The Abandonded Maharishi Ashram
A selection of photos from an article on the abandoned Beatles ashram for Barcroft media
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi developed the Transcendental meditation technique and was famously the Guru of the Beatles, the beach boys and many other celebrities. His ashram was based in Rishikesh in the foothills of the Himalaya's in Northern India and flourished between 1968 and 1997 when it was abandoned. Now the Ashram is under the control of the local government and the forestry department and is encompassed within a tiger reserve. The shells of many buildings, meditation cells and lecture halls are still standing, including Maharishi’s own house and the guesthouse where the Beatles stayed and apparently wrote much of the White Album. It has become a haven for Graffiti artists to express themselves, many paying tribute to the Beatles or Maharishi. The alchemical combination of the abandoned decaying buildings, art work, wild nature and the energy from over 30 years of transcendental meditation, makes it a magical space to get lost in.
