Kriya insights, darshanas and Welcoming 2026 In the hills of Mussorie, town of dehradun and by the Ganga in Rishikesh

I am on a annual year end trip, coinciding, with college holidays, the last one, as kids turn 21 next year! This time we are into the hills of Mussoorie and holy waters of Rishikesh as the 2025 year comes to an end...

Amazing success story:

As i was about the publish this blog, my dear friend S, shared some great news! He sold a portion of his company! Yes, i heard it right. For 325 Crores! that is around 40 million USD maybe, but in India with purchase power parity, it feels like 400 million! When I am with S, there is so much to learn, to absorb, to focus. He was our client earlier. Now he is our trusted advisor! Someone who is as adept in fitness, as he is in yoga, as he is in business, while being a great human being!

I know S, since many years. He has Filed more than 600 patents, has a resting heart rate less than 50, which indicates his superb fitness, focuses on longevity segment in business including work on stem cells, nutrition etc. He is fair and generous in his dealings. Some key learnings from S.

1. Partners may cheat you, but always be their friend. Never cut them off. When i met my ex partner who cheated me for a large sum, there was the same warmth and happiness in meeting him, though i will never do business with him again.

2. Price your product lower than the cost that your competitors have by cutting capex and substituting the most expensive part of the product with a great alternative. He has reduced the capex from 60 crores to 12 crores and doubled the plant capacity. This insight has helped us to become a capex light company.

3. Leverage on your connections to build wealth. So keep building connections. Network in your domain, which i am doing and i get clients, aasociates and vendors write fast, being in ascent, bni, bbb and exponential groups.

4. Write every interaction. He has notebooks since last 40 years. Where all key meeting points are recorded. Amazing. I too try to take extensive notes.

5. Focus on one domain. Like he is focused on longevity as a domain. I am focused on buildings as a domain.

6. Core science is the key to future. Cutting edge is where is money is. Being aware of the largest innovations is the key for us to become a turnkey provider.

7. Yoga with asana strech positions to open energy centres was introduced by aadil palkhiwala, the youngest yoga acharaya trained under bks Iyengar and a close friend of S. Every meeting with aadil is a great learning session.

I take this opportunity to thank him for the amazing contribution in my life.

This is the result of being spiritual! If your networth and bank balance does not grow, spirituality is not working. the key is to have, to start, to grow, to dissolve, all without any attachement to having, doing or being. just being a witness! It is ok to be poor or rich, but it is more fun to be rich, than poor! A fundamental insight...

My friend G has asked me once, that isn't spirituality about giving up things? Then how do you link it with success which is about having things? The explaination is as follows:

The self has no desires. Desires are always for a role. We have roles, so we have desires. It is like when there is a fire, there will be light and heat!

Instead of taking sanyas and making your roles nil, one can just be aware of your roles and instantly, you are not bound by them. The lack of role awareness is nothing but maya!

Just like in sports, you play to win, but if you don't, you still enjoy the Play! And keep playing. Sometimes you win. Sometimes you don't.

This is exactly what is given in bhagwat gita. Play for the goal, don't get attached to the greed of having or fear of losing it. Otherwise, it takes you into mind games and away from the present moment.

Live in the now. At times one has to plan for the future, think and learn from the past etc. But most of the time, it's in the now, that life is lived.

On the playground, you are a player, a captain, a forward, a goalkeeper, a batsman, a fielder, depends on what game you play.

In that game, you are not a father, a husband or a friend. You focus on one role, one time, and play it well.

Sanjeev has played the role of founder well, created maximum value for the shareholders. He has "helped" everyone involved (stakeholders), when he played the game. That is the key!

Once you meditate, your mind is calmer, more objective, balanced. You can play a bigger game. Small things don't bother you. This is the outcome of being spritual. Its not about the rituals or things you do

This automatically manifests as success in your roles!

You don't meditate to get away from the world, have no desires. You meditate so that you can play the roles better, help everyone and still be unattached to the goals of the roles.

Set bigger goals, play the game. Enjoy the process.

Be aware that it's a role play! Not you yourself, who has a desire.

Getting results:

As desires are linked to the role, there is nothing wrong in purushartha, to fulfill the desires. The question, in my mind for many years was, what are the deities one should pray to in this yuga, to get faster results?

A few days before i started the trip, i came across this video from shankaracharya from puri. This was something, which was the answer to this question.

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1D6txfjZTt/

Devi and Lord Ganesha's worship in kali yuga is preferred for faster results as both represent group energy and it is said that "Sanghe Shakti kaliyuge". This is especially powerful if one of them is also your ishta devata!

How to find your ishta devata? read here.

https://www.limaye.org/post/identify-your-ishtadevta-while-understanding-the-deeper-meaning-of-fulfillment-with-kriya-yoga-astr

Dehradun:

Stupa:

Came across this interesting poster at the local buddist stupa!

I wonder what relationship having peanuts has with being spiritual? I imagined, it must be something as funny as the story of a sanyasi who got a cat. Watch the small video here by osho.

https://youtu.be/NdPJdJ2vyY8?si=3oXC5Yyr_-kQd3GE

Propose of life:

There was this poster in the premises, that caught my attention.

A fundamental learning for the true purpose of life. This was summarised by my 80 year old homeopath, dr sharma in 3 words. "Make others happy". That's all. Simple.

I even saw a place named after me. Just kidding!

At the store!

This is the new look in a monk outfit:

Tapakeshwar Mahadev:

Down the hill climbing down many steps, into the cave, was blessed to have darshan of Shiva lingam, which is swayambhu. Due to dripping water, the floor was ice cold. It reminded me instantly of the amarnath yatra!

https://www.limaye.org/post/blessed-with-amarnath-yatra-in-july-2024-with-darshan-of-baba-barfani-in-divine-energy-form

Recitation of shiv Manas Puja was done here, silently in the mind, with the clarity that i am Shiva!, as given in 4th shloka.

One of the sadhus gave us some Teen mukhi rudrakshas. This is something unusual and indicates a direction given to turn to the spiritual side.

Significance of 3 mukhi rudrakshas.

3 Mukhi Rudraksha symbolizes the Trinity (Brahma, Vishnu, Mahesh) and Agni Dev , known to purify past karmas, negative energy and emotional burden, increase self-confidence, improve concentration and bring mental clarity. It is especially beneficial for students and stressed people, and is worn to pacify the malefic effects related to the planet Mars!

Last Darshan was at mata dat kali devi mandir. This is a local and famous temple of devi. Meditated for some time here.

Thus ended an eventful day, with 3 pious places visited.

Mussoorie:

Every place has an ancient and recent significance. I was surprised to know that this is the first place, hh dalai lama came to after being exiled from tibet. A deep meditation followed in the first temple setup by his highness.

A small climb, after buying Tibetan incense sticks, (the sense of smell is often ignored, as most of the input is audio visual, however, once eyes and ears are closed in silence , the tongue is in khechari mudra, and breathing slows down, suddenly the sense of smell of incense takes over) brought me to the Dalai hill.

As I meditated on the dalali hill, I discovered a method to integrate the ishta devata mantra with the breath. It is essentially focusing on the chakras as one breathes in and out with 2 holds. Inner kumbhak and outer kumbhak. the pattern was familiar, and when I disused with with G, some more insights came up. That is the power of a peer group, supporting, discussing, improving...

3D. Deven and the dog on Dalai hill!

This intuition came on its own. I only have to sit in Dhyan and things start appearing on their own! I have nothing to seek. Only insights to uncover, as they appear at the right time. At times, there are no insights, its ok!

Avoiding mind games in Dhyan:

Everytime one goes into dhyan, expecting that there will be an experience, an insight, a vision itself it a trap. Mind has funny games it plays! So to recognise the mind, as it is, be a witness, silences the mind, until, it jumps again! If and when the intuition comes, let it come. Don't expect anything is the fundamental of dhyan. Dhyan is not visualization. It is being into nothing, ready to receive.

Monkey attack:

There was a beautiful cafe, cafe emily, where we got a dessert.

A monkey attacked the white bag, which was holding a packed desert. (This was similar to the attack in Vrindavan when a money managed to take my spectacles, only to get it in return thanks to our ingenious rickshaw driver!), But the bigger monkey (me), did not let go of the bag! This was one of the best desserts we had, back in the hotel! Lesson. Not to panic! Hold on.

Our gotra is kapi, which is named after a Rishi, but in Sanskrit, it also means a monkey! No wonder we have mutual attraction!

Thanking my gurus and mentors:

On the new year, it was time to be in gratitude and thank my gurus, mentors and acharyas for the outstanding support and guidance during the year. Finding the right gurus and mentors is the key. The quest to find, always gets you the right one, even if it takes time.

Thank you, Yogesh, for teaching me shankhnaad, Histas baba for kriya yoga, Ambrishji for business mentoring. Thank you Swami Vishwananda to allow me to serve you. I bow to our nath sampradaya gurus. To everyone who has contributed to this amazing journey.

Learning of the year:

The most fundamental learning of this year came a few days back when Ambrishji shared this picture.

This was reinforced, when i was looking at sales of some of the pest control companies, which are into business since decades. Their turnover is in the range of 10 crores only! Low average order values, competition, large staff and offices across India. They are working very hard, for a 5 rs business!

I am glad, our mentor has shown us a way to fully harness our talent, value system and legacy, to get us out of the 5 rs business, as soon as we started our mentoring sessions!

Call from P:

I got a call from my friend P, wishing new year greetings. As we talked, i realised that her business model was no longer relevant! She is stressed about it too. When this happens, its time to reinvent, time to think, stop what is not working, start something new. Instead of a setback, this can be great opportunity. What she needs the most is a seasoned proven business mentor. A business mentor knows what your strengths are, what you are capable of, what is the business challenge, how to position the business and then makes a strategic execution plan!

3 roles we play:

We play 3 roles of Brahma, when we create something, Vishnu when we grow it and Shiva, when we stop something. Unless resources are freed by Shiva, they are not available for bhrama to create! This cycle of creation, growth and dissolution is seen in all aspects. Our life itself, any action we take, breath, thoughts. Its very fundamental.

In breathing, in inhale, it's start, continue and stop, then the cycle repeats and reverses in direction while you exhale. This process is so simple and fundamental that buddha attained nirvana by observing it! This is the first method given in the bhairav tantra also.

In living, one is born, the life matures and then death happens. When a person dies, the body dissolves into the 5 elements over time, whether you bury, drop them into an ocean, leave it to the birds or burn it.

In mind, there is a thought, then we think and then there is thoughtless state. Everyone has a impression that, meditation is not easy, as it is about being thoughtless. However, between two thoughts, between a chain of related thoughts which we call thinking, there is a small, very small gap, when there are no thoughts! Just being aware of this gap and expanding it, takes you into dhyan. This method is also given in bhairav tantra.

In business, a startup is the start, when the business grows, it has challenges to fix, new markets to explore, new products to be added. At one point of time, the business could be sold or shut down. In this, there is a dissolution of resources engaged in business. This frees up resources. This is exactly how a startup eco system works.

Think of the other areas of your life and contemplate, what you see starting, continuing and stopping. This is an easy method to become a witness.

Accepting that everything which is not eternal or bharman will have a start, beginning and end, (including brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh), makes one a witness. There is nothing to hold on to, nothing to seek.

New year 2026

As i received many greetings for new year wishes, i realised that

Most of the days, it's a new year, depending on which calender you follow... There are hundreds of them all over the world.

Mayan calender

And each breath is a new life anyways! A new beginning, a new kriya breath.

Monthly spiritual call:

Me and my friend prassi have a one on one spiritual discussion call once a month. In this month, he shared this shloka and its meaning. I thank him for sharing the great learnings in the 5 amazing shlokas from bhagwan shree krishna 🙏🏼. According to my limited understanding, i have interpreted it as follows. Giving it in italics fonts.

उद्धरेदात्मनात्मानं नात्मानमवसादयेत् । आत्मैव ह्यात्मनो बंधुः आत्मैव रपुरात्मनः ॥ 6 - 5 ||

Let a man lift himself by his own Self alone, and let him not lower himself; for, this Self alone is the friend of oneself and this Self is the enemy of oneself.

Is about doing purushartha. Not leaving things to bhagya.

कमर्वण्येवाधकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन। मा कमर्वफलहेतुभू र्वः मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकमर्वण ॥ 2 - 47 ||

Thy right is to work only, but never to its fruits; let the fruit-of-action be not thy motive; nor let thy attachment be to inaction.

Leave the greed and fear of the attachment or aversion to the goal and act as per your role, doing what is right.

यत्करॊष यदनास यज्जुहोष ददास यत् । यत्तपस्यस कौन्तेय तत्कुरुष्व मदपर्वणम् ॥ 9 - 27 ||

Whatever you do whatever you eat, whatever you offer in sacrifice, whatever you give in charity, whatever you practice as austerity, O Kaunteya, do it as an offering to Me.

Is similar to shiv Manas Puja 4th shloka. Only difference is that in the puja, you are Shiva! And everything is offered to you!

अनन्यािचन्तयन्तो मां ये जनाः पयु र्वपासते । तेषां नत्याभयुक्तानां यॊगक्षेमं वहाम्यहम् ॥ 9 - 22 ||

To those men who worship Me alone, thinking of no other, to those ever self-controlled, I secure for them that which is not already possessed by them (YOGA), and preserve for them what they already possess (KSHEMA).

Interpreted as union or yoga with Brahman and preserving the current state kshema. Not letting the yogi slip back. It is not about material possessions of having more and protecting what assets exist.

सवर्वधमार्वन् परत्यज्य मामेकं शरणं व्रज । अहं त्वा सवर्वपापेभ्यः मोक्षयष्याम मा शुचः ॥ 18 - 66 ||

Abandoning all dharmas (of the body, mind and intellect), take refuge in Me alone; I will liberate thee from all sins; grieve not.

This is the essence of nirvanashatakam, explained in a single shloka.

I have met very few gentle, caring, loving souls in this lifetime. Prassi is certainly one of them. A follower of chinmaya mission, he carries with him, lot of social activities related to education, charity etc. He was instrumental in founding a charity getting together our engineering College friends. And once it was setup, did not keep holding the post, but created a structure of directors, advisors etc and handed over the riens to the next round of leaders. Its very difficult to let go, especially something one has created. He has done it.

Last time, he was here, i went to meet this father, who stays in India with a caretaker in ashraya elderly home. Listening to his memories, especially regarding the Tamil books library he started in 1960s with Ganesh (our batch mate) father, was very interesting. There are a few Friendships that span generations. This is one that has continued in their third generation, where their kids are friends too!

Rishikesh:

Our hotel is right on the banks of river Ganga! It has an amazing view. There is an instant affinity, as my birthplace kashi is on the banks of ganga river too! .

Courtyard for meditation

The diagonally opposite view to the hotel from the courtyard

Mata Kunjpuri devi shakti peeth mandir:

This is one of the 52 shakti peeth locations. A place of positive energy, a place to pray for all the knowledge (maha vidyas), all the power ( siddhis) and all resources ( laxmis) for well being of all...(Loka kalyanam). There is nothing to ask for myself.

In Dhyan, in the garbhagruh, The realisation that one only has to focus on the fontanelle, the crown chakra. This was a divine insight...

Automatically, the senses are drawn to this point. This is the process of kriya yoga. In kriya yoga, the vibration in crown (no external touch, but inner vibrations only), vision focus on crown (no sight, external light, only inner light) where eyes automatically turn inwards and upwards, anahata naada (only inner unstruck sound) fills the being, awareness of breath (no smell, no aroma) going in to the crown and khechari (no taste) where the tongue is pointing towards the crown! is a state, not a practice...

The insight built on the integration of breathing and ishtadev mantra earlier.

All senses are engaged and in neutral mode, all drawn to the crown. There is no effort now. The practise is now a habit and now a state on its own. In this state, pratyahara happens automatically. There is no need to withdraw the senses. They are drawn to the crown.

Slowly, the focus on the crown, starts shifting upwards to a far away point...The star point, mentioned by Ashokji from Delhi in the Kriya retreat in Dec 2024...

Neelkanth Mahadev:

This is the place where Mahadev took the Halahal poison and did tapas for 60,000 years!

Doing shiv manas puja and maha mrityunjay Mantra, near the garbha gruha was a divine experience.

This was followed by having alu chat and kakdi at the stalls outside the temple.

Ganga arti:

Now off to ganga arti. We reached, when it was just getting over... Never mind, having attended Ganga arti number of times in Varanasi, this would have been similar, i imagine.

Dinner:

Chotiwala. Over rated, but as had heard so much about it, decided to visit. There is no local dish here. So had idli wada sambar.

Full moon meditation:

Now getting ready for full moon meditation by the river.

So putting on the meditation gear, thermal etc. And this is how i look!

Looked around for some full moon meditation sessions online. Did not find any thing worth it. Anyways, it's better to be alone and in silence and work with intuition, rather than be in a group, with music, audio guided tapes etc. The silence attracts me more than noise. The solitude attracts more than company. Thoughtlessness attracts more than thinking!

Have decided to stay in the hotel premises as it will be late and did not want to take any risk outside the hotel, being alone.

In deep meditation, one tends to be oblivious to the surroundings, which in an unknown place with unknown people, is not safe. In such places i am forced to be aware of what's happening around me. This defeats the very purpose of meditation!

Proximity to ganga (in the hair), full moon (on the forehead) being in Rishikesh ( land of rishis and yogis) feeling the presence of adinath (Shiva), our first guru in the lineage, night sky, devoid of sunlight (dark and dissolving), indicates worship of Shiva tonight. So be it.

Open air. Alone. Fully covered. At a distance from a group, playing guitar and singing. Initially, it was a bit distracting, but soon, i was hearing one sound at a time, with no memory of the previous sound, hence no music, no rhythm, hence no diversion of mind, as there was no pattern to search in the chitta (memory)...

As soon as we get a sensory input, from any of the 5 senses, our mind instantly compares it to a stored memory decide if it's known or unknown. This happens extremely fast.

By being in the present moment only and being aware of the sensory input, there is no pattern that can be checked in the memory.

This is the way, one can remain in the present moment, inspite of chaos around. A small practical example of the yoga Sutra, chitta vrutti nirodhah... When there is no access to the memory bank, the thoughts also don't arise.

Completed kriya yoga session, shiv Manas Puja and maha mrityunjaya mantra chanting, all done silently. At the end of kriya yoga, when i do the prayer to thank all my gurus and everyone, i say pasaydan, the universal prayer by dyneshwar. In this prayer, nothing is asked for the self, only asking is of universal peace and happiness.

During pasaydan, i was losing the track many times. After every stanza, i was going blank, not remembering where i was earlier. I was unable to remember the words sometimes, though i have said pasaydan thousands of times till now... This happens at times, when the silence within is larger than the memory, emotions, intelligence, and identity, the 4 parts of the mind. I just accepted it. Did not judge it as great or an issue. So took a longer time to complete pasaydan... And kriya yoga

In chanting maha mrityunjay Mantra:

Mantra chanting on a mala is first level, where the audible words ensure the correct pronunciation.

When the chanting is done on the lips, barely audible, the effectiveness increases 108 times.

In the next level, the mantra reaches The mind, and you can hear it without moving your lips। At this stage, you may or may not use the mala, as the power is 108 x 108 times now. This stage comes with reasonable practise. This can be done with more than 1 mantras, each suited for a particular purpose. However, better to focus more on ishtadev mantra.

Finally as the mantra gets integrated into your breath, the effectiveness increases further 108 times. So it's a million times more powerful than saying it aloud. This stage is ideal for ishtadev mantra, the same one you chant during kriya pranayama.

There was no intuition, no insight, nothing. There was no expectation. Just a peaceful state. More than an hour had gone by...I thought it was maybe half an hour max.

There was a small bonfire nearby. Left behind by the group that was singing... Good enough to warm my hands... After a small walk...

It was time to sleep... Its past midnight now.

Laxman jhoola:

A morning walk to laxman jhula and trimbakeshwar Mahadev darshan.

It was a beautiful temple complex, followed by a breakfast at a nearby cafe.

Off to the airport:

Reached the airport, only to find that the flight is late, giving time to edit and put pictures in the blog! When life gives lemons, make lemonade!

Recap 2025:

Recounting some key spiritual moments in this year, referring to the blogs:

1. Kumbh Mela with kriyavans and guruji where i discovered my ishta devata.

2. Maha shivratri at prayagraj where a new mission of life was discovered.

3. Identification of ishta devata, recalling it's mantra and integration with kriya yoga.

4. Exploring Paravastha with a quick method to reach it

5. Study of Ashtavakra Gita, to just saw the truth as it is.

Others which are not specifically in the blogs:

1. Darshan of vitthal at pandharpur. This was a dream come true. It just happened, as our project started nearby.

2. One day yoga session with bei. This introduced me to dhyan.

3. Temple darshans in Goa.

4. Trimbakeshwar jyotirlinga darshan.

5. Abhishek Puja at mahabaleshwar mahadev at mahabaleshwar.

Some other memorable moments:

1. Great Trip with college friends to goa after 30 years. Sadly, one of us, sameer left us a few months back.

2. First visit to taiwan, for work. Impressed by there vision in 1970s which made them a computer hardware mfr hub.

3. Successful surgery of a family member. This was a crucial one.

4. Attending the seminar and training program on society redevelopement. This is the future direction of work.

5. Trip to jaipur to attend a wedding of a close family friend. Got a taste of a royal wedding in a haveli.

6. Mahaprayag event in bbb, where the Turnkey construction model was packaged and presented.

8. Pench tiger safari. On maruti gypsies that dont have any shock absorber system left in them, as they were discontinued many years back!

Professional learning:

The learning with our mentor Ambrishji continues. Here is the summary of 4 years.

4 key learnings in 4 years of being with masterclass. 🙏🏼

Year 1. Tum contractor bano. People don't need advice. They need an executed solution to their problem. As consultants, we knew everything anyways. We only had to figure out how to handle labour, which we did! This resulted in a substantial jump in the business.

Year 2. Kya karne se? Instead of discussing the past and the problems, focus only on the goal and what will you do to get there. This was a fundamental mindset change, essential to running a larger business.

Year 3. Turnkey construction karo. Combining expertise of hundreds of associates and using project management and quality control skills, which are our key strengths, offer a single point solution to clients. This got us into larger projects.

Year 4. Mat karo - 5 rupaiye - ka dhanda! Quickly identify of the opportunity is large and scalable. If not, don't invest time and energy. This helped in deleting it delegating so many small activities that were taking my time, energy and money. The focus is very sharp now.

In the world of construction, where almost anyone is a contractor, from the small to the very large, we have managed to create a unique positioning, thanks to Ambrishji' s guidance.

Key learning:

If you want to excel in anything, get the best coach, who has a proven track record. Fitness, business, diet etc. Any area, you need a coach. One on one coach. Not a group coach. Not online training. Coaches come with a vast experience and skills, which have a 1000x return o investment of time and money you make in coaching.

Blessing:

As my 2026 starts with an early morning darshan of ganga Mata in Rishikesh, who represents amazing resilience, love, peace and bliss, I wish you a very happy New year...for, in times to come, you shall soar to uncharted heights of success, we meet, celebrate and discover new dimensions of life and success together! Looking forward! Happy near year 2026 ce.