Sadhguru narrated his mystic journey to Ladakh at an early age. From Himachal to Ladakh and returned to Varanasi. Sadhguru says that Vajra Yogini's voice was like thunder and whisper in one, echoing truths that shattered and mended him simultaneously. In the stillness of the mountains, Sadhguru discovered that the greatest storms are born within, where silence and chaos intertwine.
Mystic Journey | Ladakh | September 22, 1993
Part 1: The Call to Ladakh
Sadhguru Avdhut took in a slow, measured breath, feeling the icy air fill his lungs, awakening every fibre of his being. Each breath pulled him deeper into the awareness of this vast land—its silent mountains, barren valleys, and hidden streams that seemed to echo with ancient chants, sounds that were almost like whispers from another time. The winds here carried stories, carrying voices from dimensions beyond the grasp of the physical world.
His thoughts drifted to the vision that had led him to this remote corner of Ladakh. It began in his meditations as a flicker, a faint image of a goddess with a luminous aura, the brilliance of her form so blinding he had nearly retreated from it. She had appeared again and again, her eyes as fierce as storm clouds, her gaze pulling him closer until she became a thunderous roar that reverberated in his heart.
“You seek the truth, Avdhut,” her voice echoed in his mind, “but are you prepared to see all that truth reveals?”
Her presence lingered in his dreams, filling them with visions of lightning storms across endless landscapes, and with a call he couldn’t ignore. She was Vajra Yogini—the embodiment of the cosmic thunderbolt, the primal force of awakening that shatters ignorance and unveils the profound light within the soul. Avdhut knew he was meant to find her, but he also understood that her teachings would not be gentle. The Vajra Yogini was no mere deity; she was the force of life and death, destruction and creation, all bound into one. She would not reveal herself easily, nor would she spare him the intensity of her teachings.
Part 2: The Journey into the Unknown
Avdhut wrapped himself in his woollen shawl and began his ascent toward a hidden valley he had spotted from afar. He had heard from local villagers of a place that had been sacred to yogis and sadhus for centuries—a place where it was said the line between worlds thinned, and one could encounter the divine directly. The villagers spoke in hushed tones of sightings of spectral forms, flashes of light in the night, and an overpowering energy that filled the valley.
It took him several days of solitary walking through narrow, rocky paths to reach the hidden valley. His supplies dwindled, and the biting cold gnawed at his endurance, yet he pressed on, drawn by an unseen force. On the evening of the fourth day, he arrived at the valley. Tall cliffs surrounded it, their sharp peaks towering against the darkening sky. The air here was thick with an energy that prickled his skin, causing his heartbeat to quicken. Avdhut knew this place had witnessed countless rituals and sadhanas, where seekers came face to face with the forces of existence or even the depths of their consciousness.
With reverence, he set up a small, makeshift altar, placing a few incense sticks and a brass bowl filled with water. He closed his eyes and focused, sinking into meditation, calling upon the Vajra Yogini with every fibre of his being. As he fell deeper into his trance, he felt the boundary between his body and the earth dissolve. His awareness expanded, spreading out across the valley, until he was no longer a single form but a vast consciousness.
Suddenly, a flash of lightning cracked across the sky, and he opened his eyes. In the flickering light, he glimpsed a figure—tall, radiant, and fierce—standing before him on the distant edge of the valley. She was cloaked in robes of light, her face veiled yet her eyes blazing with an intensity that cut through his very soul. Her form shimmered, oscillating between visibility and invisibility as if she existed in multiple realms at once.
“You have come,” her voice echoed, not with words but directly in his mind, as though the thought itself was vibrating within him. “But are you ready to see what lies beyond the veil?”
Part 3: The First Test – The Illusion of Form
Avdhut knelt before the vision, feeling her energy swirl around him, enveloping him in both warmth and an electric chill. Vajra Yogini’s form was like thunder given life, radiant and terrible, as if each part of her being held the force of a storm. Without warning, she lifted a hand, and a blinding flash filled his eyes. When he opened them, he was no longer in the valley but standing at the edge of a deep, black void, a chasm that seemed to stretch on forever.
“Step forward,” she commanded, her voice like the echo of countless ages.
He hesitated, gazing into the infinite darkness before him. He could feel a primal fear gripping his heart, yet something in her gaze urged him to trust. With a deep breath, he lifted his foot and stepped forward. Instantly, he was engulfed in darkness, a darkness so complete it consumed all sense of time, space, and self. His body felt weightless, drifting in an ocean of emptiness.
In that void, images began to emerge, scenes from his life: moments of joy, fear, pride, pain—each one filling his heart with emotions so strong they seemed to consume him. Faces of people he had known, attachments he thought he had released, ambitions he thought he had transcended—they all surfaced in a rush, each emotion pulling him deeper into himself. He struggled, attempting to quiet the tumult, but the waves grew stronger, threatening to overwhelm him.
Then, in the heart of the darkness, he heard her voice.
“All these forms—attachments, memories, fears—they are but illusions. Release them, or remain forever bound.”
He knew what she meant. He had to surrender, to let go of all that he clung to, of all that had defined him until this moment. He took a trembling breath and focused, allowing each image, each attachment, to dissolve back into the void. The memories faded one by one, and soon he found himself alone again, floating in the emptiness, stripped of all that he had been.
And then, just as suddenly, he was back in the valley. The Vajra Yogini stood before him, her eyes softer now, a hint of satisfaction in her gaze.
“You are beginning to understand.” Her words were gentle yet laced with a hidden challenge.
Part 4: The Mystical Dialogue of Wisdom
As night descended, Avdhut remained seated, his mind a vast, open sky cleared of clouds. Vajra Yogini began to speak, her words like verses chanted from the depths of creation.
“Tell me, Avdhut, what is power?”
He considered her question carefully, his voice a murmur. “Power… is the force that flows through all things, yet it holds no attachment to them. It is both the blade that cuts and the hand that heals.”
She smiled faintly. “You speak of the nature of power, but not its essence. Power is the thunderbolt that awakens. It shatters illusions and, in its destruction, creates space for truth. Can you, Avdhut, wield such a power without letting it destroy you?”
Her words struck him deeply. The power she spoke of was not one of domination or control, but a force that required absolute surrender, a stripping away of the self. He nodded, though uncertainty lingered in his heart.
Vajra Yogini looked at him with an intensity that pierced through him. “To become a vessel of the divine thunderbolt, you must become empty, for only in emptiness can true wisdom dwell.”
She guided him into a trance, her words weaving images of destruction and rebirth, of cosmic cycles that stretched beyond the boundaries of mortal understanding. In this state, Avdhut felt himself merging with the land, the sky, and the energy around him, until he was no longer separate from it. He was the thunder in the clouds, the lightning that illuminated the night.
Part 5: The Final Test and Union
Days passed in this manner, each one bringing Avdhut closer to the realization of his oneness with Vajra Yogini. He lost track of time, moving through the valley as though in a dream, guided by her presence. Each night, they would engage in dialogues of silence, of whispers, of energy—exchanges that held teachings deeper than words.
At last, she appeared before him fully, no longer an ethereal vision but as a radiant, solid form. Her eyes, deep as eternity, met his, and he felt himself dissolve into her gaze. In that moment, he understood: that she was not separate from him; she was the embodiment of his own highest self, the unrestrained essence of the divine within him.
In a single, blinding flash of light, their beings merged, and he was filled with a sense of boundless power, compassion, and unity. Every cell in his body vibrated with an energy so pure it felt like fire and water, thunder and light, all at once.
When he opened his eyes, the valley was empty, but her presence lingered within him, a guiding light that would never fade. He knew his journey was far from over, yet he carried with him a fragment of Vajra Yogini’s spirit, her teachings etched into the deepest recesses of his soul.
Part 6: The Path of the Thunderbolt
After the mystical union, Avdhut felt transformed yet unsettled, as if a new awareness was rippling through him but not yet fully understood. In the silence of the valley, he felt Vajra Yogini’s voice once more, now emanating from within him.
“To walk the path of the thunderbolt is to embody pure awareness,” her voice echoed within his heart. “But this awareness is not still; it is the lightning that strikes, the fire that illuminates and destroys.”
In meditation, he began to perceive the intricate dance of energies within himself. He saw his life as a series of energetic patterns, each shaped by desires, fears, and memories. These energies, he realized, had bound him to the cycle of karma, like rivers forming intricate paths through the mountains. Vajra Yogini’s path was a shattering of these patterns—an alchemical process that demanded he let go of every layer of attachment, right down to his core.
As he opened his eyes, he felt a sudden surge of energy coursing through his body. It was both exalting and terrifying, like holding raw electricity. He struggled to contain it, his body trembling under the force of it.
“You must learn to hold the thunderbolt without it consuming you,” Vajra Yogini’s voice urged. “To carry divine power is to bear its weight and yet be unburdened.”
Each night, he worked on expanding his awareness while releasing all attachments to his identity, his past, and even his sense of purpose. The task was agonizing as if he were shedding parts of his very self. But with each layer he released, he felt lighter, more transparent, as though he were becoming a vessel for something far beyond himself.
Part 7: The Trial of the Cosmic Mirror
One moonlit night, Vajra Yogini appeared to him again, her eyes blazing with intensity. She led him to a nearby cliffside overlooking the valley, where the ground seemed to shimmer with an otherworldly glow. As he looked into the stone, he saw his reflection, but it was unlike any mirror he had ever encountered. The image shifted, showing versions of himself—some familiar, others unknown.
“This is the Cosmic Mirror,” she said. “Here, you will see every aspect of yourself—your hidden fears, your unfulfilled desires, your deepest wounds. Are you ready to confront them?”
Avdhut nodded, though his heart was pounding. As he gazed into the mirror, the images began to change, showing scenes of his life that he had long forgotten or suppressed. He saw moments of anger, jealousy, and attachment, emotions he had thought he had overcome. He saw a younger version of himself, a seeker filled with ambition, hungry for knowledge and power.
Each image pierced him, unearthing buried feelings that had shaped his journey. He felt shame, fear, and even a flash of regret, but he knew he could not turn away. Instead, he allowed himself to confront each reflection, observing them without judgment, accepting them as parts of his own story.
As he continued to watch, the mirror shifted again, and he saw himself as he could be—free, boundless, beyond fear and desire. The vision was almost blinding in its purity, a version of himself that embodied everything Vajra Yogini had shown him. He felt his heart expand, filling with a deep resolve to let go of every part of himself that no longer served his true purpose.
With this newfound clarity, he turned to Vajra Yogini, who watched him with approval.
“Now you understand,” she said, her voice like a gentle thunder. “You are ready to hold the thunderbolt, not as a weapon, but as a beacon of truth.”
Part 8: The Initiation of the Divine Thunderbolt
For the initiation, Vajra Yogini led Avdhut to a secluded spot at the edge of the valley, a place where the land opened up to reveal the endless expanse of sky. As the sun began to rise, its light filled the valley, casting a golden glow over the mountains and the earth. Avdhut felt a deep reverence for the beauty around him, sensing that he was on the cusp of something profound.
Vajra Yogini instructed him to sit in a specific posture, his spine aligned with the rising sun. She placed her hand on his forehead, and he felt a surge of energy flow through him, electrifying every nerve, every cell. It was as if a lightning bolt had entered his body, setting his consciousness aflame.
“This is the power of the thunderbolt, the Vajra,” she whispered. “It will awaken every aspect of your being, illuminating even the darkest corners of your soul. Do not resist; allow it to flow.”
As he surrendered to the energy, he felt himself dissolving, merging with the light. His body was no longer solid; he was a field of vibrating energy, a wave within the cosmic ocean. In this state, he experienced the interconnectedness of all life, the unity of creation and destruction. He saw the dance of energies that flowed through the universe, a divine symphony where every being, every atom, played a part.
In this state, he heard her voice once more.
“Now you are ready to walk the path as a Vajra Yogi, one who carries the thunderbolt of truth. This power is not for you alone; it is for all beings. Use it wisely, with compassion and clarity, for this is the path of liberation.”
As the initiation ended, Avdhut opened his eyes, feeling a profound sense of peace and empowerment. He knew that he had been transformed, that he was now a vessel for the divine power of Vajra Yogini. The valley, the mountains, the sky—they all seemed to shimmer with a new brilliance as if he were seeing them for the first time.
Part 9: The Return
With his initiation complete, Avdhut knew it was time to return. He had come to Ladakh seeking truth, and now he carried that truth, a light that would guide him in all that he did. As he descended from the valley, he felt a sense of gratitude for the land, the mountains, and most of all, for Vajra Yogini.
The journey down was both familiar and strange. Everything looked the same, yet he saw it all through new eyes. Each step felt deliberate, a part of the cosmic dance he had glimpsed in his vision. He knew that his path would not be easy, but he was no longer bound by fear or doubt. He was a Vajra Yogi, a bearer of the thunderbolt, and his purpose was clear.
As he reached the edge of the valley, a soft breeze brushed against his face, carrying with it the faint scent of incense and wildflowers. It was as if Vajra Yogini herself were blessing his journey, a silent reminder that her presence would always be with him.
With a final look back at the valley, Avdhut whispered a prayer of gratitude, then turned and began his descent, his heart filled with a light that would never fade.
