Kriyaban

And the seventh day arrived! Very calmly and taking advantage of the fact that the plane left at 1 pm, I did all the morning rituals and said goodbye to Ranchi with a small prayer of gratitude in all the sacred places of the premises... I left thinking that this would not be the last time in Ranchi.

I was very expectant about the Dakshineswar (Calcutta) ashram; the photos of the place on the internet are beautiful, and considering that I am going to be there for ten days, I was curious to know how the intrigue would be resolved.

My trip from the airport to the ashram began with a taxi driver who scammed me and left me stranded halfway; (I should have intuited it from his sour apple face) I had to solve the other half with a rickshaw, but no problem, everything is fine (I think I'm starting to flow). Of course, I wasn't going to allow something like that to condition my entry to the "Dakshineswar ashram".

Once at the ashram, I discovered a place that again has many possibilities. Where there are gardens, there are possibilities; that's why this place generates the same kind of feeling as Ranchi. Where there are gardens, there is an Enrique leaning against a palm tree with a lost gaze, where there are gardens there is always a perfect corner to sunbathe during the day and a perfect corner to take a nap, where there are gardens there is no Nutella... (sound of car braking) who said Nutella?

The welcome to the ashram was covered with garlands when I met Santiago, an Argentine guy about 25 years old who is doing something similar to what I am doing. I asked him to show me the place, to explain the details, the corners, the secrets, and between one thing and another, he gave me very valuable information about the best spiritual places to visit in Calcutta, Serampore and Puri, completing impeccably the agenda I already brought from home.

Santiago has been here for more than two weeks, comes from having been in Puri and is a guy who surprises me by the devotion he has being so young. I can feel how happy he is while sharing with me his "spirit-Agenda" and I again thank God for continuing to bless me with such wonderful coincidences and opportunities.

Among the possibilities of the place and the options to visit interesting things, Dakshineswar can rise to position No. 1 in the ranking of ashrams here in India.

For now, I am going to spend two quiet days at the ashram, also taking the opportunity to work a little, and on Tuesday I will go out with him and a Japanese girl (whose name I don't know yet but who is very cute) to start visiting the places on the agenda.

On this trip, the list of people I am meeting (all of them related to the spiritual) is growing little by little and it is what really makes the trip breathe; the places may be very beautiful and touch your heart, but people touch your soul... what am I going to tell you that you don't know...

Again I have landed at a new destination coinciding with the 3-hour meditation, and fasting; I crack up laughing.

The meditation hall here is small for how big the ashram is and it surprised me. In summer, being next to the Ganges, it must put to the test the spirituality of more than one (to put it mildly).

The landscaped area that hosts at the premises and faces the Ganges is simply unbeatable. It is a 100% candidate space to receive my body with affection.

Central building at the Dakshineswar ashram

The next day, and after the almost 4-hour meditation of the previous afternoon-evening, calmly, I prepare (after breakfast and the morning meditation) to let myself be carried away by the different spaces of the premises. In less than 24 hours I have already discovered spaces that are strong candidates for: meditating alone, reading sunbathing, taking a nap, working and philosophizing... I'm a crack looking for spaces...

While in Ranchi, I had the "push" to want to read about Janakananda (First president of SRF after the master's departure) and this is something that had been cooking on a slow fire. In the end it took hold and managed to snatch my will. Being in the Ranchi bookstore, I asked if there was any book about him and indeed there was; for 70 rupees (just under 1€) I was able to satisfy my curiosity. Strangely I felt very happy, it seems that my soul was telling me: thank goodness you finally bought it! I've been shouting in your ear for months and you had to come to India to buy it! I knew you were stingy, but not so much as to wait to buy it for 1€!

Joking aside, the fact is that I will probably talk about Janakananda on several occasions as a result of reading the book and that is why I wanted to make the introduction. I've already read a few pages and I must say that the feeling I have reminds me a bit of what he was like, a feeling of depth. It's not that I'm looking to find something in this book, but I have a suspicion that it hides something important for me. For now, one of the things that most surprised me about Janakananda was his ability to combine his intense professional life with the practice of spiritual life, and I find it quite surprising because, not being a normal businessman (but rather one of the richest in the country), he was able to keep his thoughts in check during meditations.

Multifunctional place, with shade at noon and sunshine at sunset

And along these lines, while enjoying 4 o'clock tea with cookies under a beautiful tree in the garden and with the sunset falling in front of my nose, I realized that, when you have nothing to think about and leave your mind free, all you do is consume energy entertaining yourself with any nonsense that your mind proposes. In these cases it is much more practical (even if only in terms of energy efficiency) to chant a mantra; at least, surely the thoughts that this evokes will be more inspiring.

I've been four days at the ashram without going out and I'm delighted. I'm taking advantage to enjoy feeling how the sun warms my body, meditating in the small chapel by the Ganges and working a little because work has come to me and I'm solving it calmly. In addition, I'm making "excitement bag" because on Tuesday I'm going with Santiago and the Japanese girl to spend all day visiting sacred places, which excites me a lot since we're going to go to very "powerful" places. It will also serve to start with the "spirit-Agenda", but always calmly.

It is highly recommended to land at this ashram on Sunday and be able to enjoy the Satsanga (which is great) and the opportunity to visit (only on Sundays) a room where the master's bed is (which he had expressly brought to Dakshineswar so that there would be something of him at the place), as well as a small temple to Shiva with a linga, all of this on the roof of the main building.

During the day I started to feel that I was disconnecting, and it was meditating in the room of the master's bed and not only did I "plug in", but I took a running start for the three-hour meditation in the afternoon.

The truth is that I am beginning to discover that the best thing about this trip (a trip focused on deepening meditation and the relationship with God) is that, being continuously surrounded by events or things of spiritual and religious character, all of this helps you reconnect with God if at some point you got lost; after all, being permanently connected is the key to success.

The Satsanga was very interesting and concluded with a prasat. The monk cited many miracles of the master of which I had no idea (and having read at this point a few books of his), so it surprised me to recognize in him, the fact that he was an Avatar who from a very young age did incredible things. It is interesting to see that in his bibliography many of these miracles are not present and I think it is due to the fact that surely the master did not want us to get distracted with those things. The monk commented that the master said that they were not miracles, but "help" provided by God through him.

Today, a day before the excursion where we will visit all the places related to the world of Yogananda, I hurried to finish the work I had pending and be able to go out to visit the temple of Kali. I have to say that I prayed beforehand, because I have become afraid to go out "out there". This is a matter that is not minor, and while being "protected" in the ashram, the impact of noise and chaos destabilizes your "zen" state and it is something you can notice when you return after "having crossed the wall". Fortunately, I discovered that the way to the temple can be done on foot in just 15 minutes and it is very pleasant, so I am going to take the habit of going to meditate in the mornings.

The Kali temple is "special". Actually, the complex is quite large and you can pray or deliver offerings in several places. In addition, you can go down to a ghat to get wet in the Ganges and I liked that, not so much because I want to bathe, but because it will be one of those places to "sit watching time pass". The Kali temple itself, is a space not so much to be, but to make offerings and a small prayer because the line to enter is tremendous. So I will meditate outside touching the wall of the wall... I think Kali will know I'm there...

Kali Temple

The night before the "tour", the ashram swami organized the screening of a documentary about Teresa Neumann. Although she rang a bell for me because she is cited in the autobiography, I didn't remember her story. I have to say that it doesn't surprise me that Richard Wright (Yogananda's photographer) fainted when he saw her cry blood, because the images in the documentary are impressive. By the way, I was also very struck by the fact that the swami said she was Mary Magdalene.

Finally the day of the "tour" arrived and at 7 in the morning we got into a Jeep heading to the Shiva Temple. One of the things I liked most about leaving Calcutta was reconnecting with open spaces dedicated to cultivation, so I couldn't avoid forcing a stop on the way to go out and breathe fresh air. Once at the Shiva Temple we walked barefoot stepping on a floor completely soaked with water from the ritual of wetting the feet before visiting the "object" reason for veneration. Shahaja, the Japanese girl, walked on tiptoe so as not to get dirty and I, who eat shrimp with a knife and fork so as not to get my fingers dirty, would have done the same, but perhaps on another occasion; I was very interested in exploring the space without thinking about anything.

Foreigners cannot enter where the "Shiva" object is, so we have to settle for seeing from the "fence", as long as a moment of visual corridor is generated from among the crowd that allows it. Even so, I have to say that the place impressed me quite a bit.

This temple is the one cited by the master in the Autobiography as the temple he did not want to venerate and that for not having done so he got lost; it is then that the goddess explained to him that one thing was a consequence of the other.

Resuming the trip to the house of the "Saint who did not sleep", I shared with Santiago the topic of the importance of practicing "God's presence 24 hours"; it is then that he cited a couple of books that according to him are very good and are related to this matter. One of them, by a certain Laurence, "Practice the presence of God" and another book (in which the technique cited for practicing God's presence coincides with the one used by Daya Mata and Baktananda and that Yogananda gave them) called "Tales of a Russian pilgrim". Two books that will undoubtedly fall upon my return.

Images of the Shiva Temple. I really liked the ritual of the white ox, to which while you cover its right ear you ask it for a wish through the left one

In the house of the Saint who did not sleep I was able to enjoy mentally recreating the master taking that delicious meal, sitting right where he was.

When we arrived at the house of Yogananda's uncle, we meditated for almost 45 minutes in the room where Yogananda stayed during his stays in Serampore. I have to say that the energy there was especially remarkable and pleasant.

The visit to Yukteswar's ashram was also very exciting. Part of the ashram was demolished due to being in very poor condition and in its place there is a small mandir temple that Daya Mata had built.

Mandir ordered to be built by Daya Mata, on the land adjacent to Yukteswar's house in Serampore

With the idea of mentally recreating the fact that right there the photo that appears in the Autobiography was taken, I had enough to enjoy like a child. And of course I also made the imagination fly in the famous tree at the foot of the Ganges, from where Yogananda and Yukteswar walked down to their morning dip.

Yukteswar's Ashram in Serampore

Yukteswar's Ashram in Serampore

An endless number of truly exciting and spiritually stimulating places.

The visit to Yogananda's house could not be and neither could the visit to the house of the Saint who "levitated" due to indisposition of the person who manages the place; a pity, next time it will be.

Images of the Shiva stone, the porch of the house of the Saint who did not sleep where Yogananda ate with the Saint, Yogananda's room in his uncle's house in Serampore, the place of Yukteswar's old ashram and the tree at the foot of the ghat near Yukteswar's ashram

Talking with Santiago we agreed that this trip has a component of "initial exploration" that will serve to determine those places that I will later visit with other interests. And indeed, this trip is opening a temporal corridor that will make me return to India again and again throughout my life. The importance of doing retreats of 1 month or 20 days touring the ashrams of Dakshineswar and Ranchi seems crucial to me to reinforce and catapult progress on the path spiritual. Being here 20 days can have the equivalent impact of a year, and if you also take advantage of the trip to make it coincide with some event, such as a mahasamadhi or a birth, then "I won't even tell you". By the way, it seems that Ranchi is the place chosen and preferred by devotees for Kriya initiation ceremonies.

Outings like yesterday's that take you all day leave you KO. The energy consumption that transiting through India entails is something out of this world. To be here you have to have a very seasoned ear, stomach and patience if you wanted to be moving every day visiting things.

The house of the Saint who does not sleep, cited in the Autobiography of a Yogi

Today, after finishing a bit of work, I walked, almost levitating, to meditate at the temple of Kali. At first it was a bit difficult for me to find the perfect corner to place myself and support my back, but finally, renouncing to avoid getting dirty and not being perfectly comfortable, I found a way to be in the place for a good while and quite connected, which left me in optimal conditions to approach the ghat afterwards to sit and enjoy watching people as they went down, either to get wet in the Ganges, to collect water in jugs or to do a multitude of other little things; the truth is that it is fantastic to be sitting there with attention placed on God and simply observing. This is the other side of India that I sometimes highlight. In India, people with religious spirit gather in these places with their typical colorful clothes, children with painted eyes and flower offerings in small vases made with palm leaves, etc. Being here at these times and being able to do it while being relaxed allows you to enjoy an experience that has no comparison with any other place where I have been.

My plan now is to rest two days at the ashram and go out on Friday to visit the place of Saint Teresa of Calcutta; Santiago says it is an outing I cannot miss.

It is not easy to start writing when you are excited, because your hands do not manage to synchronize with everything that goes through your head. On the other hand, it is an ideal moment since the energy that runs through you is still fresh; it is true that with calmness things are processed in another way, but the freshness is lost. Today has been a brutal day. Santiago insisted that I attend the morning mass to immediately do volunteer work afterwards. According to him, the best way to know the work of Teresa of Calcutta is being where she was and doing what she did, so volunteering was imposed yes or yes. What was originally going to be a visit to the place, has become an experience that obviously cannot be described in words. I had to get up quite early to be on time for mass. Fortunately, the new taxi rental App that Santi showed me is great. Taxis are very cheap and the system allows you to contract pickups in a super comfortable way; this system works extremely well. Just when I arrive, Santi was just crossing the corner, so he could guide me through the place and show me everything. The days at the Teresa of Calcutta center begin with a very nice mass and then the volunteers meet and are distributed by areas or places. Multitude of young people, especially Spanish-speaking, Argentinians, Spaniards, etc. Santi, in line with having the most authentic experience possible, proposes that I volunteer in the "heaviest" place. I, for a moment I am tempted to sign up for the list of people needed to help at the museum (my ego was afraid) and I even play dumb and ask, but the list is full and God wants me to "go through the hoop". I never would have imagined doing the things I did, but I had the feeling that the moment you decide to do volunteer work of those characteristics automatically a kind of "protection" falls on you that allows you to do the work from an emotional neutrality that surprised me. The place is very dignified. The people who are cared for are dying and are lucky that Teresa's is a clean and orderly place, where nothing necessary is lacking. Everyone has their beds and clean blankets, clean clothes and generous food. You clearly see where the donation money goes.
I had a moment when I wanted to give up an hour short; I sat down and wanted to end the volunteer work, but I relaxed, did Hong-So twice and stood up saying to myself: I am prepared to finish this volunteer work as I started it.
I also tell you that, if it weren't for Santi, I wouldn't have considered this volunteer work, but he pushes a lot; his devotion and love for all this world of God is fresh, brave and contagious. What great luck I have had to be able to count on his company these days. Tears came to my eyes when saying goodbye to him, because in my heart I knew that many of the things I did I would have missed if his presence had not existed during these days. And I, who am here for all this, thank with these tears everything he has given me. May God bless you brother!

Teresa of Calcutta. September 5, 1997 - August 26, 1910

What luck I had again when Santi tells me to go to Yogananda's house and to the house of the Saint who levitates, two things we could not do on the tour. We could not enter Yogananda's house for the above-mentioned reason, but I was able to enjoy being at the place. Touch the ground of the entrance, be in the hall and fire up the imagination recreating little Mukunda taking a running start, going down the stairs and skidding right where I was standing, has been again, very stimulating.

In the house of the Saint who levitates, as well as in the house of Yogananda's uncle, the energy is very evident. I was surprised by the photo of the Saint (this particular one was not in my repertoire) by the image of omnipresence that it emanates; curiously it transmitted to me a feeling of very pleasant familiarity; something I will never forget.

The Saint who levitated. Gyanamata's book "God alone". At Yogananda's house

The day closed with a mass again at Teresa of Calcutta's place, and a small meditation in front of her tomb.

Everything that happened today is going to start working inside me during the coming months and from today itself. What a great gift from God it is to be able to be here; this is the best investment one can make with one's life; everything that happens here is of incalculable value, and it is forever and ever; Amen.

Reading the previous afternoon in the ashram garden my new book "God alone" (by Gyanamata), I discover that Yogananda's phrase that I had previously read: "God alone", is hers! and I like to read that Yogananda was captivated by how Gyanamata managed to synthesize in that phrase everything that is the most important on the spiritual path.

Calcutta is a big city and follows in Delhi's footsteps in terms of quickly becoming a modern city. Even so, yellow taxis with the English aesthetic of the 70's, pedal carts with "bundles" of live chickens upside down crossing through traffic, buses with "temples" smoking incense improvised on the dashboard and the occasional dog run over without mercy by impatient drivers decorate the landscape of a Calcutta that runs to modernize while still dragging a very rooted and deep culture in its daily uses and customs.

Without a doubt, the same thing happened to me again as when I organized my first Camino de Santiago: "I have half of my backpack left over". I have been traveling all over northern India with unnecessary shirts and socks as well as an infinity of useless utensils. Now that I have gotten the rhythm of washing clothes frequently, I need fewer changes. It is also true that clothes do not look the same as machine washed, and some brake marks still insinuate themselves in the underwear, but we accept octopus as a companion animal.

This text corresponds to my experience of returning to Dakshineswar in 2024. On this occasion, I arrived after having spent six days in Ranchi, where I enjoyed the reunion with the fantastic ashram and its corners full of the master's energy.
Here in Dakshineswar there have been changes that improve the quality of the stay, such as the installation of air conditioning in the rooms. This is not a minor detail, as in hot weather, having air is vital in India.
On this occasion I remain inspired and willing to share with you my reflections during the stay. I hope you enjoy it and can take advantage!

Who said I was dead? And the thing is I've been sick and that's why my publications have been delayed. Now I'm here, finally, and eager to share with you.

I'm going to leave my health here at the cost of writing this post outdoors because there is a plague of mosquitoes going around that are rubbing their hands with my ankles. But, well, let's go for it all! So, now it was Calcutta's turn. My landings in Calcutta have always been, except on one occasion, of the three times I have come, an odyssey, because something has always happened to me. In a previous post I already commented on the adventure I had with a taxi driver when arriving here, but the first time I came to this place something similar also happened to me.

I think that after the incident with the taxi driver the other day, I have learned the lesson and I have already figured out the trick to what I have to do so that this doesn't happen again. So all those who, following my advice, want to come to the Calcutta ashram, should know that it is beautiful. In addition, they have renovated it, they have invested money and have improved the rooms, they have installed air conditioning, they have renovated the floor and the exterior, with more flowers and so on. And the truth is that you notice, that difference is greatly appreciated.

Here you continue to eat fabulously. The first time I came, I wasn't completely convinced, but the second and third time I was able to verify that it has improved a lot; so you eat as well as in Ranchi. It is important because Indian food, in ashrams, can be very repetitive and if it is not made with a little love, you can get overwhelmed quickly. So it is appreciated that it is good and fun. I am very grateful that the food is delicious because, in addition, I personally get tired very quickly of Indian food. When I've been twenty-something days in India, I start looking for restaurants where they can offer me different things because I'm already starting to get a bit fed up with curry and what is not curry since, although the food is tasty, it is usually a bit repetitive. The ingredients are usually the same, they play with them differently, but there comes a time when you already see where the thing is going and, in my case, I end up getting tired.

I didn't know there was a metro in Dakshineswar, which is where I am. Dakshineswar is in Calcutta. One day when I had to work, I set out to have a cappuccino and decided to go to downtown Calcutta. I looked on Google and headed to a Starbucks. Because where there is a Starbucks, there is money, basically. And that forced me to take the metro, which I didn't know existed, and it took me to a different part of Calcutta. The truth is that I was quite amazed, because it is a very big contrast with the places I normally usually go, here in India. And I really liked the idea of having this very contrasted point of view. Because India is everything, both the humble and the richest.

One thing I hadn't told is that, here, everyone goes honking, whether in cars, bicycles or rickshaws, as if it were a kind of anxiety to make room among the chaotic traffic. In fact, here nobody respects lines. You get in line, Western style, and suddenly people cut in front of you. It's amazing and, the first time, it surprises you a lot. Depending on how you are, you can even get angry, but then you are the one who ends up cutting in too, because it is the general dynamic. Innocent of me, when I thought about getting on the metro, I wondered what it would be like. In principle I arrived, I saw it very well, and when the time came to enter and exit the car, I was going calmly as always, and everyone entered and exited without compassion. The same thing that happens with road traffic happens with the entrances and exits of trains. It is the same behavior of anxiety of "I'm going for mine". Nobody says anything, but everyone pushes and fights for the best entry position. It catches you by surprise and you laugh because it is what there is here.

I really liked seeing the English style in the rich part of Calcutta. Well, more than liking it, it was like a confirmation that the English were here, and it manifests itself in the architecture of the buildings. In the rich area, anything costs the same as in Barcelona. I gave myself the pleasure of going to eat at a cool place. I searched the Internet for cool places in the central area of Calcutta. I found one and said, well come on, I'm going for that one. The rupee-euro exchange gives a lot of play and allows you to go from shabby to a restaurant gourmet, where there are super cars parked at the door, and me there, with my look, tasting like anyone else. For fifteen or twenty euros, you eat as if in Barcelona you spent seventy. It's a wonder.

I went twice to the center, to Starbucks, and I really enjoyed that Western touch. We are used to that point of comfort and being in India sometimes you miss it. To be working, I prefer to be in a Starbucks with my WiFi and my cappuccino.

Something very curious that I wanted to share is that I went to the Kali temple and the ghat, where people bathe in the river. I already commented that it is a space where a fantastic scene is generated, with people bathing in the sacred river. I approached there and, as you get closer, there is a row of busts in homage to the great saints of India. I thought I would see Yogananda, Lahiri, Yukteswar, Babaji... but I didn't see any of them. It caught my attention and left me thinking...

Ghat adjacent to the Kali temple

When I left the airport to come to Calcutta, I had arranged a taxi to come pick me up, but it didn't come. On the plane I shared a trip with a guy who came from Ranchi. We greeted each other, I asked him for help to get a taxi and I ended up taking the famous taxi driver who gave me problems, as I commented in a previous post. And later I reflected that, when someone recommends or helps you with something, they do it by putting their energy into play. So, when you accept something, whether it's advice, an experience, a recommendation or help, you have to be aware that it comes tinged with the energy of the person who offers it to you. Therefore, it is important to consider where such help comes from because the cure can be worse than the disease.

A few days after being here, I went out to the ashram hallway and a swami who is not from Yogoda, but who was around here, approached me and said: "What are you doing, Enrique? Are you coming with me? I'm going to cross the river and I'm going to an ashram of some devotees of Lahiri". In principle, I had planned to stay at the ashram, but I thought about flowing and saying yes to see where it would take me. From minute zero, everything was surprises. This is a guy from Canada who has been in India for almost thirty years, and for five years he has been in Kriya Yoga being a disciple of a master who comes from Lahiri's branch. He has obtained a Yogoda identification and this allows him to be at the ashrams. We started walking and I discovered that near here to the ashram there are small very nice ghats, and right next to it there is a boat that crosses you to the other shore; I thought that to do this same thing you had to go further away. So we took the boat, crossed the river and went to a house where about 25 people lived who worshiped Lahiri. One of the relatives had become enlightened and was worshiped by the family entourage. We were there and, since the swami knows how to speak Hindi, he understood them fabulously. I, meanwhile, was looking at a photo of Babaji that had me hypnotized. The atmosphere was weird, everything was secretiveness and we left almost running from there. Afterwards, the swami took me to a samadhi, a place where a saint who has become enlightened is buried. In particular the samadhi is of Ramakrishna. Being there, the monks started to chant and I joined in. My energy rose so much that, when I arrived at the ashram and did my meditation, I saw the stars. I took note of the hours when they do those chants every day for future occasions. It is one of the things that has entered my super notebook of India of unavoidable things.

Ramakrishna's Samadhi on the opposite shore from the Dakshineswar ashram

After being here and at the next place, in Dihika, I have made an important decision. Until now, I understood that I should leave a donation equivalent to the stay at the ashram, but I think we have to go further. The money left is to help the entire ashram continue growing and functioning better. The accommodation here has a quality far superior to that of hotels and therefore, the money left is not only in concept of the stay, but to help this continue improving. In my opinion it is important to leave the money with that spirit.

Another question, and with this I am going to close, is about the initial prayer that we Yogananda devotees make Here in India the initial prayer is done up to a point, and then the person who leads the meditation adds what they want from their own harvest. It has always caught my attention because the initial prayer itself is so powerful that I think it should be completed as it is. Everything is fine, but in my opinion, the complete prayer without modifications is much better.

As you see, Calcutta has given little play on this occasion. I have not met any group of devotees, therefore, I have not been able to do the typical excursions to the classic places of Yogananda. I haven't met anyone either, apart from the swami, with whom to exchange, converse, etc. In addition, I have had a small hint of a cold. When you are a bit cold-ridden, you are more withdrawn and you don't feel like moving much. So there has been much less adventure than there normally is when I visit Calcutta. Although I am now in Calcutta, I come from having been four days in Dihika, the place where the master set up his first small school. And the thing is I have been in Calcutta six days, but I went to Dihika four days, where in addition to visiting the place I was able to start a treatment with antibiotics thanks to a doctor and the help of the regents of the Yogoda ashram who were tremendously helpful. Tomorrow I am going to the south, I leave for the Ramana Maharshi ashram in Tiruvanamalai, a very, very special place.

As I have already commented, I arrived at Dakshineswar with a persistent cold, trusting that it would pass alone. Finally, it wasn't until I arrived at Dihika that I was able to start treatment with antibiotics. Before that, the ashram swami informed me that Yogoda has a network of small centers throughout India where homeopathic doctors treat you for free. This is really incredible. Following the swami's advice, I put myself in the hands of homeopathy and went to the center that is right in front of the Dakshineswar ashram. There I was attended wonderfully by a doctor who prescribed me a set of homeopathic potions. I started taking them and the next day the dense and green mucus that had accompanied me the last few days immediately went away. However, after three days, I felt that I was not recovering completely and that is why, being in Dihika, I asked please to be taken to a doctor to treat me with antibiotics. Although it was my first experience with homeopathy and it was not entirely bad, I leave the door open to trying it again in the future and I highly recommend going to the Dakshineswar center in case of need.

YSS homeopathic center in Dakshineswar

Treatment for cold with severe mucus

On previous trips I was always worried about making the most of the experience of being in the place. On this trip, I have understood that what is important is your personal process, and that it must be regardless of the place where you are. So I have spent four days practically without moving, healing myself, and I have not worried about anything at all. I have understood that my stay in Dihika had as its main purpose to heal me, and Dihika smells like Yogananda.

The chill you feel when you arrive at the boarding gate for your flight and it is closed because you arrived late is an experience that haunts you for time. I missed the flight that was supposed to take me from Doha to Calcutta on this fourth occasion back to India. I wish I could have stayed lying in a corner of the airport behind a plastic tree sleeping all night waiting for the next day for the next flight, but in Doha they close the airport and you have to go out and fend for yourself in a place you had not planned to visit and of which you know absolutely nothing. That without counting that, to be able to arrive in Calcutta the next day, I had to buy new tickets that cost me more pain than throwing myself into the sea and swimming with all my strength to India. My excess prudence since then at airports makes my anus change color just thinking that I might miss a plane again. I won't even go into telling the reason for missing the flight because I feel terrible shame just thinking about it, but I'll just tell you that I must have been the person in the world who has paid the most for a couple of sandwiches and a coffee.

A picture is worth a thousand words

Finally in Calcutta and thanks to Debasis, the guide of the Dakshineswar ashram, I was able to sleep in a comfortable room and spend the first night to the next day enter the ashram, not without having received several reprimands from Mousumi, the director, for not having made the reservation in time and properly. And the thing is that on this occasion, a Kriya celebration event at the ashram interfered with the dates of my arrival, something I didn't calculate well, and the plans were a bit upset.

The truth is that Mousumi is a sweetheart and knew how to find at all times the perfect balance between setting limits and then giving you all her love, something very beautiful and instructive. It gives information of the great spiritual progress she has acquired.

Once installed at the ashram—and I say installed because on this occasion I have shared the first ten days with my partner Ana, who is also a kriyaban in addition to being the most beautiful thing the cosmos could have created—we arranged the next day with Debasis the classic tour of the master's places.

This tour with Debasis is really spectacular, full of a multitude of incredible places to meditate sharing the master's energy. On this occasion I was able to enjoy new places included in the tour such as the Ramakrishna Mission Center, where I perceived the immediate and pleasant energy that came from the room where he, Vivekananda and other devotees used to meditate; something highly recommended.

Vivekananda's and Ramakrishna's rooms

We passed by Teresa of Calcutta's house and on this occasion, as soon as I entered the museum, I felt like crying, an experience I have never had when coming into contact with the energy of a place.

We also meditated on several occasions in the little chapel next to the river where Daya Mata meditated, at the Dakshineswar ashram, and I must say that on this occasion I enjoyed it immensely.

Little chapel at the end of the ashram, touching the river

It happened to me that on this trip I was less expressive when I visited the room of the saint who levitates, and I had always felt special in this place. I didn't give it more importance since the day was being very intense, with many meditations and sensations, and perhaps I was somewhat tired too. However, in exchange for the traditional donation I kept a book that on previous occasions I didn't see and that seemed interesting to me. Now that I've been a few days in India and have passed through Ranchi, Vrindavan and Jammu, the time has come to take a look at it and I must say I wish I had read it before going to visit his room, because knowing him in detail my devotion, attention and affection towards him have multiplied.

The great Maharshi Nagendranath

The book is highly recommended, not only because it is a source of inspiration, but also because it helps you understand how Yogananda nourished himself with the best he found on his spiritual path to build his sadhana proposal. Once this book is read it is clear to me that he was inspired by this saint to add the Bhakti Yoga part to the Kriya Yoga proposal he offers. Yogananda knew very well that without Bhakti the devotee cannot reach God, it is necessary to surrender with fervent love to God to be able to seduce him and call his attention. You can even read in the book quotes from the saint that the master also uses.

On our visit to the Kali temple, Ana wanted to buy some figures of the Goddess Kali at the bazaar across the street to take home and shortly after we were meditating right in front of her at the temple, in the exact same place where the master sat when he went to pray to her. All this, of course, thanks to Debasis, who saved us the long line and knew of the precise place where Yogananda meditated. How could I not also miss my classic bath up to my knees in the Ganges! This has become a tradition on my visits to the Kali temple.

When we went to visit Anandamayi Ma's ashram, just as Ana set her first foot in her room, she felt a very clear and strong energy. This place is undoubtedly really special. A place where you can also meditate in different spaces and all of them very powerful.

Anandamayi Ma

Once in Serampore, as it could not be missing, we took the photo in the same place where the master's entourage and Sri Yukteswar were in their day. Debasis told us that Yogoda has finally purchased Yukteswar's house and we got goosebumps thinking that one day devotees will be able to visit it and walk through the same place where that historic aerial photo of the master with Yukteswar and the devotees was taken, or be meditating in Yukteswar's room and even contemplate the famous tiger skin he used to sit on during his meditations. What more can a good devotee wish for!

My Goddess and I

Finally, the master's house. What a joy that the master made access possible and that Ana could visit it! I am really happy about it. Sometimes it happens that if the group of devotees is small it can be more complicated, but in this case Debasis and the master aligned for it and Ana and I were able to meditate for a long time in the attic where devotees usually spend time meditating when they visit this place. In addition, we also had the luck to be as long as we wanted meditating in the master's room and even chanting Oms. What a wonder!

The photo on the right is where the master threw his backpack on his escape to the Himalayas

To put the icing on the cake, as a result of some works that were being done in the building, the lady who is in charge of the place and who lives in it allowed us to be with her in her private space while we had a prasat that she had prepared for us. She had the detail of taking out a unique and unpublished photo album with images of the visit of Daya Mata and Sri Nalini to this same place. My mouth was watering seeing all those photos I had never seen before and eating at the same table where all of them celebrated prasat. Faced with all this one can only surrender to the Guru and say thank you, thank you and a thousand thanks. Om Guru Om, dear master.

As you may have already read in previous years on this same blog, I had already done this tour with Debasis on my previous trips, but when I bring a devotee with me, it is a must-do experience and I always appreciate repeating it again. With Debasis everything is easy and fluid, there is no rigidity or rush, which allows you to be in the different places meditating as much as you need; he adapts for your benefit. One thing I love about going with Debasis is that whatever you need he solves it for you in the perfect way. Do you feel like having the best fruit juice in Calcutta? Do you want to eat in a good restaurant healthy and classic Indian food? Do you need to buy a special souvenir? For anything he accompanies you, protects you and explains to you. Using his services is the best advice I can give in this regard. See contact details at the bottom of the page.

Ana was totally in love and surprised with the energy of the places and she had not been in Calcutta for even two days when she had already fallen in love with the country; she recognized it as hers forever.

Because of having lost a day due to the flight and having programmed a short stay on this occasion, the days in Calcutta have passed faster than usual, so again we were catching the next flight this time to Ranchi.

I must remember that the renovations done at the ashram are great and have made the experience of sleeping and being in the rooms something very comfortable.

A pleasant experience you have when you return to these places from time to time is that it allows you to see with greater clarity your state of growth and evolution, and you can compare how you felt the previous times and how you feel now. It is the best way I have found to date to check my internal state.

Information of Interest

Transportation:

Flight from Ranchi to Calcutta; cost: 50€. Taxi from Calcutta airport to the ashram; cost: 600 rupees.

Tour guides:

If you stay at the Dakshineswar ashram, you cannot miss the opportunity to hire the services of Debasis, a devotee who is also a tour guide. He will take you to all the places related to Yogananda during your stay in Calcutta. Don't miss the opportunity to meet him; without his guidance, your stay in Dakshineswar will be incomplete. At the ashram reception you can ask for Debasis.
WhatsApp: +91 90070 58579

Accommodation in Dakshineswar:

Contact and reservations: yssdak@yssi.org
Once at the ashram, the devotee Mousumi and the devotee Aliv will attend you wonderfully.

Website: https://dakshineswar.yssashram.org/reservation

Recommended donation: 1200 rupees/day.

This ashram, like in Noida and Bodh Gaya, is one of those where you have to fill out multiple forms, so you have to read the reply email carefully to determine precisely everything that is needed to contribute and be able to make the reservation correctly.

Places to visit:

In this destination there are quite a few things to visit. Below, I will mention the ones that are most important or interesting for devotees.

Kali Temple to meditate, it is near the ashram (15 minutes walking), there is Ramakrishna's room, which is the place where he received his enlightenment from the Divine Mother in the form of Mother Kali. It is also the place where Guruji sat to meditate in front of Mother Kali's image and obtained the same grace. Mother Teresa of Calcutta. Guruji's House on Garpar Road (where Sri Yukteswar, Babaji and also Sri Daya Mata were). The house of the Saint who levitated which Guruji frequently visited. The Shiva Temple. Yukteswar's house. The tree where Babaji presents himself to Yukteswar on the Ganges. Place where Paramahansa Yogananda lived when he studied at his uncle's house. Sri Yukteswar's Ashram where Sri Daya Mata had a Mandir built. The University where Guruji studied. The house of the Saint who did not sleep. Ramakrishna's Samadhi, the Belur Math which is the main building of the Ramakrishna Math & Ramakrishna Mission on the opposite shore of the river from the ashram. Remember that starting at 5:30 pm you can attend the chants at the main temple, something you should not miss.

Important:

If you haven't read the Considerations section yet, don't forget to do so. In this section you will find very valuable information that can save you many headaches. In particular, there are details related to credit cards and mobile phone use that are essential.