Ganeshpuri Goodbye

I've spent the morning choking back tears, sometimes successfully, sometimes not. It's my last morning in Ganeshpuri. My car will arrive to take me to the airport in about 90 minutes. I just arrived back from my last morning Abishek and Arti, my last meditation in Bhimeshwar (the Shiva temple next to Nityananda's temple), my last cup of coffee at the restaurant around the corner from the temple, my last hello across the temple grounds to my friend Sagar, my last walk up the hill back to Yogini's, and my last blog post from my desk in my room. I am heading upstairs for my last breakfast and coffee by Hare, my last chat with Yogini, and if I'm lucky, my last good petting session with Yogini's dog, Tibu.

I've spent the last couple of days managing my mind with regards to my departure. My mind kept charging into the future and trying to make me sad about my upcoming departure. I was right on top of that, though, and didn't indulge in the looking ahead. I recognized the folly of missing the present moment, when I am still in Ganeshpuri, to dwell in the future, when I will be moving on to other adventures. This quote from Rumi keeps coming to mind, and it consistently brings my mind right back to the present moment. I can hear and feel the blessings dropping their blossoms all around me! 🙏🥀🙏

I had a very literal experience of this one night in Bhimeshwar, the Shiva temple next to Nityananda's Samadhi Shrine. There is a 7:30pm evening Arti, as well as a 5:30am morning puja and Arti. I make it to both as often as I can. One of the highlights of the ceremonies is when the flame is lit for Arti. There are bells hanging down from the ceiling and everyone rings a bell. It is a cacophony of blissful, joyous sound! One night, shortly after Mahashivaratri, I was ringing one of the bells, and flower petals began raining down on my head. Then a whole gerber daisy fell down on me! I looked up, and realized that as I was ringing my bell, the chain was brushing up against a bouquet of flowers that were hanging above. LOL - it was a standout moment in my trip.