Shivratri 2026 in Kashi. Discovery of the foundation of kriya yoga.

Invitation: 

This time, as usual, the invitation to come to shiv ratri Puja in Kashi went to many. But only 4 could finally make it. One perspective is that a person goes to kashi, only on Baba's will.

Calling:

Many people believe that kashi darshan happens only when you are called. Looking at it differently, in life and esp in spiritual journey, the mind makes peace with a situation, by assigning the responsibility of events, thoughts, people in life to God/guru/diety... This is a process of surrender, when there is the one. Most of the sadhaks are at this stage. This is the message of bhagvat gita, where Krishna says, leave everything to me.

The next stage is beyond the one. Knowing that it's all the form and formless, everything, everytime, everywhere!

To move to the nirguna from saguna, after nirvanashatakam, one needs a deep study of ashtavakra Gita. Ashtavakra Gita has complete one ness. So who is calling whom? we are simultaneously in the totally formless and infinite forms universe. Whatever resonates within, one can go ahead with it. I discovered the connection between kriya yoga and ashtavakra Gita in this trip...

Finally on the flight:

One of us almost did not make it, as the alarm did not ring, and the realisation of being at the wrong airport terminal caused last minute panic! By Baba's blessings, we all made it as planned to the flight! Hush! It so happened that tickets booked by 3 of us, were in the seats next to each other! This certainly is divine telepathy.

Tummy knows:

Post landing, we had an Amazing chai and kachori subzi, en route to our hotel - Scindia guest house, the place i usually stayal at.

It is not enough to be in Kashi in mind and body, your tummy should also know, you are in Kashi! The best places in Kashi have some of the amazing foods ever available in the world!

Images:

Most of the images in the blog are thanks to Sanjeev. He is an ace photographer, just like he did in the mahashivratri in last year's kumbh mela, he has clicked some amazing pics this time too. 

You guessed it. Sanjeev is the one on the right! Haha!

This was a 5 day trip. Landing on the first day at 9 am and leaving on the last day at 8 pm. 

There is so much to do in Kashi. That multiple lifetimes are not enough to explore a tiny part of it. 5 days where simply not enough, it's just what we had! 

Day 1. Friday.

Bindu madhav mandir:

After the darshan, A long chat with murlidhar patwardhan, the chief trustee and my mamaji followed. It was interesting for the group to learn from him, about the history of how around 500 marathi families came here to Varanasi with Marathas, the history of kashi as Vishnu's anandvan, vishnu kashi and shiv kashi, over coffee, personally hand made by him, for all of us.

Telang swami ashram:

In deep Meditation at telang swami ashram, we all suddenly had the same "aakashVani". Divine announcement from the heavens!

"If mayavati comes back to power, everyone will have a begging bowl in their hands".

We of course knew that it was an old man speaking to someone in a trance outside the aashram window! Being old and deaf makes one repeat the some thing and talk loudly. We all had a good laugh over it. 

Coming to think of it, it is true. Before the current government, the earlier ones were less about governance, and more about corruption, at the cost of common man. What the old man was saying was actually true! 

Dubai man in Kashi:

Meeting hardik at bati choka over Lunch with his parents and family was a wonderful surprise! Instead of meeting in Dubai, we met in Varanasi of all the places! I first met him in a retreat from samyama two years ago. We instantly connected. I was very happy to know what he got the dream role of his career, following the subconscious mind techniques, i shared with him.

It is not about knowing, it is about doing! Which gets the results. He is the perfect example of consistency in action!

Back to the Hotel:

Came back to the hotel and were instantly feeling drowsy with the heavy bati choka meal. we rested a bit and Sanjeev arrived and we started talking only to realize that we are getting late to go to ashram! 

Kriya and ashtavakra Gita!

As we were getting late, we took a Motor boat ride to lahiri mahasayaa family home, which is just near the pandey ghat at sita hotel, which can be easily identified. This place closes at 8 pm. 

Sanjeev clicked this late at night after we came back. We took one of these boats.

After the meditation at babaji temple, took a look around, and realised that the foundation of kriya yoga is Ashtavakra Gita itself.

This was the insight during the darshan at the mandir. I did not notice this earlier, though the picture appears in a previous blog. 

There is a particular reason that no other text was on the wall. Not from bhagwat gita, not from Tulsi ramayana, not from the mahavakyas, but only and only from ashtavakra Gita! This is the philosophical base of kriya yoga, it's foundation!

There are things in plain sight, often overlooked, until they are discovered. The fact is, they were always there. It's only about being aware. The entire journey of about increasing the awareness! That's all. 

The two plates are worth reading again and again.

Burning pyres:

A walk on the ghats, took us towards the vishwanath corridor, which was the way into manikarnika ghat, which was being renovated. 

We saw a person dressed in black moving around, presumably a tantric. 

The place looks different now, with the manikarnika renovation work in progress. The area arround the temple, which was a ghat earlier, is now a place for burning the bodies. 

Smashaneshwar Mahadev arti was as usual, a different experience altogether. 

Kashi is also known as maha smashan. The big burning place.

Every Ghat has a different character. A different vibe. The festive feeling of dashashashmavedh ghat is in total contrast to the quiet gloom at manikarnika ghat.

This signifies different events in life. Some happy, some sad. But shiva pervades everything. 

Endless wood. Endless bodies.. Endless fires. Endless cycles of death and birth.

In Kashi, it's all about Shiva. Shankara is also called shiva, when in form. This creates some confusion.

Shiva and shankara:

Shiva and Shankar are often used interchangeably, but they represent distinct aspects: 

Shiva is the formless, supreme consciousness (nirakar), while Shankar is the personified, anthropomorphic deity with form (sakar) who represents the aspect of destruction. Shiva is the eternal, immutable reality, whereas Shankar is the lord of Kailash, part of the Trinity, and a worshipper of the formless Shiva.

They are the saguna and nirguna Rupa of the same divine consciousness.

Key Differences Between Shiva and Shankar:

Form: 

Shiva is incorporeal, often represented as the formless Jyotirlinga (pillar of light). Shankar is the bodily deity with a face, hair, and limbs (humanoid/divine form).

Nature: 

Shiva is considered the supreme "Absolute Truth" or Supreme Soul (Paramatma). Shankar is recognized as a deity (Devta), a form of Shiva.

State: 

Shiva is Nirakar (formless), Nirvikalp (undifferentiated), and Nirgun (without attributes). Shankar is Sakar (with form), Sakar, and Sagun (with attributes).

Role: 

Shiva represents pure consciousness and ultimate reality. Shankar is the destroyer within the Trinity (Brahma-Vishnu-Mahesh).

Depiction:

Shankar is depicted as the ascetic living on Mount Kailash with a family (wife Parvati, children Ganesh and Kartikeya). Shiva is represented by the Shivling, indicating the infinite, beginningless, and endless nature of the Divine.

Worship: 

Shiva is worshipped as the supreme essence of the universe. Shankar is worshipped as the deity who fulfills desires, often shown meditating on Shiva. 

In essence, Shankar is the divine, personalized form that helps devotees connect with the, formless, absolute Supreme, which is Shi

Shiva does not get intoxicated:

What is misunderstood as chilum, is actually a  Singa (Horn). This is mentioned in various texts like the Shiv Purana, the Singa is a wind instrument (horn) with a very high-frequency sound, often used in Shiva rituals.

To reach deep states of meditation, bhang and other substances could be used for training as per tantric processes, under the guidance of a guru.

Somehow the two seem to be mixed up and the Singa became a chilum. Some people think that if Shiva can smoke weed, why not me? The question is, why would the one, who is beyond everything, need a substance to relax or focus? This is a classic case of not understanding the context and doing something that looks convinient and when justification is needed for your actions! 

Prasad sevan:

around 9 pm. as it was nearly closing time, We all had different levels of "babaji ka prasad" from phatakji. The effects were from mild to funny. One of us was saying 

I am aware, but i am not in control!

This was hilarious. Non stop laughter and being instructed that...

Even if things appear larger, a bottle of water is not a swimming pool. Do not jump on the bottle! Haha...

After a samosa at satya narayan bhandar, our fixed sweets shop, it was time for darshan.

Shayan arti:

One of us knew someone who got us into the temple at night.

This was the most Mesmerizing shayan arti at vishwanath mandir. 

this was a super long day, starting at 4 am till almost midnight. Frequent cups of chai kept us going!

Day 2: Saturday: 

the day started around  9 am with street food, filling us. today was the plan to do Sangam snan at Prayagraj, which is about 2.5 hours from the place we stayed at.

A taxi got us to the ghat. We booked a boat from the ghat to reach the sangam. Instead of feeding the river birds, we ate the bird food!

This time it was a completely different experience as the crowd was much less than that of kumbh mela of 2025. 

Darshan  at Nag Vasuki Mandir, followed by Darshan at uloopi mata mandir ended our prayagraj trip with Darshan at mankameshwar Mahadev mandir.

On the way back  we stopped for Darshan at vindyavasini mandir, which is around half way between varanasi and prayagraj.  

At the vindyavasini temple, as i sat with eyes closed, i realized that everything that is manifested is devi and everything that is formless is Shiva. Together they form the universe we we know it. One is like the electrical appliance and the other is the electricity itself. Both are needed for anything meaninful to happen. this co relates with a previous video of dieties to be worshipped in kaliyuga. Devi is the combined energy of all devas. hence ideally worshipped in this age! 

By the time we reached varanasi, it was close to midnight. A super long day again!

Day 3: Sunday: 

Project starts at vrindaban: 

As i reached kashi, i got a message from swamiji to start the project for building the aashram at vrindavan. Last year, at the same time, i got the call to start the project for building the aashram at pandharpur! 

Based on the experience of auditing over 10,000 buildings in last 20 years, we realised that There are some defects, that can only be avoided in new construction.

The methods we use, double the building life, reducing the life time maintenance cost by upto half without increasing the project budget. 

The divine insights are helping us to build better buildings for owners and occupants! This is the role we are here to play to value add to everyone's life.

Maha mrityunjay Mantra:

I was chanting the mrityunjay Mantra since many days, as it originates from vedas.

ॐ त्र्यम्बकं यजामहे सुगन्धिं पुष्टिवर्धनम् उर्वारुकमिव बन्धनान्मृ त्योर्मुक्षीय मामृतात् 

I came across a video. which said that the mantra above is the mantra to apply perfume to lord shiva. This made lot of sense. this was corelated with the rudra puja we did and this was the exact mantra when the  perfume was applied to shiv lingam. As most Vedic mantras have some beej mantras in them. The one i was chanting did not. 

So, True maha mrityunjay Mantra. Is as follows. 

संपूर्ण महामृत्युंजय मंत्र

ॐ हौं जूं सः ॐ भूर्भुवः स्वः 

ॐ त्र्यम्बकं यजामहे सुगन्धिं पुष्टिवर्धनम् उर्वारुकमिव बन्धनान्मृ त्योर्मुक्षीय मामृतात् 

ॐ स्वः भुवः भूः ॐ सः जूं हौं ॐ।

Note that the starting and ending parts of mantra as reverse to reach other. 

When chanting the mantra, focus on the consonant in the chakra where it is positioned during exhale. And during inhale, focus on the matra in the vishudhi chakra.

Do this, Slowly, letter by letter, the mantra will be chanted, by complete immersion. The rush to do 108 times, is not relevant in this method. As this is one letter at a time, it's easy to refer to the text and do it without memorizing the mantra fully. 

It is interesting to note that for common man, mantras are either available without beej mantras, as in case of maha mrityunjay Mantra. Or mantas come with added prefix as in the first line of Gayatri mantra, to make it compatible with energies of most people.

Beeja mantras are like high voltage like 11,000 volts, which very few people can handle! Most can handle home voltage of 220 volts. They can not process the energy of beeja mantras, as it needs a lot of practise and preparation.

Unless one dwells deep into mantra shastra, it's difficult to understand the nuances, applications and the real essence of any mantra.

Chat with a divine soul:

Today my friend, p told me that her business is turning around. She was facing challenges due to the digital economy as her business relied on print medium and cash payment!

She was a bit unsure about what is going to happen. Will you business turn around, or shut down?

She is into creating income opportunities for the homeless people. A rare venture. 

I sent her this message... By instinct.

"You think about helping the ones, no one thinks about. 

So the one who thinks about everyone, is bound to help you! "

This has given her new confidence and strength to get her business on track! Sometimes a simple insight is enough.

Shiv ratri Puja at dandapani mandir:

A powerful and commonly recited shloka in praise of Kashi, which invokes the sacred energies of the city, is:

विश्वेशं माधवं ढुण्ढिं दण्डपाणिं च भैरवम्।

वन्दे काशीं गुहां गङ्गां भवानीं मणिकर्णिकाम्॥

Vishveshaṁ Mādhavaṁ Dhuṇḍhiṁ Daṇḍapāṇiṁ cha Bhairavam,

Vande Kāśīṁ Guhāṁ Gaṅgā Bhavānīṁ Maṇikarṇikām.

Meaning:

"I bow to Kashi, where reside Lord Vishwanath (Shiva), Madhav (Vishnu), Dhundhiraj (Ganesh), Dandapani, and Bhairav, along with the holy Ganga, Goddess Bhavani (Annapurna), and the sacred Manikarnika Ghat". 

Significance:

This verse is a summary of the spiritual essence of Varanasi, honoring the key deities and sacred spots that bestow liberation (moksha) upon devotee.

dandapani, is the avatar of skanda meaning kartikeya. This is Bal roop, which is doing tapasya. Here is the picture. One with the mask which is usual and this one is without. A rare glimpse. You can see the features of a boys face clearly. 

The lingam itself is very tall, a very rare lingam in the entire world! 

This is one of the 5 primary deities in Kashi.

Hence this place was selected by sudarshan for the puja this time.

2024 was atma veereshwar, where the atma of vishwanath resides (as envisioned by shankaracharyas) , after the second vishwanath temple was broken by aurangzebs army. Hence that choice by sudarshan in 2024.

The first one, broken by Razia Sultan is not in the news any more.

The one we have today, is the third one!

Shiv ratri Puja was done by each one of us, one by one, roughly in one prahar, one puja. 

Actually in the temple, other than the 4 of us, there was no one else, other than the pandits, who were telling the puja to us. 

We took Breaks in between prahars with Sanjeev playing his flute...

https://video.wixstatic.com/https://video.wixstatic.com/video/48e7e0_e4aeb01fc31741c1922a6e6f77bdee78/file

There was one person in red clothes, doing chanting sitting in a corner of the temple, not disturbed by anyone. A mantra siddhi was being done, on shiv ratri night by him presumably for a bhairava mantra. 

I have nothing to attain or lose. So siddhis dont attract me anymore. the miracles, have little meaning as the final destination is formless samadhi, where everything, even siddhis are left behind. 

Anahata naada:

As i kept silent most of the time, imbibing the experience, i recollected a recent a message from my cousin. 

"After coming to US in Sep, I think I am now conscious about the anahat naad sound (matches the desc exactly you told me. Initially I was not sure but after months I think it is the same). Thank you for making me conscious about it! 🙏🏻🙏🏻 My self growth journey continues! 🙏🏻"

The blogs are written precisely with this intention. If any one person, gets even one insight, the entire effort is worth it!  I have encouraged him to pray to his ishtadevta and get intiated in kriya yoga as he is ready for it!

Day 4: Monday:

Morning after shivratri.

The night ended at 4.30 and at 5 am, we took darshan of kalbhairava temple. By the time, we got back at the hotel, it was around 6 am and  to sleep it was around 7 pm, and wakeup before noon by 11 or so.  

Another super long day. back to back!. it is only in kashi that this is possible!

As we were sitting having tea, we meet a traveller from Bangalore, who was exploring kashi like us. She liked the way Sanjeev was playing the flute. Like most people, including me, there is a dream of playing an instrument, however, it needs tremendous practise and dedication and most importantly, genuine love for music. 

An interesting observation was that she had a small tattoo of Ganesha on her neck. Which was clearly visible from the front, as it was at the location of vishudhi chakra. Her experience after getting the tattoo was better control over what was being said. This is how mind works. When it knows that the characteristics of Ganesha are linked to the voice itself, it starts behaving accordingly. This will be an interesting study in NLP! 

Lunch at Kashi Chat Bhandar;

One of the best placed known for chat. Sitting here is like being in heaven. Dish after dish was coming and getting finished by us 4!

Abhishek at adi vishwanath:

After lunch at a local place, A quick Abhishek was done at 3.30 pm. 

I went to kashi after a very long gap after maybe 1985. it was almost after 30 years! My father had arranged a Puja. This journey restarted with this puja in 2019 in this temple. This was also the last puja with my father. It is like he handed over his spiritual legacy before passing away in 2020. Whenever i go to kashi, i make it a point to do Abhishek here, to reconnect to that time when we were all together. I can still see him sitting in the temple, watching me perform the abhishek.

Ganga arti:

Time to head to ganga arti, which was visible from a double decker boat.  We reached on time at 5 pm to make it possible to get the best seats.

A small ride on the boat followed the arti. One of us arranged a darshan from close distance in vishwanath mandir. 

Here is the merchandise on sale!

And a well lit haveli!

Post the Arti, Chat at dina chat was not as great as the one we had in kashi chat bhandar.

Long walk back with 4 bulls and a few monkeys and dogs blocking our way. With Help from some experienced locals, we sent them away!

By the time, we got back it was around midnight. Another super long day.

Night discussion: 

After a few nights in Kashi, we had a Halo behind us!

The 4 of us engaged in a long discussion, covering topics like origin of desires, how opinions form, convinience oriented decision making, sub conscious mind, away from the awe of temples. Into deep experience sharing, not to convince anyone, but just to see different viewpoints, appreciate or give a counter view, learn if possible, discard otherwise. 

Everyone has discovered some formula to make things work. However, it is the same formula that usually hinders further growth. Being attached to a success formula can itself be a problem. This does not mean, one has to keep changing it. It only means, that at the right time, it must be recognised, analysed and action taken. Change the path, not the goal. 

I see many people stuck in the same path, unable to see anything beyond it. It's great to be consistent. But also necessary to be aware, if things are working or not working.

This reminds me of tiger Woods, who changed his swing in golf, midway in this career, only to reach new heights. His previous success formula had to change. 

Day 5; Tuesday: 

Abhishek at Mahadev in mrityunjay mandir complex. This was recommended by sudarshan. Accordingly the puja was fixed.

After the abhishek was time to buy some sweets and namkeen, papad etc. The Lassi at Blue lassi was not as good as the other one, we had 2 days back.

Blue lassi is a very well marketed outlet in the digital platforms. 

Visit to Ramkrishna silk house to do some local shopping followed.

As we were getting late, we took a bike rides to the taxi spot where our luggage reached! 

Experiences:

"One of my friends has written about this trip on social media: 

I've been trying to write about Kashi as an experience. 

I have not succeeded in putting so much into so many words.

I don't know what to say, except that I now have a LOT of space within me. The experiences, the emotions, the energies absorbed – they're all somewhere deep inside me. A LOT has been shaken, stirred, displaced, dislocated, pushed aside and pushed out from within me. 

Kashi has not filled me. 

It has freed up stuff within me.

I have now lots and lots of space for more. 

My white noise has subsided. I don't feel the need to explain, justify, ratify, or convince anyone or anything. The need to debate, argue, score a point, and so much more has vanished.

This is freedom for me. 

This is also a part of me that I have immersed and let flow in the Ganges. 

Back to Mumbai. Back to work. Back to family. Back to Planet Earth :)"

Different people have different experiences in Kashi, which keeps pulling you back to it. And everytime it is different.

As i had time to think, which is becoming rarer, due to increased work....i captured some thoughts, related to nation, society and the self...

The society we live in:

I donate generously at the temples, but directly to the people (brahmins) there, as most of the temple hundis are collected by the government and not used for our community welfare. No prizes for guessing where the fund goes in a country cursed with corruption and reservation and pseudo secular policies, which target the majority. The situation has not changed even with the current government. Who want to leave control? No one! Politicians? Never!

Every country has its share of problems. Like the  gun violence killings due to easy availability of automatic weapons in usa is a problem, they are cursed with. This is hard to overcome, as it is in the constitution and was relevant that time, but is no longer relevant. 

Look at Europe today and what they have done to themselves, by allowing refugees. The demographics have changed and crime is out of control! No guesses for who has caused it. 

When you are in a group or just by yourself, the entire system comes to you as a package. You can not pick and choose!

Kashi for example comes to you as a package. The small gullies, shops, cows, scooters, chants of namah parvatipate har har mahadev, which you spontaneously participate in, the sweets and namkeen, the ghats etc. This all makes a unique package! You can't imagine kashi without even one missing element.

The acceptance that nothing is perfect, the nation, the world, the society, the family and the self, yet everything works! It is the way you navigate, rather than the environment you are in!

Handling with role play

Navigating the koshas, the political system, the family dynamics, the professional politics, are so much easier with role play. Full involvement. Zero attachment.

This is easier said than done, especially in situations of turmoil. Physical, emotional, financial, social...

Gyan is good in normal conditions, but challenging in difficult situations, especially when they affect you.

Try telling yourself that my body temperature is high, but i am fine, when you have fever and you will get what i mean. I had this experience recently...

Comfort zone

In Kashi there are shops and bazaars, like thatheri bazaar, which have operated in the same way, doing the same things, for hundreds of years, generation after generation.

In an ancient city, this becomes very very evident. Every nook and corner has a history here.

Once people are used to a comfort or privilege, it's very difficult to take it away. 

Extending the privileges to our country level, reservations are almost impossible to take away in india, especially after 75 years of independence. What was intended for 10 years, has become politically and socially entrenched. Side effect? Talented people getting into business, instead of govt jobs!

Similarly, once the mind and body is used to comfortable situations, it is very difficult to change them. This is the default programming with which, most live their lives.

At an individual level, the way you are used to having chai, you will not be comfortable changing it. Even I am not!

This plays out at all levels. After all a group is a combination of minds, which thinks in similar patterns!

Evolution

In personal context, the question of "relevance" by inquiry has to be periodic. What is relevant today may not be relevant tomorrow.

For example college grade calculus is not relevant to someone studying arts later in life. Instead of a logical path, a creative path is chosen by the person. New learnings.

The inner state changes or rather, some people call it a journey, when things are started, continued and stopped, based on the relevance at that time.

Destruction

Walking in the gallis of kashi, in silence, dodging the cows and bikes, imagining the scale of destruction in kashi and its subsequent rebuilding, i realised that man has always been violent and power hungry.

Kashi was severely damaged by islamic invaders. Temples destroyed by the thousands and people killed by the millions.

But the tendency to be violent is not new. Our puranas are full of stories involving fights, dharma vs adharma, tendencies of the mind etc.

The key point here is not to remember the stories. It is what learning you had by listening to them. These are symbolic, for our upliftment, not entertainment.

In ancient times, violence was with astras and shastras. Now it is with drones and missiles. Whatever technology advances are coming, the way the mind functions, has not changed at all! The same greed, fear, desire for comforts, power hungry leaders.

The times of the Mahabharata and ramayana are no different than today's times. Other than the events, both are classics in the study of how the mind works, on its own and in group dynamics.

Mind

A realisation that this is my mind, i am not the mind, is something very few have.

If you think you are in a chaotic world, think about the level of chaos inside. A friend of mine, shifted to Bangalore, finding Mumbai life very hectic. Now she finds banglore life unmanageable! The chaos was inside, not outside!

Ending this contemplation and some bits of useless insights... We end the yatra!

Blessing:

May you be blessed by Lord Shiva by taking darshan of baba vishwanath soon, who is everything and nothing at the same time, as you read this blog!