point. But what was beautiful was that one of the land workers asked if I wanted “a” flower to take home with me…

Well, we sure were surprised when the man climbed the tree and plucked several of the big red flowers, enough to make a small bouquet, and handed them to us. We handed them out amongst our nearby gurubhais, and we were all touched by the man’s kindness.

As we continued our walk back, it didn’t take long for the moral of the story to come alive in my mind…”If you give Babaji a simple flower with devotion, he will give you a bouquet.”

After returning to the base of the mountain, one of my favorite memories is the whole group gathering under the little chai-wala hut for some “with sugar” and “without sugar” chai and some delicious Indian cookies and snacks. Such a perfect way to close out our visit with Babaji.

Dronagiri Temple (Dedicated to the goddess Durga)

Durga: The Dronagiri Temple is a 10-minute drive by bus from Babaji’s Cave. It is a very interesting Temple that lies on a hill, and you have to climb hundreds of steps to reach the top.

Above, hundreds of huge bells are hung, and you are supposed to ring every bell as you take the maybe 400-1000 steps that lead up to the Temple. The bells are aligned in three rows, so three people can walk next to each other and ring them. The sound is quite loud, and the bells change their sound while you walk up the hill. It takes maybe 20-30 minutes to do it and it is quite an adventure. On top of the hill you find the Durga Temple, and a little below a wonderful little tree.

This is the tree where supposedly Babaji and Lahiri Mahasaya met for the first time before they went to Babaji’s Cave. So we sat under the tree and meditated there for some time. It was very calm and beautiful.

Last Words

Atul: Since this is my last blog entry contribution for this India pilgrimage, I just wanted to say how grateful I am for this experience together with my European gurubhais. Even as I write this blog–about 6 months later from Houston, Texas (USA) — reflecting back on the photos of our trip to help germinate memories, I have a deep feeling in my heart of being with family…of being home.

Aside from getting to see my homeland of India in a whole new light, there have been many other beautiful blessings that have arisen from this journey. One of those, thanks in part to our many soul-touching musical moments together, is the creation of @anandamusiceverywhere, an Instagram page dedicated to sharing Ananda music and kirtan from around the world. It’s meant to be a very collaborative page, allowing our worldwide Ananda family to easily share the countless inspiring musical moments we are already creating, in the hopes of inspiring and uplifting others.

Dhuti: For the last few weeks I’ve been digesting and absorbing the many blessings and miracles of the pilgrimage. One of the biggest blessings was the sweet bond of sharing this pilgrimage as a community. I had been on a similar pilgrimage 12 years ago, but I didn’t know most of the people. Some of them were devotees, but for many of them it was more of an outward experience. The depth of meditating with dedicated and devoted gurubhais in the powerful places of our Masters is something that will remain with me forever. All of the chanting and singing was wonderful, spontaneous eruptions of music everywhere we went!

The moments of laughter and joyful, playful exuberance! It was fun to see what treasures and new clothes people found. It was beautiful to watch the profound experiences and growth that everyone was having. The strength with how everyone dealt with adversity. The miracles were many, starting back in December when I realized that I was not going to be able to go on the Pilgrimage, dealing with the disappointment, and then TOTALLY letting go of it. Then the miracle of being able to go to Kerala for my knee, instead of to the US for surgery. Then the realization that I could go on the pilgrimage after all, but in a limited way, maybe not making the hike up to Babaji’s cave.

And the ultimate surprise of being able to hike up to Babaji’s cave, and the Tiger Swami! Amazing. The honor of being gifted the Tiger Swami’s danda/staff. But I think the most significant of the “miracles” is how profoundly this pilgrimage has affected my soul, with the blessings still being deeply felt. The ease with which, when I close my eyes, I can immediately dive into the vibrations of the sacred places we visited. When I meditate my mind is instantly pulled to the spiritual eye, restless thoughts dissolving. When I remember some of the most powerful moments, I am filled with joy. And I am so grateful for all of you, for your love, kindness, friendship, dedication, devotion, and for the special energy that this community has. Infinite gratitude for our Masters, and for our beloved Swamiji for creating Ananda. Jai Gurus!