Shivabalayogi in Hyderabad

Shivabalayogi in Sri Lanka

The image of Shivabalayogi installed in Colombo.

Shivabalayogi first visited Sri Lanka in 1971. It was his first trip outside of India. He returned to Sri Lanka on several occasions, including 1972, 1974, and 1978. On his 1981 visit, he installed a Shivalinga at Nuwara Eliya, and his last visit was in 1988. The Shivalinga which Shivabalayogi installed he named Lankadishwara, Lord of Lanka.

R. Raveendran gives us the following description of current Shivabalayogi programs in Sri Lanka:


Here in Sri Lanka when Sri Shivabalayogi Maharaj visited our country there were articles published in our local media about Swamiji’s life history and the bhajan, meditation and darshan programmes arranged during his stay here in Sri Lanka. Since 2011 we had been once again writing articles on newspapers about our Swamiji, for the benefit of new generations, and inform people about Swamiji’s bhajan programmes being conducted in Colombo, Jaffna and Nuwara Eliya for them to participate and get the blessings of our Swamiji. The articles were published during the special occasions like Swamiji’s birthday, mahasamadhi  remembrance day, Guru Poornima, and tapas siddhi (anniversary) day, and in 2011, we commenced publishing the articles with Swamiji’s birthday.

New people, who had not heard about Balayogi before, also attended these bhajan programs. A new devotee who saw the article prior to Guru Poornima celebration in 2012, attended this special bhajan, and continued to attend our fortnightly bhajan conducted in our Colombo centre (Maheswaran Anna’s house). This devotee was very much attracted towards Swamiji, and he got an opportunity to visit the Bangalore ashram during April this year (2013).

Shivabalayogi at the pool of Sita, near Nuwara
Eliya, Sri Lanka, around 1981.

On his return from Bangalore, he continued attending our bhajan, and has told his friends from Batticaloa about Swamiji, and they wanted to have bhajan programs organized in Batticaloa as well. Maheswaran Anna invited the devotee, who will be leading this bhajan in Batticaloa, to attend our bhajan in Colombo this last Guru Poornima day (22nd of July 2013) so that he could learn the way Swamiji’s bhajan is conducted. In the mean time we made all other arrangements to have Swamiji’s bhajan in Batticaloa.

On Guru Poornima day we had a very good bhajan and handed over the blessed photo of Swamiji, along with vibuthi, to the devotee from Batticaloa who will be leading this centre. They have arranged a place in Vinayagar temple in Kiran Hardy Cashew plantation centre.  This photo of Swamiji was installed in this place on the 6th of August followed by bhajan.

On the 7th August they celebrated Swamiji’s tapas anniversary with bhajan followed by distribution of prasadam to all devotees. They told us that they will have the bhajan every Friday from 10:00 A.M. to 12:00 noon. Further, they have plans to go to temples in Batticaloa and have Swamiji’s bhajan, so that more people will come to know about Swamiji, and get benefitted.

At present we have Swami Sri Shivabalayogi Maharaj’s bhajan conducted in the following places.

Shivabalayogi offering worship to
Sri Lankadishwara Swami, May of 1981, when
he installed the Shivalinga in Nuwara Eliya.

Colombo:  Colombo Bajan Centre, 28E, 8th Lane, Colpetty, Colombo 3. Bhajan and Meditation programs are conducted on Saturdays starting at 05.00p.m. every fortnight.

Jaffna:  Siva Mahakali Amman Temple, Potpathi Road, Kondavil East, Jaffna. Bhajan on every Saturday from 04:00 to 05:00 p.m. Swamiji’s only statue (made of granite) in Sri Lanka is in this temple, and it was carried from India by one of devotee in a shoulder bag without much effort, even though it was fairly heavy.

Nuwara Eliya:  Sri Lankatheeswarar Temple, “Sri Nagar” 82, Lady McCallum’s Drive, Nuwara Eliya. Special poojs and abhishekam to Sri Lankadishwara Lingam, followed by bhajan and distribution of prasadam, on Swamiji’s special program days.

Manipay:  Ithiyaddi Pilayaar Temple, Navaly South, Manipay.  Pujas and abhishekam to pilayar followed by bhajan on Swamiji’s special days, and distribution of prasadam.

Batticaloa:  Vinayagar Temple, Hardy Cashew Plantation, Kiran, Batticaloa.  Bhajan conducted weekly every Friday, commencing at 10:00 A.M.

[Batticaloa is on the east coast of Sri Lanka; Colombo is on the west coast, and Nuwar Elya is in the center. Manipay is close to Jaffna which is to the far north.]

Recently published newspaper article on Shivabalayogi in Tamil.

Tapas Anniversary, August 7

Wednesday, August 7, 2013, is the 52nd anniversary of Shivabalayogi completing tapas, twelve years of meditation in samadhi.

The anniversary is celebrated in ashrams and centers and by devotees throughout the world. The real celebration is by the Yogi within celebrating the Yogi in all lovers of the Divine.

Guru Purnima 2013

“Guru Purnima is the day on which Sage Vyasa was born.  Sage Vyasa was born on a full moon day.  It is in remembrance of that event that all disciples and devotees worship their own gurus on Guru Purnima.”

— Shivabalayogi

Photos of the Hyderabad ashram during Guru Purnima, Monday, July 22, 2013.  More photos can be seen on Facebook at Shivabalayogi - Greatest Yogi of His Time.  Devotees around the world celebrated Guru Purnima and there were special celebrations in Adivarapupeta and Jhansi.

There was a large Guru Purnima program at the Bangalore ashram. As every year, panchamrutha abhishekam was performed to Swamiji’s paadukas (ritual bathing of Swamiji's feet symbolized by ceremonial slippers) by all devotees in the meditation hall of the ashram in J P Nagar. After bhajans, there was a mass feeding for some three or four hundred devotees.

Passings: Bhadra Rao & S. Veereshaiah

We remember Kaleakanda Bhadra Rao (left), who was a childhood playmate of Swamiji in Adivarapupeta, and Mr. S. Veereshaiah (right), who hosted Swamiji in Dombivli (Bombay suburb). Both recently passed away. The links are to pages about these devotees in the Soul Connections section of the Shivabalayogi website.

Diwali Experience

On the day of Diwali (13 Nov, 2012), having celebrated the evening with friends, I came back to my house and was sitting on the bed in the pooja room, when on seeing Swamiji's photo, I kind of complained to my wife that Swamiji gives experiences to so many people but he has never given me an experience even though I had been initiated over a year ago and have been doing one hour of dhyan every day. I forgot about the casual remark made and carried on with other activities and went to sleep thereafter.

In the wee hours of the morning I  was suddenly overcome by a force which pulled all my attention to the bhrikuti (point between brows) and my body went into an euphoria. I had a feeling that Swamiji was around. Then a distinct and clearly audible human voice started chanting Om. I could not see Swamiji but could sense him around and the human voice was distinctly continuously chanting Om. I soon pulled out of the sensation but was zoomed into the same state again. This happened three or four times. I can only thank and wonder at the magnanimity of our beloved Swamiji.

-- Harminder

Tabla Thatha Thimmappa

Tabla Thatha Thimmappa passed away peacefully at about 6:00 PM on April 23. He was about 110 years of age.

Tabla Master, so known because of his skill playing the tabla drums during bhajans, was an ardent devotee of Swamiji since 1963 and a very active member of the Bangalore bhajan group. He could often be seen at the Bangalore ashram, encouraging the bhajan group, singing, and driving the beat playing cymbals. He was a short man, well built, and of seemingly timeless age.

It was Tabla Master who helped instigate the practice of the Bangalore and other pilgrims parading through Adivarapupeta village behind a photo of Shivabalayogi on their way to the ashram for Mahashivaratri.

He was quite healthy right until the end -- besides being hard of hearing and cataract in both eyes. He stopped taking solid food for the previous few days and lived on fluids.

Several of Thatha Thimmappa's children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren are Swamiji’s devotees now.

We know that Shri Swamiji will guide this devotee on his onward journey with much peace.