Visit to Dakshineshwar - Swamiji in Almora

July 31, 2006

Thank you for your kind words everyone. Dakshineshwar is really a spiritual

minefield. Despite the busy atmosphere, the place, I personally believe, is

laden with spiritual vibrations. Truly it is said that any thought of

spirituality anywhere in the world does not go to waste. Even more than a

hundred years from the time of Sri Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda, the

place is still able to completely change ur frame of mind if you are

receptive towards it. Dakshineshwar was surely the highlight of my short

trip to India along with sacred Vrindavan. However I have another rather

wonderful story to tell from my India trip related to Swami Vivekananda

which happened just before my visit to Dakshineshwar.

Jay, hope this email isn't too long. I thought everyone on this list would

be interested to read about this account related to Swami Vivekananda.

While I was travelling up in the Himalayas after visiting Rishikesh, I

stopped by Almora, a mountain town with some nice views of the snow peaks.

The town itself had (of late, I think) become a bit crowded and noisy but I

had the good fortune to stay at this wonderful place called Deodar Holiday

Inn (also known as Sister Nivedita Cottage).

I had read in my travel guide book that this place had something to do with

Swami Vivekananda and so I decided to find out for myself. Vivekananda had

enjoyed the wonderful climate and views of this hill station and had stayed

at Almora three times, in 1890, 1897 and lastly in 1898. When he came back

from America & England, some of his western disciples including Sister

Nivedita stayed at this building in Almora which was called Oakley House

back in those days, belonging to Lala Hari Shah (Lalaji) who was a close

friend and admirer of Swamiji. While showing me to one of the few rooms

available at the Inn, the current owner of the place, the great grandson of

Lalaji if I’m not mistaken, told me how Vivekananda during his stay at

Almora used to walk from the place he used to stay in (another house also

belonging to the same individual) to this building and spend time with his

disciples.

Since those days from over a century ago, the family no longer remained in

the same financial stature and at some point started renting out a few rooms

in the outside wing of the building to interested tourists while the family

still occupied the back-wing of the house. The building being more than a

century old has a very old time feel to it and the outside of the rooms has

a common verandah leading to a spacious courtyard. The whole plot is

surrounded by tall deodar and pine trees, creating a wonderful atmosphere

together with the constant, cool mountain breeze.

Initially the owner showed me a room and since I preferred one with a

western toilet, he led me to another. I was totally surprised and was left

feeling elated when after I entered the room, he told me that this room used

to be Swami Vivekananda’s study! Whenever he visited, he would spend his

reading time in the room, sometimes talking to his disciples and visitors. I

couldn’t believe it! For the first time in my life, I may have been standing

on the very place where one of India’s most amazing saints had stepped upon.

Someone I had admired and looked up to every since I was little. As soon as

I was alone in the room, I dropped to my knees and kissed the carpet (which

was a bit dusty btw).

Outside the room, in the courtyard, stood a tall deodar tree. I was told

that Sister Nivedita was blessed and given her monastic name under this very

tree (maybe a sapling, im not sure) by Swami Vivekananda. Hence this place

has been called Sister Nivedita Cottage since. I stayed for 3 days at this

place in Almora. Most of it, apart from walks out to get food, was spent

reading the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna for the first time. Maybe it was the

thought that this place was holy, that the great swami stayed in this very

room, or maybe there was something more to it, but it was like my state of

mind was transformed during my stay there. For a while at least was gone the

petty clamouring of my mind and its incessant desires and in its place I

found an incredible yearning within to embrace the divine. What made it

special was the intensity of what I felt which is hard to describe. I was so

taken up reading the words uttered by Ramakrishna especially the many

beautiful songs in the gospel, that I was moved to tears and prayer often.

It was in this room in the middle of the night that I decided I would go to

Dakshineshwar, radically changing my original plan for the trip. After the

time in the mountains, I was supposed to go Bombay, stop by Goa (never

having visited both places before) enroute to Kerala. Instead I decided I

would head all the way East to Calcutta instead and that put me in such an

euphoric mood, with good reason I must add in retrospect.

Before I left the place, the kind owner invited me into a personal room

filled with memorabilia used by Swami Vivekananda. He showed me the

reclining chair used by the Swami, his book shelf, some lanterns brought by

Sister Nivedita as presents from England, and even an ash-tray used by

Vivekananda (smoking tobacco didn’t have the negative association back then,

that it has now. Even Ramakrishna occasionally smoked from a hookah pipe).

Since I had a camera with me, I happily took a picture of some of these

things. The most exhilarating part was saved for the last - original letters

actually written by Vivekananda! The letters were kept safe in protective

lamination and I took a picture of those as well. A couple of letters, were

written by him to Lalaji including one from London while another dated July

6, 1890 was written to his brother disciple and western disciple,

Saradhananda and Kripananda (Leon Landsberg) were staying in Almora while he

was travelling. On account of the old print and Swamiji’s urgent style of

writing, it was hard to completely read the contents but I did come across

these words of encouragement to his brother-disciples in the letter – “Arise

ye mighty and be strong. Work on and on; struggle on and on”. I took the

letters, closed my eyes and held them in my hand for a while, I could hardly

believe this was happening. Turning up at some guest house in a Himalayan

mountain town and having original letters written by Swami Vivekananda in my

hands.

There was also one last piece of laminated document. This was a telegram

sent by Swami Brahmananda (Ramakrishna’s spiritual son, Rakhal, who was also

the first president of Order) on July 5, 1902, the day after Swamiji passed

away in Belur Math. The telegram simply read “Swami Vivekananda entered Maha

Samadhi on Friday night”.

Regards,

Sudheesh

August 1, 2006

Dear Shri Sudheesh Sree,

The description of y'r Almora visit is really heart touching.

While reading the same, I felt as if i'm experiencing that!!!

Thanks a lot.

Certainly its Shri Thakur's Krupa that you could visit these places & had a experience which is beyond explanation in words.

Jay Maa! Jay Thakur!

Aprup

On Tue, 01 Aug 2006 Sudheesh Sree wrote :

>Thank you for your kind words everyone. Dakshineshwar is really a spiritual

August 1, 2006

Dear Sudheesh, What a wonderful experience you had. I am sure you never even dreamed that it will happen. I know exactly the feelings you had. You are really blessed to have these experiences.

Next time when you go to India, please try to go Kamarpakur, the birth place of Sri Ramakrishna and Jayarambhati, the birth place of Sarada Ma. Both the places are nearby. Please go and stay a day or two to visit all the sacred places they both moved about in those two places. Two years ago, when I went to Calcutta for a week, I had planned to visit these two holy places along with Dakshineswar, and Belurmutt. For some unknown reason and the road to Kamarpakur was so bad that the taxi fellow refused to proceed in the midway to Kamarpakur, we were not able to go to these two places. Luckily recently I have watched video of these two places. What a wonderful experience even by watching the video.

I am sure you will enjoy thoroughly. We will try to visit to Almora if God permits.