Day 1: Haritachala is Where the Heart is

Writtten By: Pravallika Kullampalle

“Where is the Sai Baba Dhyana Mandiram?” the driver asked a local man as we neared Haritachala. Geetu, my younger sister, and I were bubbling with excitement for the two weeks ahead. Attending the Giggling Geckos Summer Camp the year before had been a transformative experience for both of us. Along with our connection to Baba and Gurugaru deepening, we developed bonds with the geckos, the other campers, and our Haritachala family that we knew would last a lifetime.

Haritachala was my home away from home, and as we drove along Girivalam Road, the beautiful terracotta mandiram — which I would later call the “heart” of Haritachala in a poem I wrote during my time at camp — came into view. As the gates opened and we entered the embrace of Mother Haritachala, I waved to the staff members I remembered from the summer before and entered “the bubble,” as the geckos referred to Haritachala because life felt different beyond the gates. Just as the car drove up to GTR, Anshu, Anvi, Keerthana, and the other geckos came running down the stairs to give us big hugs. A wave of happiness washed over me; it felt like I had finally returned home after being away for too long.

Before reconnecting with all the geckos, I knew I had to meet someone special, whose grace was the reason I was standing in Haritachala again. I bounded up the stairs to the mandir to see Baba; he glowed in the mid-afternoon sunlight, and I saw him smile at me. I had missed seeing his form so elegantly carved into marble; the simplicity of his form communicated his graceful nature. This past summer, I had wanted an internship, and by Baba and Gurugaru’s grace, I had secured one toward the end of April, which was quite late in the usual internship application cycle. I was grateful to have been accepted into an internship, yet I realized that participating in it meant I couldn’t attend camp over the summer.

Early in my internship, I thought it wouldn’t hurt to ask for three weeks off to go to India, but I didn’t expect them to say yes. However, my leave was approved a couple of weeks later, and my sister and I booked our tickets to India for June. Baba and Gurugaru had given me the opportunity to miss neither the internship nor camp, and I was beyond grateful. After coming down from the mandir, I waved goodbye to my Pinni and Thaathaya and joined the geckos at GTR, where I saw Akka for the first time in what felt like forever!

After everyone had finished their meals, we had orientation, where Akka outlined the goals for camp this year. She explained how this camp is meant to foster meaningful relationships (as gurubandhus, we understand deeper parts of each other often left out of other friendships), emphasize the importance of a digital detox (no phones for two weeks), encourage communal living (sleeping together, sharing bathrooms), provide tools to improve our mental health (meditation, body scanning techniques, yoga), help us develop deeper connections with Baba and Guruji (sitting silently in the temple every morning), and strengthen our connection with nature (living as part of it, rather than apart from it). Additionally, there was a new goal: exploring Tiruvannamalai and understanding what it has to offer.

I saw several familiar faces and introduced myself to the new geckos. We filmed a little intro video, and then we headed to Babuji Hall and waited for all the geckos. We looked up at the newly completed bamboo roof and saw that Babuji Hall now had air coolers too. As we explored Haritachala throughout the day, we noticed how Haritachala had grown and changed a little. Kabir Hall, the hall right next to Babuji Hall, was now complete, the water dispensers had ice-cold water, which excited the geckos, the community kitchen had been extended, a new dosa grill and large idli cooker had been added, and the sink area near the kitchen was expanded.

Each change was purposeful, and Akka and the volunteers worked hard to make Haritachala more accommodating for the larger camp size this year. Ammama designed the community kitchen to make it feel like we were sitting in a garden by setting up beautiful greenery around the kitchen. We had our first meal at the community kitchen and saw Ammama for the first time. Her sweet smile and caring nature welcomed us to camp. We had mudha pappu, rice, sweet potato pulusu, avakai, and chalati perugu annam. We sat in a circle on pitas and enjoyed our lunch. Although I had already eaten just before my Pinni and Thaathaya dropped us off at Haritachala, I couldn’t resist Ammama’s special cooking. I remembered how, during camp the year before, even dishes we typically didn’t like at home tasted so good when Ammama cooked them that we’d line up for seconds after the first bite.

Many girls had expressed interest in returning to Haritachala often, or even possibly living there one day, so Akka thought it would be good to get to know the greater city of Tiruvannamalai and all it offers. Over the course of camp, we met many interesting people whose passions and hobbies shaped their experiences in Tiru, and we were excited to learn from them. After the parents had left, all the girls who had graduated from high school and college took pictures with their caps and gowns at the Baba Mandir while the other girls offered pose ideas. Before dinner, we headed back to Babuji Hall to unpack and set up our mattresses in a sunflower arrangement, just like the year before. For dinner, we had chapathi with khali bhaji and our favorite gulab jamun! We all attended our first Arati of camp together, and it was beautiful to hear our voices in unison singing to Baba. After Arati, we had a gratitude circle around the bonfire, sipping saffron tea, and then headed to bed. The geckos journaled, exchanged stories and excitement for the two weeks ahead, and the giggles of the geckos once again echoed into the night.

Toward the end of camp last year, the geckos expressed a longing to incorporate the “Haritachala way” into our everyday lives. Many of the geckos found ways to incorporate activities we did at Haritachala at home, such as drinking blue pea tea and saffron tea, sending each other daily gratitude texts, and keeping in touch with Haritachala through our weekly meetings. We wanted to sustain the friendships we created with the other geckos, as well as with Haritachala as a whole. This love naturally evolved into projects like this website, where we can share our journey in Saipatham with all of you.