Rishikesh

Rishikesh is the yoga capital of the world with all styles of yoga and meditation being practised. Almost every hotel, guesthouse, or hostel has yoga classes and many people also choose to stay at an ashram. It is about an hour drive away from Haridwar and is also situated on the fast slowing Ganges River, coming from the Himalayas. Rishikesh is a popular place for backpackers and those seeking a spiritual experience and especially popular at this time of year to escape the heat of the rest of the country to the south.

In the last 60s the Beatles spent time in Rishikesh at the ashram of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Four of the Beatles and their partners stayed at this ashram and they ended up writing many songs for their White Album.

During my time in Rishikesh I stayed in a guesthouse for 200 rupees ($4 CDN) a night, which had two daily yoga classes located two doors down from my room.

There are several men, called sadhus, who walk around in Rishikesh wearing orange robes. These men are on a spiritual journey. They travel carrying all of their possessions and live from the money and food that people give to them. They spend their days praying and meditating, often with the help of drugs. One day I was crossing the pedestrian bridge and one sadhu stopped me. I thought that he was going to ask for money but instead he just wanted me to give him props (fist punch). It was totally unexpected but really funny at the time. 

Across a pedestrian-only bridge over the Ganges River is the popular area in Rishikesh called Lakshman Jula. Lakshman Jula is a riverside community with temples, ashrams, restaurants, and guesthouses. It is the kind of place where it is easy to spend lazy days hanging out. There is one Hindu temple in Lakshman Jula that stands 13 stores tall and looks like a wedding cake. Each floor has dozens of shrines of Hindu deities among jewelry and clothing stores. All day long this temple is full with people walking around the floors ringing bells and making their way to the top.

Just down the road from Lakshman Jula there are quiet sandy beaches where you can swim in the Ganges River.

Swag Ashram is the spiritual centre of Rishikesh, which is downstream from Lakshman Jula. One evening I went to Swag Ashram to watch the river worship called puja. Puja is a religious ritual performed by Hindus in which they give an offering and receive a blessing. We arrived before the ritual would be performed and sat on the ghat at the river. Very close to where we were sitting there was a small temple in which men and women were chanting some kind of prayer. I could not understand a word that they were saying but it was interesting just to listen and watch people bathing in the Ganges. Men would jump in wearing only their boxer shorts, while the women had to wear their full saris.