The Beatles Ashram (15 Pics)

The ashram of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, otherwise known as the Beatles Ashram, lies abandoned and in ruins on the outskirts of the Hindu pilgrimage town of Rishikesh. Not far away, the Ganges River pours out of the Himalaya onto the plains of northern India.

The ashram became famous when George Harrison, after meeting the Maharishi in London, urged his fellow band members to visit Rishikesh. They stayed in the ashram for several months during 1968 while studying Transcendental Meditation. John Lennon and Paul McCartney found the retreat to be especially productive, composing many of the songs that went into the Beatles’ iconic White Album. Other musicians joined them at the ashram: Donavan, Mike Love of the Beach Boys, and Paul Horn.

The Maharishi left the ashram in the 1970s when he became a global phenomenon. The Indian government reclaimed the land and it was incorporated into the Rajaji Tiger Reserve. The forest is quietly taking over the grounds, strangling the buildings which once housed dormitories, lecture halls, and meditation chapels. Artist-squatters moved into the ashram after it was abandoned and began covering its walls with murals, adding to the artwork produced by devotees in the 1960s and 1970s. More paintings were made in 2016 under the auspices of the Beatles Ashram Mural Project. Succumbing to combined forces of humidity, disrespect, and the passage of time, the artwork on the walls, like the buildings themselves, is in a state of decay.

A stroll through the ashram provides a glimpse into its storied past. Devotional music emanates from tiny speakers placed among the crumbling structures. Songbirds and macaques are the main inhabitants of the ashram A strangely peaceful atmosphere of neglect suffuses the place. It’s not just its architectures that are giving way to weeds and gravity, but a way of life and a philosophy that came to be embodied in Western counterculture.