In today’s world, where visions, career obsessions and the relentless pursuit of attaining materialistic goals dominate, there exists a small yet profound parallel world in the state of Tamil Nadu offering a stark contrast to the chaos outside- the Isha Foundation. At Isha, an NGO established by Indian Guru Jagdish Vasudeva, fondly known as Sadhguru, the reality feels almost surreal, as hundreds of people immerse themselves in Dhyaan (meditation) seeking to discover their inner selves. Guided by Sadhguru, the people at the foundation are encouraged to uphold humanity and embrace the essence of being an ideal human being. Sounds unusual? But there’s more.
Last week, I had an opportunity to visit the Isha Yoga Centre in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, and experience the life of young yogis who embrace the grace of yoga and follow dharma, thanks to the SMaRT media association. In the past few years, the said foundation, solely run by volunteers has been in the news for several controversies.
In October this year, the state police launched an inquiry into the Isha Ashram located in Thondamuthur, a suburb of Coimbatore city. Around 150 police personnel raided the ashram premises after the orders of inspection were issued by the Madras High Court. The case revolved around 2 women whose parents had filed a complaint alleging that the girls were being kept captive at the Isha premises and that they were being brainwashed.
The police during the raids talked to several people at the Ashram including the volunteers, yogis, and other workers, asking them what made them come in and stay at the ashram. However, the Supreme Court dismissed the case after both the concerned women issued statements in the apex court that they had been safely staying inside the Ashram by their own will. The police officers also are believed to have found no evidence that could prove the alleged illegal confinement of the women.
The Isha Yoga Center has perhaps been struggling against several such cases. In another unique instance, it was alleged in the year 2017 that the Isha Ashram had been built illegally on the Forest land in the city of Coimbatore until the State Forest Department confirmed that no land had been encroached on by the Isha Yoga Center and that the Ashram was built on the land that the authorities had legally purchased.
On my visit to the Ashram and one of the schools named Isha Vidhya, it was observed that the children at the school study in a very earthy environment where they are provided with a balanced mix of cultural and technical education, making them better people to build a compassionate world. As per the data obtained by me, more than around 10200 students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds have been impacted due to the school in past one year. The school ensures that every child studying on the premises gets access to quality education that can help them and their families climb out of the economic and social difficulties.
Isha Vidhya runs ten rural schools in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, with 10,000+ students from Lower Kindergarten to Class 12
— Nivane Kalanath Bhat (@KalanathNivane) December 9, 2024
Over 60% of them are supported by scholarships, & a majority of them are first-generation school goers@ishafoundation @ishavidhya #IshaIsASafePlace pic.twitter.com/oE9UYl62Zs
70% of classrooms in Isha schools are digitally equipped; peer learning promoted
There are around 10 such schools run by the Isha Foundation with a 100% pass rate for class 12 and more than 5500 students to date have received full scholarships. The school for the better education of the students has dedicated and qualified teachers, multi-sensory, activity-based learning methodologies, interactive, discussion-based classes, extensive libraries with more than 7000 books, digital classrooms, and fully equipped science laboratories. The school meanwhile also ensures to imbibe the children with cultural and traditional Indian wisdom ensuring their holistic development.
Apart from these, the schools at Isha host Artificial Intelligence (AI) workshops, Art Exhibitions, and Smart Girl workshops ensuring girls’ empowerment. The girls at such workshops are taught to enhance their self-esteem, menstrual hygiene, and also decision-making abilities. As per the Isha Vidhya management, around 70% of the classrooms in the schools are digitally equipped with audio, and video systems, projectors, and efficient internet connectivity, making learning easy for the students.
The Isha Foundation, which runs the Isha Vidyalaya, provides excellent facilities for young children, including access to computers, advanced technology, robotics, a safe and reliable bus service. It's truly a safe and nurturing place for kids and girls. #IshaIsASafePlace pic.twitter.com/q1S9rL69pa
— Satya Tiwari (@Satya01258773) December 8, 2024
The most interesting thing observed about Isha Vidhya school has to be the peer learning activity and self-management spaces. Peer learning is where the students teach the other classes, usually lower to enhance their communication skills and sharpen critical thinking. It also trains the students to face the audiences confidently with narrative thinking and impromptu responses. On the other hand, self-management spaces are where students take full ownership of the projects of a particular event monitored by the teachers to help them grow their organizational and leadership skills. It won’t be an over-exaggeration to say that not even top schools in cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, etc provide such crucial facilities to young students ensuring their economic, social as well and cultural development.
Amid this, I talked to some of the students at Isha Vidhya to learn in detail about their curricular and extra-curricular activities. One of the girls said that the school makes them study the state board syllabus and also provides them with cultural and religious wisdom. “We at Isha have access to all the modern facilities like digital labs, Atal labs, computers, etc that help us in various projects and even in our regular studies. The library here also consists of more than 7000-10000 books that help us in our overall development,” said Nithya (name changed).
On asking about what made Isha’s school different from the other schools where her friends study, she highlighted the accessibility to science labs and peer learning classes, which she further added helped in building confidence within the students.
Nithya further added that the environment in which the students study at Isha school was safe and conductive, with a holistic approach. She further stated that students from all religions studied at Isha and they were also provided with necessary religious and spiritual wisdom.
Isha Vidhya Principal claims safe environment at Isha schools
In the meantime, I also talked to the principal of the school, Savithri ji, who confirmed that the students studying at Isha study in a very safe and positive environment. She said, “I can’t believe that people in the outside places are spreading negative things against the Isha Foundation which is working only towards building a better planet. I am a woman and have been working here for more than 18 years now. There are 9 more such schools. The environment in which each student at Isha studies is safe,” she claimed.
Savitri ji further also added that the only motive of this school is to foster education in economically backward communities and make the children capable of facing this competitive world. “Our school and all other Isha schools are striving only to ensure quality education reaches every rural child which can help them and their families climb out of the economic and social pit,” she asserted.
What happens inside the Isha Ashram?
The day at the Ashrm begins at around 4:30 am when all the people residing on the premises wake up by pleasant drumbeats instead of the irritating alarm clocks. At around 5:30 all the young seekers gather at the vibrant site of ‘Sadhna Mandapam’, a place beside a couple of lakes full of blooming lotuses and a waterfall. Amid the soothing noise of flowing water, seekers begin ‘Guru Puja’ worshipping Sadhguru, and then following this they engage in the powerful chanting of the Hindu mantra ‘Aum Namah Shivay’.
After an hour or so, the yogi students at the Ashram perform physical yoga to keep their physical body and mental health intact. Following this, Goddess Linga Bhairavi is worshipped, and then seekers sit in to meditate at the Dhyaan Linga, a profound meditative space inside the Ashram. As per Sadhguru, anyone who arrives in the sphere of the Dhyanalinga cannot escape the sowing of the spiritual seed of liberation.
It is believed that Dhyaan Linga was consecrated by Sadhguru in the year 1999 and since then many people have benefitted due to the power it possesses. As per the official website of the Isha Foundation, Dhyaan Linga is a multi-religious space that does not subscribe to any particular faith or belief system. People of all religious affiliations are welcome here to meditate in this powerfully consecrated space.
“Dhyaan Linga is an energy centre of tremendous proportions and a doorway to enlightenment and liberation. Within its space, the intense yet subtle energies allow one to experience the deepest states of peace and silence, revealing the essential nature of life itself. Millions of people from around the world have experienced the grace and energies of Dhyaan Linga,” the official website says.
Apart from the yogic rituals, there are many natural beauty retreats that one may hardly find in modern, so-called developed cities. The place is filled with beautiful flower trees, bushy grass, and lakes that are well-maintained and nurtured by the volunteers on a daily basis. It is because of these, that several rare species of birds find home here.
Once the day starts, all the volunteers, and seekers get going to their duties. While some have spiritual courses to attend, others engage themselves in serving, preparing food, cleaning the huge premises, handling the registrations, media office, etc. Some even qualified in various activities like music, dance, and other cultural Vidhya Shastras, engage in training the young students under Project Samskriti who look forward to serving the community through creativity. Notably, Project Samskriti is an endeavor to nurture, preserve, and showcase the magnificence of classical Indian arts as possibilities for transformation and inner growth at a time when these art forms are being practiced just as hobbies.
Usually, the ones offering service at Project Samskriti are Isha Samskriti advanced students and alumni, with years of rigorous training and an experiential understanding of the impact of the classical arts. Apart from this, there are several activities ongoing throughout the day at Isha Ashram. One of those is ‘Kalaripayattu’ which is considered the mother of all martial arts. The interested youngsters here apart from their basic curricula education are taught Kalaripayattu which increases one’s flexibility and agility and strengthens the muscles and tendons by exercising the body without the need for any equipment.
All these activities though they look effortless, require a lot of mental and physical strength which the seekers at Isha probably get from their daily food intake. The food served at Isha is undoubtedly full of nutrients and proteins yet balanced and tasty. The food here daily includes contents of millet, natural oiling ingredients like coconut, and protein-rich foods like boiled groundnuts and lentils. For extra intake of nutrients and vitamins, food items like beetroot, carrot, cabbage, etc are included in the menu. Further, traditional South India saars and rasam are also placed on the plate, making it look colorful. This entirely makes the two-meal event in the day interesting and worth looking forward to.
Importantly, before having the meal, the seekers here are taught to pray to the almighty and express gratitude to Mother Earth for placing food on their plates. The seekers and the volunteers further are trained to have their respective meals consciously and respect every morsel by avoiding wastage.
Other activities at the Isha Foundation
Isha Foundation has changed the lives for around more than 12 million people since its inception. It has expanded in every possible sector like education, farming, reviving classical art forms, sports, Yoga, environment, and community health and well-being, striving to make this planet a better place to live on.
On our visit, the volunteers took us to the Isha Nursery, the project that was first started in the year 2004 at the Isha Yoga Centre with just one seed. In the year 2006, the foundation also set a World Record by plating around 8,52,000 saplings in just three days. The effort of Isha Project Green Hand has helped people see the importance of trees in their lives and has created an emotional connection within them. As Sadhguru says, the nurseries help plant trees in people’s minds before translating that into a movement that mobilizes millions of people to plant trees. As a team led by the SMaRT association, we also had an opportunity to plant seeds and serve Mother Earth under the guidance of the Isha volunteers.
It is crucial to note that the foundation that was first established to raise human consciousness, has changed the lives of millions since its inception. In 2023 alone, around 1,57,000 people are believed to have benefitted through the spiritual services of Isha. To date, since the inception of the foundation, 97.5 million trees have been planted; 1,92,000 farmers have transitioned to tree-based agriculture, and around 300-800% boost in farmer’s income has been recorded. It’s not just the numbers that speak for Isha, but it’s the intent that makes their presence even more stronger every coming day. Every human, every particle at Isha is just striving voluntarily to make this planet a place worth living. And all this actually is too real to be true!
Thank you @SMaRT4Bharat and @ishafoundation for offering us this wonderful experience of Isha. Let the pests know that Isha ashram is the sacred space for Santana Dharma, spirituality and well-being. Ashram is fully vibrant with joyful people. Paste in comments: #IshaIsASafePlace… pic.twitter.com/9D6viFz5cR
— Stringg (@StringReveals) December 8, 2024
Conclusion
Amidst the struggle to achieve materialistic goals and navigate life’s challenges, we often dream of a world free from competition—where people are kind, and negativity, jealousy, hatred, and other unwanted emotions have no place. At some point, each of us has longed for such a world, wondering if it could ever exist. That place has now been found—it is the Isha Yoga Center.
Sadhguru has always stated that people are always looking out for and running behind something in their respective lives. Some are running behind love, some are striving to achieve growth in their careers and some are striving to keep their emotions and relationships stable. But while all this keeps happening, people begin to lose their consciousness and conscience. “I have never looked anything in my life. I just look and that is what I am trying to teach people now: if you really want to know spirituality, don’t look for anything. People think spirituality is about looking for God or truth or the ultimate. The ability to look without motive is just missing in today’s world. Seeking is not about looking for something. It is about enhancing your perception, your very faculty of seeing,” he has been quoted as saying in one of his books named ‘Inner Engineering’.
Sadhguru’s Isha Yoga Center offers an environment of calmness, peace, and the joy of simply existing. Another unique aspect of the ashram is that it is entirely managed by volunteers who have been instilled with a profound sense of spiritual fulfillment by the foundation and the Guru. It is also important to emphasize that everyone residing within the Isha Yoga Center is safe, contrary to claims made by some left-leaning media outlets. Every person, especially women, children, and farmers associated with Isha is pure and secure. Isha is indeed a safe and serene place, deserving of recognition as such.
