Encountering the Enlightened
“Soak In Ecstasy of Enlightenment” was a day-long program with Sadhguru, held on 20th Jan 2024 at ICC Sydney. It was a attended by over 6000 people.
This is a personal account of my experiences during the event.
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| Photo Courtesy - Isha Australia |
Sadhguru’s event in Sydney was a roller coaster of emotions that can hardly be put into words. How can one describe silence, stillness, emptiness and bliss? Yet, the heart says, write it all down! So, here I am, recounting the sequence of events that led up to some amazing and inexpressible moments. I write with the hope that the reader will get a glimpse of what I experienced, and in the process re-living it all over again!
The Walkabout
Sadhguru’s much anticipated event in Sydney was announced over 8 months ago, and I had booked early to secure a spot close to
the dais. On the day of the event, I woke up early and reached the venue at
8:30 AM. I felt 'light as air', having subsisted mostly on the recommended diet of fruits and
salads for three days. At the Venue, Isha volunteers welcomed us with
their usual folded hands and smiles and showed me to my spot. Thousands had already reached and were seated. We did our daily sadhana (the inner engineering
practice of - Shambhavi Mahamudra1 ) as a group and settled down on the mat, eagerly waiting
for Sadhguru.
At 10 AM, Sounds of Isha2, struck up the soothing notes of Kabīr’s “Yugan Yugan Hum Yogi” 3 and a wave of excitement spread through the crowd as Sadhguru walked onto the stage with folded hands. As he started his walkabout across the auditorium, we watched the big screens, following him and looking at people greeting him with folded hands, smiles, and with tears of joy. Sadhguru had tears in his eyes too. Many years ago, I had heard some one ask Sadhguru
“Why do I feel these waves of emotion, and tears of joy when I see you?” and he had answered cryptically “…it’s just life…”
Vortices and Whirlpools
In the morning session, Sadhguru mesmerised us with his playful anecdotes and jokes, laying the foundation for a guided meditation that was to follow. He warned us about our
familiar tendency of latching on to false identities.
“Your house, car, wealth, family, caste, religion, race, nationality... are not-you.…When you identify with what is not-you…you start building castles in the air…that’s when we call you ‘Neurotic’…and then you start living in those castles…then we call you ‘Psychotic’… soon enough someone comes along and starts collecting rent… he is called a ‘Therapist’ (Laughter)
“…why aren’t the Chinese people
laughing…Hello?, isn’t the translation working?…” (more laughter)
He proceeded to tell us how these ‘small seeds’ of false identifications start forming "vortices", soon becoming giant "whirlpools" that start consuming us.
“…Is it ok to have a little bit of poison in
your food?... Hello?” he asked. “…If that's not ok, then why do you continue to nurture little bits of anger, hatred, jealousy in your lives?” .
He then led us through a guided meditation, taking us through a nature trail, deep into a Jungle, and into a river, and made us get rid of our poisons -
anger, jealousy, hatred and resentment. We slowly walked back with him, out of the river, through the jungle, and back to our seats.
It was lunch time, Sadhguru reminded us all of the Sadhana that we could do even as we ate. “…A piece of bread
that is outside, when consumed, becomes part of you…eat with an attitude of
reverence towards food, it is becoming you!… such an attitude will transform you…”
“...let loose within
yourselves…outside, you be appropriate to the situation, but within, you let
loose…”
“in the villages in Karnataka they write ‘Nālē
Bā’ (come tomorrow) in red paint on their doors to ward off evil spirits…the
evil spirits only understand local language you know (laughter) …you all have
written ‘Nālē Bā’ on your faces…Joy!, Nālē Bā’, Happiness! Nālē Bā’… don’t be
like that like dead men (imitates a corpse, and there is laughter)…remember the
time when you were really wonderful…set that as the benchmark for yourself, and don’t come
down from there…just keep going up…”
We then closed our eyes again, and this time Sadhguru’s voice guided us through a guided meditation that was a combination of breath and visualization. I can hardly describe how it feels when six thousand people are taking breath in unison! I felt a deep connection with all the people in the hall, as if we were breathing with one breath.
Time stood still, and all I was aware of was Sadhguru's humming, the ebb and flow of patterns in the mind created by the beat of the music, and breathing in unison.
Sadhguru said “…now imagine the face of the person you love, imagine it as much detail as you can… and put that face on every human being on earth, every animal and every stone…make it a lifelong love affair with the whole world…”
Music had ended, the hall was still, amidst thousands of people I was alone, surrounded by the melody of Sadhguru’s song, an immense feeling of love for all creatures in the world, and a stream of tears.
From Untruth to Truth
The rest of the afternoon was a blur. I heard bits and pieces of another free-flowing talk with Q&A, and when Sounds of Isha struck up the familiar tune of “Alai Alai” 5 focus came back. It was time to say good bye to Sadhguru. People were clapping, dancing or simply enjoying the rhythmic beat with abandon. As Sadhguru started walking the ramp, he asked us for a commitment
“…today you make a commitment and just say this line ‘Asatoma Sadgamaya’ 6 which means going from Untruth to Truth"
"Check your own experience and you will see...Anger, Jealousy, Hatred… they are Untruths… Peace, Joy, Compassion…they
are Truths… so make the commitment to go from Untruth to Truth… just remember 'Asatoma Sadgamaya' ”.
“Alai Alai” had reached its crescendo, rhythmic clapping was louder. Sadhguru did his familiar dance along the ramp, sometimes bowing down to
people that thronged towards him with outstretched hands, wanting to make a brief contact. There was an intense outpouring of emotion mostly of joy, but for some, tears of separation as he walked off the stage.
A tiny drop of enlightenment!
As I made my way back to the train station, barely aware of people around me, I could still hear Sadhguru’s exhortations to always be our wonderful selves. I sat on the train, eyes closed, trying to hold on to that moment of stillness and Joy that I had experienced.
Sadhguru often reminds us to just be receptive to experiences, and not intellectualize them. However, the blogger in me was already structuring things, and framing and fitting the words onto the experience. And so I looked back at the day hoping to piece things together
In the Morning, Sadhguru had first made us get rid of the dormant seeds of anger, jealousy, and resentment, emptying us of our poisons, and then he had filled that space with an immense unconditional love for all life. He had gently coaxed us, once again, on to the path that would take us from untruth to truth – Asataoma Sadgamaya! On the train, at that moment, I felt the penny drop and I felt the joy of having gained a tiny drop of enlightenment!
As the train chugged on, I thought of Kabīr again, Sadhguru has walked in to Kabir's song in the morning , so I wanted to find a song to end the day with. Sure enough, Kabīr had the perfect words…
Notes:
2. Sounds of Isha: Isha Foundation's own home-grown group of musicians. They play a fusion of music from different parts of the world, traversing effortlessly across boundaries and cultures. They have a unique ability to instill in us an element of the eternal silence that touches the core of the human being.
3. Yugan Yugan Hum Yogi by Kabir: Kabir is a 15th century Indian mystical poet revered by all religions, the song means For ages and ages, I've been a Yogi
4. Sadhguru’s Poems: For more Sadhguru’s poems read Eternal Echoes - compilation of poems by Sadhguru between 1994 and 2021. These poems cover every aspect of his life and travels. There are poems on nature, environment, human nature, the experiences, and resonances he has felt during these three decades.
5. Alai Alai; If you could sing “joy”, what would it sound like? Alai Alai is a song that carries the exuberance of being human. Composed by Sounds of Isha, it is an expression of the boundless joy which has seeped into the hearts of millions across the globe in the form of "Ananda Alai - A Wave of Bliss" which originates in Sadhguru
6. Asatoma Sadhgamaya: is an ancient Sanskrit mantra introduced in the Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad. It has 4 lines of which this is the first line. It is interpreted as “lead me from untruth to truth”
7. Satgur sôî dayâ kar dînhâ by Kabir: Song by Kabir which starts as “ it’s the mercy of my true guru that made me know the unknown” I have used “grace” instead of mercy above. The full poem is larger, i have only picked up an extract that resonated deeply with me.
Immersive writing! I could feel the experience of being there in person
ReplyDeleteVery nicely described. Was transported to the very venue. Well done.
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