MORE ON THE DIVINITY OF SRI TARKESHWAR SIDDHAPEETH, LANSDOWNE,UTTARANCHL.

Swami Ram Initiating Swami Hari In Tarkeshwar on 23rd OCtber 1992

Pictures Of Swami Hari , also known as the laughing swami.

Swami Hariharananda Bharti OR Swami Hari - The Beloved & Direct Disciple Of Sri Swami Ram Of The Himalayas.
Swami Hari is more than 70 years old now.
Swami Hariharananda was born and raised in the foothills of the Himalayas and after becoming a monk he spent 15 years living and meditating in the mountain forests. Swami Hari is charismatic and a true forest monk in the 4,000 year old tradition of Himalayan sages and also a direct disciple of the legendary Swami Rama. As a teacher he is known for his ability to guide students into a state of deep meditation. His lectures are filled with practical knowledge, inspiration and humour. Swami Hari's friendly, cheerful and compassionate personality attracts to him new friends in all the countries he visits. He spent many years at the 600-year old sacred shrine of Tarkeshwar in the Himalayas, where his master Swami Rama attained enlightenment in 1930s.
Swami Hari is spiritual head of the temple and ashram at Tarkeshwar in the Himalayas and has undertaken the ongoing SRIVERM Project. Swami Hari's wisdom does not come from books, but from having connected with the Source of wisdom. For many years he did special meditative practices in the enchanted valley of Tarkeshwar, where he gained the blessings of great wisdom and sacred knowledge. His purity is evident in his frequent and spontaneous joyful laughter. Although he often claims to know nothing, the wisdom of his pure heart shines with each word. For the last three years he has traveled each summer to many countries teaching his peacefull and practical wisdom and knowledge. Over the years Swami Hari has undertaken and completed the following Major projects:

1) SRIVERM Project

2) Tarkeshwar Project

3) Doodharkhal Project

4) Madhu Ganga Project

5) Toli Project
[aS pER tHE iNFORMATION fROM http://swamihari.com/aboutus.aspx ]


Swami Hari , however left his mortal body in june 2008, but he is ever present through his teachings and in the heart of his devotees.
NOW READ THE GREATNESS AND DIVINITY OF SRI TARKESHWAR SIDDHAPEETH, WHERE LORD SHIVA BREATHES , WHERE THE AMBIENCE IS HALLOWED BY HIS MAGNIFICENT & DIVINE PRESENCE & WHERE KALIYUGA HAS LIMITED ITS FRONTIERS.

NOTE : TOLI IS THE NEARBY VILLAGE WHERE SRI SWAMI RAM HAD APPEARED ON EARTH.

THE DIVINITY OF TARKESHWAR AS EXPRESSED BY JUSTIN O'BRIEN OR SWAMI JAIDEV BHARATI.

Exposure in tarkeshwar renders your spirit such serene lightness that you hate to depart its life-enthralling ambience. Sleep is an after thought. More than for rest, we climbed in bed to stay warm. Impossible as it sounds, I arose at 3:ooam for fun and peeked my nose outside . The silence was palpable : hearing seemed to expand effortlessly through the forest. When I looked up, some celestial beings playing jack with the stars had obviously strewn them in all directions across the glittering sky. There was more brilliance than darkness as I spied falling star after falling star descent into the void.
Our host yogi, Swami Hari or Swami Hariharananda,the charming 60 year old renunciate,clad in various hues of red and ochre, was caretaker for the sacred area. With his usual infectious joie de vivere he unhesitatingly shared enticing forest stories of his adventures & his ongoing tug of war with the aloof LORD SHIVA,the supreme ,trancendental master of meditation.

The Great one has taken up residence in one of the two adjacent temples,300 meters from the main house. Swami Hari regaled us with hilarious episodes in which he reverentially contended with Shiva over the years. During the past decade, there were times when maintenance and house development challenges intruded into his otherwise serene life. Ofcourse, one should take the serious problems to SHIVA & let the AUSPICIOUS ONE handle the outcome, provided you did your accountable best to bring the issue to resolution. SWAMI HARI stratigized whenever he was in dire need, the approach to the AUGUST & MIGHTY ONE shouldn't be too direct; for Shiva has been known to respond like a father toward his son,that is, he might refuse the request ,just as father might at times for the son's own good.
Now in Swami Hari's mind this rejection was alright with minor requests but for serious tasks he needed definite assurance on Shiva's part and, whats more, he needed special assistance in producing the desired outcome on time. Therefore,recalling full well that sons, as well as daughters , sometimes get turned down by their fathers but never by their grandfathers, crafty Swami Hari,knowing he had nothing to lose and everything to gain, petitioned the Auspicious One as DADA, "Grandfather." What grandfather can refuse his grandson anything?
Swami Hari told us that a cement floor had really been needed to be laid around the temples to prevent dirtying the inner temple with mud & he wondered where & how the workman could get the wooden forms to hold the pouring in place. This forest hamlet was more than an hour's ride by taxi to the nearest town.So he paid a visit to the temple one night imploring DADA SHIVA ;) with much beseeching, entreating & elegant gesticulations about the indispensable importance of this holy project. After all, it wasn't for him, but for the ominous DADA.
That evening in meditation,LORD SHIVA loomed before him briefly. That vision,surmised Hari,portended a positive sign. The next morning as he walked toward the temple, both he and the workmen were astonished to find two otherwise healthy giant pine trees lying on the ground, thus providing the wood necessary for the forms. The acoustic environment of this forest glen, mind u ,is so composed that you can hear every sound for a quarter of a mile around.
Yet no one heard those mighty trees tumble to the ground. By the way,the trees are considered, according to the lore of the area , the daughters of the divine mother, who just happens to reside next door to Shiva in her compact temple.
In My view, Shiva had to get permission from someone else and, ofcourse, that elegant lady came smilingly through. For me this region [tarkeshwar], with its erie beauty, ten stories - high pine trees, naturally arranged in expanding concentric circles from the centerpiece of the two temples,symbolizes the ultimate principles of manifestation : the divine presence of male & female.

So that's how Swami Jaidev or Justin O Brien shared his divine experience of SRI TARKESHWAR DHAM.

Those who want to go to TARKESHWAR can hire a private vehicle from haridwar or buses that go from kotdwar [Pauri,Lansdowne,uttaranchal] right into the zigzag narrow & winding roads to BABA BHOLENATH TARKESHWAR, there is a dharamshala for accomodation there & foreigners from all over the world throng to this place that's untouched by kaliyuga. Tarkeshwar, a siddhapeeth more than 600 years old , which is charged with the ethereal spiritual vibrations of yogis like babaji who had lived & meditated here 600 years ago ,and also blessed by our modern sages of himalayas Brahmaleen Swami Ram & Swami Hari or the laughing swami, who passed away from his mortal frame in June 2008.

Here is an account of his Mahasamadhi.

        

 BELOVED SWAMI HARI TAKES MAHASAMADHI

                            Swami Hariharanandaji, a disciple of Swami Hari, who lived at Tarakeshwar for over a decade and was known for his joyful laughter and wonderful stories, and for his sincere attention and care for students, left his body approximately 3:30 AM on Sunday in India.  Swamiji had been very ill for weeks with respiratory crisis and was in Jolly Grant hospital at the time.

Kani Ilangovan, attended Swami Hari's darshan at Rishikesh and cremation ceremony in Malethi, and sent in this report:

Although we unfortunately did not get to see Swami Hari before he left his body, we rode to Tarakeshwar with one of his students Roya, who was with Swami Hari during his last hours. She said that he was very joyful, laughing frequently, and said that Baba was with him. She said that Swamijiwas embodying his frequent saying "laugh in life, laugh in death."

 The cremation ceremony was held in Malethi at a tributary of the Ganges. Family and friends from the ashram, HIHT, and from all around the world were there. When Swami Hari's/span>'s body was placed on the ghat, a snake came and viewed the body before the pyre was lit.

Swami Hari's work in Malethi is really awe-inspiring. He created a free vocational educational center for the Gahrwali men and women, a B.A. College for women, a public school for kids K-5, and a meditation center. He also has buses to transport the students to and from school from more remote areas. The Malethi Center is located on the lush mountainside and must have been incredibly difficult to construct as it is built on a steep slope. It is amazing how much he accomplished in such a short time.

Swami Hari was truly an exceptional, loving, gifted, generous, joyful human being and we are all so fortunate to have known him.

No doubt, all who Swami Hari touched with his humour, kindness, and love hold a special place in their hearts for him.  

May Baba Tarkeshwar Bless Us All With His Eternal & True Prembhakti.
Jai Tarkeshwar Mahadev.

Pranams at thy holy feet,
radhika.

SWAMI RAM & MY VISIT TO TARKESHWAR!

TARKESHWAR BABA'S PAINTING INSIDE TEMPLE.

&

PICTURES OF TARKESHWAR SURROUNDINGS.

SWAMI RAM & MY VISIT TO TARKESHWAR!
THIS IS MY JOURNEY TO TARKESHWAR.....! 







I came across the
books of Swami Ram in October 2006  I am so thankful to God as Swami Ram's books really strengthened my roots in spirituality &enhanced my understanding towards God. His books are a must read for every spiritual aspirant.

I will not get into the details on how I got to know Swami Ram & his Books. It was through nobody but God or divine Providence that introduced me to Swami Ram & was quite an experience in  itself that I shall always remember & cherish.


Tarkeshwar is the siddhapeeth in the beautiful Garhwal region Of Uttaranchal which is located at about a 6500-7000 feet, from where you can see the beautiful Himalayan Ranges.

I have therefore mentioned everything about Tarkeshwar before writing about my pilgrimage to this sacred n holy place of Bholebaba. 

After I read the chapter PROTECTING ARMS in LIVING WITH THE HIMALAYAN MASTERS in 2006 I promised myself that one day I will definitely visit this blessed place. Bholenath has been so very kind to me (which is not new). He is indeed the most compassionate & can be pleased very easily even with  little devotion. 

I am deeply thankful to Bholebaba as he blessed me with an opportunity to visit His divine dham TARKESHWAR. I visited Tarkeshwar in March 2008 & however its still fresh in my memory. It's not possible to verbally describe the divine experiences that I embraced in Tarkeshwar .

Firstly, nobody in Haridwar was aware of Tarkeshwar, to my dismay. As we further inquired one travel agent informed us that it would take one day for us to visit Tarkeshwar and come back to Haridwar. 
The information that this travel agent gave to father really did not make him happy, a place that was not much frequented by visitors and definitely was not a famous shrine like Chandi Devi Or Mansadevi. This meant we had to hire a private vehicle & quickly come back home before sundown as it would be dangerous to travel in the ghats of Lansdowne at night.  

I felt terrible when father decided to cancel our visit to TARKESHWAR. 

I tried to convince my father but still he was very firm in his decision. I finally gave up. I was in the depths of despair.My father immediately took the disapproving decision as we moved out of the travel agents office. That day was a Monday and I had to worship Shivji with Bel leaves n milk, so we were also looking for Shiva mandir/temple. We found it not much far from the travel agent's office and with a heavy heart I offered my prayers and pooja to a beautiful Shivalinga. Next to this Shiva Temple was a beautiful Radha Krishna Mandir too, the pujari was kind enough to let me click the deities pictures. The deties were extremely beautiful and there was hardly anybody in the temple.This gave me an opportunity to speak my heart to the divine consorts. I prayed deeply that my pilgrimage to Tarkeshwar could now be possible only if Sri Krishna could somehow change my father's decision.I left everything at His lotus feet & moved out of the temple.

The Radha Krishna Deities at the temple in Haridwar.

My father suffered from Bronchital Asthma , & couldn't travel to places of high elevations. I had not known that Tarkeshwar was almost 7000feet high nor did the travel agent ,or else I would have refused to travel to such a high summit.But Bholebaba wanted to bless us & the next morning as soon as I woke up my father was in a very good mood & declared that he wanted to take me to Tarkeshwar .I was elated but also thought that he was joking. Nope, he was not as he took me to the travel agents office & made arrangements for the trip early next morning. All this while I was in a daze , really did not know how to react. My father made all the arrangements. The next morning arrived & our journey began sharp at 6:30 am. We passed through a jungle that was close to Rajaji National Park, it was as if I was in cloud number nine. Our driver was a very kind person n took us safely, this was his first visit to Tarkeshwar & even he was not aware that our destination was on such a high elevation.I thought it must be as high as the Chandi devi & Mansa Devi Temples. The drive through the jungle ended and our journey through the winding roads ,through the forests of the Garhwal mountains began.Round and round and round we were moving up on the narrow lanes of Lansdowne.One hour ,two hours but Tarkeshwar was yet out of reach. The localites told us "AUR OOPAR HAI...AUR OOPAR HAI"by this time the climate was really getting cold & we were on a very high summit. It was really scary to look out of the car, gazing down the deep cliffs. My father was hiding his anger but I could clearly read the expressions on his face , he reprimanded me due to my lack of information on Tarkeshwar. I prayed to Lord to protect us. We just couldn't find Tarkeshwar . Atlast , a kind Garhwali told us that we were much above, so now our car started descending.

This time we found the shrine! I was highly elated !!!


There was another car parked near ours,of a family , who had a three year old boy with them,also some couples etc, so there were many people who visited this divine shrine. I told my father about this as he was cooling down. I peacefully visited all the small shrines there , clicked snaps and took video recordings.


Unfortunately, His disciple Swami Hari was not there, he was ill & was hospitalised as he could not tolerate the thin air of the heights.My father slowly walked and bowed before the main shrine of Tarkeshwar baba and asked a glass of water to a young boy living there, but that kind boy was so hospitable he brought a hot refreshing cup of tea for father. Papa felt very good after having tea.

No words can describe the divinity of Tarkeshwar, where Swami Ram had been enlightened. The spiritual aura & the charged holy vibrations elevated my spirit to some mystical realms. I knew that Babaji was watching me secretly & it was He who safely brought us to Bholebaba & thus fulfilled His promise that everyone who comes to this holy place is protected. 

The entire area is surrounded by huge , tall pine trees as if speaking to the Gods in their celestial homes.There was a melodious music of birds that enveloped the whole area. One day I will again visit this place n will definitely stay overnight. With this thought I bid farewell to Tarkeshwar , promising Babaji to come back again.
 I have never left Tarkeshwar mentally, maybe physically  I am back but I am always transported to that divine place, as soon as I close my eyes!! Just like I am transported to Krishna's Brajdhaam. My father's health was not at all afftected & he was fine.On our way back the clouds had gathered & it was slightly drizzling but it did not rain, a million thanks to Bhootnath Mahadev.


at thy lotus feet,
Radhika.eet, Radhika.