Ardhanaareshwar Ashram

Nagpur - Outskirts - Ardhanaareshwar Ashram

As the reporters from Australia drove through the gates at the entrance of the ashram, where a new age guru was fast gaining prominence, their car came and stopped bang opposite a huge statue, at least 40 feet tall. They had not seen

anything like it before, ever in their lives. It was beyond their wildest imagination.

What was this huge statue?

To the uninitiated, it looked like the statue was half man and half woman. The man part of the statue, on the right side, seemed to be dressed in animal skin wrapped around the waist, with a bare torso and a trident in the right hand, while the female part seemed to be wearing the traditional Indian saree and a lot of jewellery, the likes of which they had never seen before. How did they make sure all the jewellery on the left hand side did not get stolen?

They drove around the imposing figure of this half man and half woman statue. And then, they

reached the vastness of the ashram.

All the cottages in the ashram were thatched roof huts. There were brick pathways from one hut to the other, but the rest of the place had vegetation growing unhindered. There were boards placed at regular intervals, which showed the visitors, names of exotic plants and trees, unique to the Indian subcontinent. The visitors were also told that, the ashram was home to a wide variety of animals, both domestic and wild, like wild hogs, deer, gazelle etc.

They were escorted to an Ashram which seemed to be larger than all the other ashrams present there. When they alighted from the car, they were asked to remove their footwear, before entering a moderately sized hut.

As they entered, they saw a lady of exceptional beauty, sitting cross legged on a platform at the farthest end of the hut. The hut itself was divided into 3 portions. On the right side, seemed to be the sleeping quarters, with a mat spread on the floor and on the left, was the eating quarters with a plate and mug in copper, kept on the bare floor.

The visitors were motioned to sit in front of the lady in meditation and wait.

They got offered cool water, in clay cups, which seemed to make the water taste sweet. While the reporters waited in silence, observing the lady in front of them, she opened her eyes slowly and looked all around.

"Hello, welcome to the Ardhanaareshwar Ashram," said the lady, in a coarse, husky voice.

The reporters were stunned that the lady could speak English. They were hoping to catch an Indian mystic, doing some rope tricks to impress the crowds. But were astonished to see the powerful personality this beautiful lady radiated

and who seemed to have an almost rock star like presence.

As they watched her, their jaws wide open, the lady introduced herself.

"I am Swamy Brihannala.”