- Sadhguru’s pilgrimage group narrowly escaped Tibet-Nepal border flash flood.
- Seventy-seven Isha Foundation pilgrims from 19 nations remain missing.
- Disaster hindered Sadhguru’s personal rescue attempts, communications blocked.
Spiritual leader Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev has recalled how his Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage group’s decision to reach the Tibet-Nepal border immigration centre early may have helped them avoid being caught outside when a massive flash flood struck the region.
Speaking at the special solidarity event In Solidarity with Nepal in Kathmandu, Sadhguru said his group leader, Praveen, who has been associated with him for more than two decades, called to inform him that the pilgrims had reported at the immigration centre at 9:05 am.
The group had deliberately arrived early because of the “chaos and confusion” at the Tibet-Nepal border. Sadhguru said reaching even slightly later could have meant waiting for hours to complete immigration formalities.
“So we want to be the first group. So when he reported, I said, ‘Good.’ I only wish we didn’t have so much discipline. I wish we had gone there half an hour later, but we went there on time, and this struck,” he said.
77 Isha Pilgrims Still Unaccounted For
However, 77 pilgrims travelling with the Isha Foundation remain unaccounted for, according to the group’s coordinator.
Maa Gambhiri, a coordinator with the group, told PTI on Friday that there had been no information about the 77 pilgrims for the previous two days.
“There are 77 families waiting desperately for the answers. It is an emotional turmoil for them,” she said.
The pilgrims, who come from 19 nationalities, lost contact after the flash flood struck areas near the China-Nepal border. The foundation has contacted embassies in India, China and Nepal and approached various government offices and ministries for assistance.
Gambhiri said Sadhguru had wanted to travel to Gyirong, described as the ground zero of the disaster, but did not receive the necessary approval.
‘Maybe They’ll Lose Baggage, But They’ll Stay Alive’
As the first images of the flood emerged, Sadhguru said the scale of the water and debris appeared to be around 40 feet.
He said he was initially reassured that the pilgrims were inside the immigration centre, even though he understood that the building could be flooded.
“I said, ‘This is okay. Our people are all in the immigration centre, so maybe it will flood the centre, maybe they’ll lose their baggage, maybe they’ll lose their passports, maybe they’ll lose their clothes, I don’t care, but they will stay alive,’” he recalled.
The immigration building, however, was later washed away. Sadhguru said the same building where the group had completed immigration just a week earlier was destroyed, along with parts of the surrounding town.
Roads, Communications Cut Off
In a message posted on his official Facebook page after the disaster, Sadhguru said the Kailash pilgrimage group was returning towards Nepal when it was caught in the flash flood, India Today reported.
The group was at the immigration office in Gyirong when the flood struck. Three volunteers were also stranded in Timure on the Nepal side.
Sadhguru said he had attempted to travel to the disaster zone but was unable to reach Gyirong because roads were blocked and telecommunications were down.
“Morning I left to go there personally and all phones are off, all telecommunications are down, roads are blocked, we are unable to go there,” he said.
He added that his team was working with the Indian and Chinese embassies to explore ways of reaching the affected area. He also said the American embassy was working on the matter.
Pilgrims From 19 Nationalities
The missing pilgrims include 22 people from the US, 12 from Canada, 11 from Australia, nine from the UK, four from Germany, three each from France and Nepal, and two each from the Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore and Spain.
The group also includes one pilgrim each from Finland, Hungary, Israel, Lithuania, the Philippines, Portugal, Russia and South Africa.
The Isha Foundation organises multiple Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimages each season. Groups travel from Kathmandu through Nepal to Tibet, with trekking on foot forming part of the pilgrimage.
‘Nepal Has Taken A Significant Geography Of My Heart’
Speaking about the wider impact of the disaster, Sadhguru said Nepal had become an important part of his life over the past two decades.
“In the last 20 years, Nepal has become and has taken a significant geography of my heart,” he said.
He said people often try to find reasons or mystical explanations for tragedies, but physical events are governed by physical laws.
“We must understand that for all these things that happen in the physical world, the physical phenomena are ruled by physical laws,” he said.
#WATCH | Nepal flash floods | Kathmandu: Speaking at the special solidarity event ‘In Solidarity with Nepal’, spiritual leader Sadhguru says, “…In the last 20 years, Nepal has become and has taken a significant geography of my heart… At a moment like this, we try to find… pic.twitter.com/v10wMfxExT
— ANI (@ANI) August 30, 2026
Sadhguru also said Nepal had faced a series of disasters and setbacks over the past decade.
“Unfortunately, in the last ten years, there have been a series of hits and blows to the people of Nepal,” he said.
He added that despite these challenges, the people of Nepal had shown resilience.
“They have endured it. They have bounced back in many ways,” Sadhguru said.
His remarks came as Nepal continues to deal with the aftermath of devastating flash floods that have caused widespread loss of life and disrupted several areas.
Flood Triggered By Glacier Collapse
The massive flood occurred in the Lhende Khola after a glacier collapse around 20 km northeast of the Rasuwagadhi border point on the Nepal-China border.
The flood entered the Bhote Koshi river from the Tibet side and flowed through Rasuwagadhi, Timure and Syaphru Besi before entering the Trishuli river.
The disaster has affected areas along the Trishuli river across Rasuwa, Nuwakot, Dhading, Gorkha and Chitwan districts.
According to Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, 165 bodies have been recovered from flood-affected areas so far, with identification under way.
Forty-four Nepal Army personnel, 28 Nepal Police personnel and 13 Armed Police Force personnel working in the affected area and various police posts have also been reported missing.
Preliminary data from the Nepal Tourism Board puts the number of missing travellers from the affected area at 579, including 466 foreign nationals and 113 Nepalis.
A total of 123 people have been rescued by air from Timure in Rasuwa, including 94 Nepalis and 29 foreign nationals.
Nepal Army and private-sector helicopters have been mobilised to intensify search and rescue operations in Rasuwa and Nuwakot.
Temporary shelters, food, clean water and medicines have been arranged for flood victims at nearby Nepal Army barracks. Authorities are also working to restore blocked roads, bridges, hydropower facilities, communication networks and water supplies while moving displaced families to safer locations.
