Swami Arunachalananda
Yatras From 2012 - 2015
February 2012
In Jan-Feb of 2012, father was with me at Belur apartment and we went to Gangasagar; later we also went to ISKON headquarters at
Mayapur with Br. Abhishek and Br. Jnaneshwar. We stayed for a day at the headquarters and enjoyed the temples, kirtans, Prasad etc.
In February that year Belur Math was celebrating the 175th birth anniversary of Sri Ramakrishna; there was a procession of devotees
from Dakshineshwar temple to Belur Math. With father I went to Dakshineshwar by boat, there met Br. Abhishek and Br. Jnaneshwar; we
participated in the festivity and later Abhishek and Jnaneshwar joined the procession while I returned back to Belur with father by
boat as I had sewa in Mission office.
Some Pics: Dakshineshwar (22 Feb 2012)
April 2012
In April 2012, I returned from Mayavati ashrama via Nagpur route as I was to attend the opening ceremony of Ramakrishna Ashrama
Gangalgaon; Br. Sunil had worked hard to build the place and had invited me, father and Rahul Mujumdar (of Nashik). I came from Nagpur
to Shegaon where father and Rahul were waiting for me. We had darshan at Sri Gajanan Maharaj shrine and stayed in Anand Sagar Bhakta
Niwas. We visited Anand Sagar and enjoyed its beautiful statues, gardens, settings etc. Later with other devotees from Nashik and
Swami Brahmasthananda of Ramakrishna Ashrama Nagpur, we all went to Gangalgaon in a jeep.
Some Pics: Shegaon (5 April 2012)
Sometime during this period i also visited the famous Jain pilgrimage center Mangi-Tungi
near Nashik with father and Rahul Mujumdar.
March 2013
Partho Ghosh and his friends had invited me to join their group for Allahabad Kumbha Mela in March 2013. I started from Nashik by
night train (Train No. 13202 / LTT RJPB EXP Night 1.50, S9/33) on 8th March and reached Allahabad around midnight; slept on platform
with hundreds of other pilgrims sleeping there. In the morning met the group and we started the search for dwelling place walking
through the crowded streets of Allahabad. I was carrying slightly heavy luggage as I had to go to Belur and Mayavati from there;
so in the heat of March walking through huge crowd carrying that luggage, and failing to get any room till afternoon - even at
local Ramakrishna Ashrama, was very disappointing and tiring. Finally by the banks of Ganga we secured an open tent for rent of
Rs 100 per person! There was literally sea of pilgrims and surroundings were not very clean. We ate some fried stuff and rested;
next day morning the scene at temporary bathrooms was nightmarish. It was a Mahashivaratri day; we somehow managed to have our
sacred dips in the river and then proceeded back to train station. Here the trains were heavily crowded and we all (a party of
about 8 people with one old couple) somehow pushed ourselves into one train to Varanasi. Our luggage was not in one place and
we were stuck in crowded compartments with hot, sweating weather. I felt like performing some severe austerity! I was thirsty
and couldn't find any water bottle, suddenly the train stopped in the middle of a field and some farmer boys started bringing cool
water from farm-wells to the train compartments! They were filling the bottles for Rs 10 per bottle! I quickly filled mine and
quenched my thirst.
At Varanasi I figured that one of my luggage bags was missing; in the hugely crowded compartment it was difficult to search;
we all tried and also took help of a policeman present on the platform but couldn't trace it; the train was stopping on the station
only for a short while, so we had to let it go. I had my external hard-disk in that bag along with some clothes and books. The
daughter of one of our group member was residing at Varanasi in a rented place; she had arranged a room nearby for our stay for
that night; being a Mahashivaratri day, we went to Kashi Vishwanath temple for darshan at night, there was huge crowd and we
waited almost 3-4 hours before we had darshan around midnight. The whole town had festive look with huge decorated processions
and colorful scenes; the very atmosphere of the holy city was mesmerizing. Time spent on Ganga Ghats watching burning funeral
pyres, Ganga-Arati, endless stream of visitors, temple rituals, multi-colored sadhus, slow and peacefully moving Ganga etc. remains
etched in memory. Next night we stayed in a hotel on Assi Ghat. On 12th March I boarded Purva Express and went to Howrah. From
13th - 17th March I stayed at Belur shelter and enjoyed Thakur Tithi Puja in Belur Math. On 19th I boarded Howrah-Jaisalmer Express
in the morning for Bareilly on my way to Mayavati.
While returning from Mayavati that year in May-end, I had planned a detail tour comprising visits to Shimla, Kullu, Dharmashala,
Sidhabari, Jammu, Vaishno Devi, Shrinagar, Dal lake, Chandigarh, Kurukshetra, Amrritsar, Wagah border, Alwar, Khetri, many other
places in Rajasthan, Gujrat and then back to Nashik; but this did not materialize. I suffered from severe cough and in that
conditions somehow reached Delhi from Mayavati and then via Indore to Nashik.
September 2013
Father had mentioned his long cherished desire to visit Kanhangad - the place where Bhagawan Nityananda had stayed before
making Ganeshpuri his abode. By the grace of Bhagawan, we got the opportunity and both of us went by Mangala Express Kanhangad; we
reached early morning there and slept for some time in waiting room, at daybreak we went to Swami Nityananda Ashramam founded by
Bhagawan's disciple Swami Janananda. The ashrama was simple but beautiful and serene; there was a hillock within the ashrama which
was carved internally into many interlinked caves under Bhagawan's directions, later His temple was constructed on top of this
hillock; still later Swami Janananda's Samadhi shrine was constructed. We stayed for couple of days and also visited the Anandashrama
in the city started by the famous saint Papa Ramdas. On 3rd September father returned back to Pune via Pawas, while I had earlier
planned a detail tour starting from Kanhangad to Margao, then Phonda, Panaji, Malvan, Sindhudurga, Ozar, Pawas, Ganapatipule,
Sangameshwar, Chiplun, Guhagar, Harihareshwar, Shrivardhan to Nashik via Pune, this did not materialize; instead I went to
Ramakrishna Ashrama , Mysore by Netravati Express.
Reached late night at Mysore but a gentleman who had seen me in Kanhangad ashrama and who was on the train accompanied me
till the Mysore Ashrama! My friend Swami Ganeshatmananda (Ritesh Mj) had informed his friend in the Mysore ashrama - the Pujari Mj -
about my visit, so I was taken care of. Pujari Mj showed me the ashrama, RIMSE (Ramakrishna Institute of Moral and Spiritual
Education), places where Swami Vivekananda had visited. RIMSE was grand & beautiful in conception, execution and maintenance. I
also went on the 'Mysore Darshan' bus and saw Mysore Palace, St Philomena's Cathedral, beautiful Brindaban gardens in the evening
with fountains lighted by colorful lights etc. From Mysore went to Hubli and stayed in the famous Siddharudh Swami Math;
stayed for one night and observed the ashrama Samadhi shrines, Prasad-distribution, chantings etc. I wanted to visit this Math as
Swami Muktananda had received his sannyasa vows here from Siddharudha Swami himself.
From Hubli I came to Solapur and from solapur went to Pandharpur; in Pandharpur stayed with Hiru Dada at the local Ramakrishna
center which was about 5 km outside the town in fields. Hiru Dada had purchased TVS Super XL moped, so he took me to the main
Vitthala temple and other holy places in Pandharpur. The Vivekananda Ratha Yatra started by Ramakrishna Math Pune had reached
Pandharpur with Keshav Mj, Sunil Mj, Vinod Mj, and other devotees; was happy to meet them all unexpectedly. From Pandharpur I went
to Tuljapur darshan one day and then to Akkalkot; at Akkalkot, stayed in the Bhakta Niwas for one night and had
darshan of places associated with the great saint Swami Samarth. From Akkalkot went to Gondawale and stayed there one night
in the ashrama. From Gondawale came to Pune and from Pune to Nashik.
December 2013
In Oct-Nov 2013 I stayed at Gurudev Siddhapith Ganeshpuri; during that stay I got acquainted with two devotees: Mr Prakash Bornare
of Jalgaon and Mr Narendra Patil of Erandol. They had invited me to visit their homes and nearby Samadhi shrines of saints Zipruanna
and Harigiri Baba. So in December I went to their places with father. While in Jalgaon we could also attend local program arranged
by Swami Swaroopananda Sewa Samiti and our visit to the Samadhi of Zipruanna coincided with the saints Jayanti day. At Erandol,
Narendra Patil took us first to Padmalaya - the famous Ganesha temple and the next day to Samadhi of Harigiri Baba. Later he took
us also to Nagad - the place where Swami Muktananda had performed sadhana.
March 2014 (Gujrat and Rajasthan)
My plan to visit Gujrat and Rajasthan was not being fulfilled for couple of years; fortunately in 2014 I could fulfill it while
travelling to Mayavati from Nashik. I first went to Ganeshpuri on Mahashivaratri (27 February) day and from there went to
Ramakrishna Ashrama Khar Road (Mumbai). At Khar Ashrama met my friend Swami Ganeshatmananda (Ritesh Mj) and then boarded train to
Vadodara at night from Bandra Terminus (Vadodara Avadh Exp). On March 1st morning reached Vadodara and went to Ramakrishna Ashrama
(Dilaram Bungalow, Alkapuri); met my friend Swami Divyakripananda (Sumit Mj), on hearing my plan to visit Girnar, he promised to
join me there.
Some Pics: Vadodara (2 March 2014)
From Vadodara I went to Rajkot by Rajkot Express, reached in the evening and stayed at Ramakrishna Ashrama for couple of days; met
my friend Amod Mj and other known Swamis (Balkrishna Mj, Nandakumar Mj). Luckily I was in the ashrama during Thakur Tithi Puja
(3rd March) and could observe the puja, procession, celebrations etc. That day itself I went to Limbdi and returned back after
spending a day at Limbdi. In Rajkot I saw the beautiful Swaminarayan Temple and Muktidham. At the ashrama I met a devotee who was
from Junagadh; as Junagadh was on my itinerary, I mentioned it to him and he requested me to come down to his home in Junagadh.
Some Pics: Rajkot
At Limbdi I stayed in Ramakrishna Ashrama there and met an old acquaintance, Br Satish Mj of Mayavati. The big temple construction
was going on in the ashrama. I visited the palace where Swami Vivekananda had stayed.
Some Pics: Limbdi (4 March 2014)
Then from Rajkot I went to Junagadh (6th March) and stayed in the house of Bhavesh Chudasama - the devotee I met in Rajkot ashrama.
With another friend of his, Suresh Bharad, we went to the famous Upperkot fort, Navaghan Kuvo, and Rock edicts of Ashoka.
Swami Vivekananda had visited Junagadh.
Some Pics: Junagadh (7 March 2014)
From Junagadh I went to Porbandar and stayed in Ramakrishna Ashrama there. The ashrama has the Bhojeshwar Bungalow where Swami
Vivekananda had stayed. I also went to the nearby beach, Sudama temple, Mahatma Gandhi birth place.
Some Pics: Porbandar (7 March 2014)
From Porbandar I proceeded to Dwarka where I had darshan of the famous Krishna temple and by boat went to Betdwarka; In Betdwarka
had the darshan of temples and had Prasad in one of the ashramas. Later I also visited the great shiva temple at Nageshwar. I
returned to Porbandar ashrama for night stay. Next day I went to Somnath and had darshan of the grand Shiva temple just next to
the sea; it was magnificent and reminded one of the unconquerable nature of Hinduism and India.
Some Pics: Dwarka and Nageshwar (8 March 2014) and
Somnath (9 March 2014)
From Porbandar I returned back to Junagadh as I was to go on top of Girnar; I stayed in a hotel at the foothills of the mountain and
visited nearby temples. Next day I was joined by Swami Divyakripananda (Sumit Mj) of Vadodara as he had promised earlier; another
devotee had come with him and we all stayed in the same hotel. Next day early morning we started our climb and after passing through
beautiful landscapes, mountain ranges, magnificent ancient Jain temples, shrine dedicated to Divine Mother etc. finally reached the
summit where temple of Lord Dattatraya is located. We had lunch Prasad at the ashrama located just near the summit temple. Then we
started the descent and reached at the foothills around 2 pm. The whole experience was memorable as the scenery was breathtaking,
atmosphere was sublime & spiritually charged, and physically the trek was exhausting! Thanks to Sumit Mj, that day we had our noon
bhiksha - a grand Gujarati feast - at Br. Pratik's house. I had met him in Vadodara ashrama in March 2009 and again at Belur
Math where I had given him poem books by Swami RamTirth; unfortunately he had passed away at Belur and it was a total surprise for
me to land up at his house thus and meet his parents and brother. There seemed a sure Divine hand behind this coincidence; I was
happy to meet the family and they were also delighted listening to my narrating Br Pratik's memories. In the evening too we had
bhiksha at another brahmacharis house.
Some Pics: Girnar (10-12 March 2014)
We returned to Rajkot ashrama and took the much needed rest. From Rajkot I went to Ahmadabad and from there took a night bus to
Arasuri Ambaji. Mr J P Solanki - a sadhaka - staying in the town was informed earlier by Parag Mj of Rajkot about by visit to the
town; Mr Solanki received me early in the morning and tok to his home. He was an austere spiritual aspirant who did elaborate
ritualistic puja every morning and visited the famous shaktipeetha temple of the town regularly. He took me to the darshan of Divine
Mother and Prasad there. Later we also went to the temple on hill by ropeway and some other temples in the town. He also used to
serve living embodiments of Divine Mother, i.e. the Adivasi village women who used to come to town for work, by giving them
biscuit packs in the early morning. Before leaving his place I too participated in this early morning sewa.
Some Pics: Arasuri Ambaji (14 March 2014)
I left Gujarat and entered Rajasthan when I moved from Arasuri Ambaji to Mount Abu. It was located in the beautiful Aravali mountain
range that extends from Gujarat to Rajashtan. I saw the beautifully situated Nakki Lake, Toad Rock, Cave in which Swami Vivekananda
had stayed, HQ of Bramakumaris, garden around Nakki lake etc. In the evening I boarded a bus to Ajmer.
Some Pics: Mount Abu (15 March 2014)
I reached Ajmer early morning, the bus left me at a bypass from where I luckily got an auto and reached the area near railway
station; I checked into a hotel nearby and slept. In the afternoon I went to the famous Ajmer Sharif Dargah; luckily before starting
for Dargah, I had emptied my wallet of most of the cash and important identity cards, because at Dargah, in the huge crowd I was a
victim of pickpocket! The Dargah was beautiful and filled with excitement and religious fervor.
Some Pics: Ajmer (16 March 2014)
Next I went from Ajmer to Pushkar which is around 15 km from Ajmer city. At Pushkar I saw the unique Brahma temple and Pushkar lake;
there were many foreign tourists here. Then I returned back to hotel in Ajmer city.
Some Pics: Pushkar (16 March 2014)
From Ajmer I came to Jaipur; there I searched and reached Ramakrishna Ashrama, which was wearing a festive look on occasion of
opening of its newly constructed Sri Ramakrishna temple. Many monks and devotees were assembled and many pandals were erected.
Fortunately I met Br. Vinod and Dr Ravi Mj who kindly accommodated me in the rooms where other monks were staying. Since the
opening puja was couple of days away, I made a quick trip of two days to Khetri. I was accommodated in a small lodge adjacent to
the Ramakrishna Ashrama there. The ashrama was the palace of erstwhile King of Khetri who was a devoted disciple of Swami Vivekananda
and Swamiji had stayed in the palace. The palace was being renovated by Ramakrishna Math (ashrama head then was Saptarshi Mj) and
hence much construction/ repairing activity was going on. The shrine and dining hall of the ashrama was beautifully decorated.
Ashrama arranged a jeep and we went to Khetri fort where old palace was situated; Swami Vivekananda had stayed here too. We also
saw the stepped pond where Swami Vivekananda had spoken in response to the welcome address presented to him after his return from
West.
Some Pics: Khetri (18-19 March 2014) and
Video: Khetri View
I returned back from Khetri to attend the Temple opening at Jaipur Ashrama; could witness the grand Puja, Kalash mounting, and other
celebrations; Rev Gautamanandaji Mj had come.
Some Pics: Sri Ramakrishna Temple Opening (20 March 2014)
Due to heavy crowd in the ashrama, I moved to a hotel (Satkar) near railway station from where I could move freely for sightseeing
in and around the city.
I roamed the pink city and observed the beautifully painted buildings, famous tourist spots like Jal Mahal, Amber fort, Hawa Mahal,
Jantar-Mantar, City Palace, Govindaji temple etc.
Some Pics: Jal Mahal (20 March 2014) and
Amber Fort (20 March 2014) and
Jaipur Streets (21 March 2014)
City Palace (21 March 2014) and
Jantar Mantar (21 March 2014) and
Hawa Mahal (21 March 2014)
Govindji Temple (21 March 2014)
From Jaipur I went to Alwar and stayed at Br Vinod's room which was the ground floor of a bungalow ('Uday Villa' in Basant Bihar);
the upper floor being occupied by the owner family (S D Sharma). Br Vinod was still busy with the Jaipur ashrama functions and hence
I had come alone to his place. Next day (22 march), I took Br Vinod bicycle and went to the house where Swami Vivekananda had stayed;
they had maintained the room separately and kept it clean & decorated with holy pictures. I also visited the Purajana Vihar garden
in the town; with Mr and Mrs Sharma went to Bharatpur to attend the opening function of Apna Ghar's new blocks. Mamashree, Vinod
and others had offered their sewa in this NGO at Ajmer and Bharatpur.
Some Pics: Alwar (22 March 2014) and
Bharatpur (23 March 2014)
From Alwar I went to Delhi by bus and from there went by bus to Khatima-Tanakpur-Lohaghat-Mayavati. While returning from Mayavati
that year in May, I had planned a visit to Guptakashi via Haridwar-Rishikesh in order to meet Dr Tulsidas Mj (Mamashree) but that
did not materialize. I returned to Nashik via Rudrapur-Delhi.
June 2014
In June 2014 Abhishek came to Durganagar from Dakshineshwar; he stayed for a week or so and we went to Panchavati Darshan, Takli,
Tryambakeshwar etc.
Some Pics: Tryambakeshwar with Abhishek
November 2014
During Navratri of 2014 I had dental operation due to which I was suffering from pain and unease, added to that was the noise of
loudspeakers blaring songs for Navratri! Hence I went out of Nashik to Trymbakeshwar and Saptashrungi Gadh Wani for couple of days.
In Tryambakeshwar I asked many ashramas and religious institutes for a night's stay but they all refused on the grounds that 'single
person is not allowed', 'accommodation only for families'! Finally stayed in a lodge opposite the main temple. Fortunately at Wani I
was allowed the stay in the Swami Prakashananda Saraswati ashrama (Shri Saptashrungi Gurudev Ashrama); due to Navratri the whole
hill was full with devotees and even during night the lighted steps towards the main shrine were busy. I stayed for couple of days
and used to climb daily to the shrine and read 'Matrucharani (Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi's Gospel in Marathi)'.
Some Pics: Tryambakeshwar (Navratra 2014) and
Saptashrungi Gadh Wani (Navratra 2014)
July 2015
After coming from Theni course in May 2015, we (myself, father, Kushal) started renovation of Durganagar home for the coming Kumbha
Mela in August-September (I had invited some sadhaka friends for the Mela). During this period once in July myself and Kushal went
to Saptashrungi Gadh Wani and stayed in Shri Saptashrungi Gurudev Ashrama; I had stayed here during Navratri last year. It was raining
in the evening and getting dark, still we went to the ancient Mahadev temple on the bank of the lake; the main gate was closed so we
walked in almost dark and rainy weather around the compound wall through thick grown-up grass, searching for some broken entry point!
It was risky as we could have been easily bitten by some snake or insect; fortunately we found one entry and could go inside but our
misadventure was censured by a lady sitting at the nearby hut! We enjoyed our stay and darshan of Divine Mother next morning.
Some Pics: Saptashrungi Gadha With Kushal
August - September 2015
In August-September 2015 Nashik witnessed the Purna Kumbha Mela (a once in 12 year event, previous was in 2003 when I had come from
Pune Math for few days and had holy bath in Godavari with father). Some pending renovation work and inner painting at Durganagar
was completed before the mela. During the holy bath days my friends came to our place and we enjoyed the mela atmosphere. First to
come was Swami Yogavratananda of Trivendram; he came from Aurangabad Math and brought with him a Rajasthan devotee family (Dheeraj
Swami and parents). We had bath at Ramghat and went to darshans in various temples. Next came Bharatdada from Pune (an old friend
from Pune Math days who had visited Belur Flat a few times); with him and Kushal Chaudhary, I took the holy bath on the first
auspicious bath day. Then came Swami Gaurikantananda (Balkrishna Mj) from Rajkot Math along with a Dr devotee from Ahmadabad. We
had darshans at Nashik and then went to Tryambakeshwar and had holy bath at Kushavarta. Lastly Sudhirda came from Belur and with
him I had holy bath on the last auspicious day; it was raining heavily that day and despite that pilgrims were enjoying the holy
dip. We went to Tryambakeshwar and waited a long time in queue under rains for the Jyotirlinga darshan; we also went to Shirdi and
had darshan at Samadhi shrine.
Some Pics: Purna Kumbha Nashik 2015
December 2015
In First week of December 2015, I visited the fort Vishramgadh (also known as Patta Killa) near the pilgrimage village of Taked.
This was in connection with my search for a secluded spot for sadhana. My friend Swami Vedatattwananda (Nishchal Mj) had asked me
to visit his brother in the Pandhurli village near Deolali, where Lakshman Baba ashrama is situated. I had done the same and his
brother had taken me to the ashrama, where the current in-charge swami asked me to accompany their ashrama volunteer & doctor team
to the fort in their monthly visit. The fort was beautifully situated with grand view of surrounding area; recently the state
government had done some renovation and restoration work. The Lakshman Baba cave on the fort was spacious and well equipped;
it was being offered to me as a place for sadhana. Though it was good location but due to tourist promotion by state govt.,
the footfall to the fort and cave had increased. Hence I did not take the offer.
Some Pics: Vishramgadh Trip
Next : Yatras 2016-2020
----------- Om Tat Sat -----------
