--- title: Beatles in India: Ashram Where Band Stayed in 1968 Reopened description: The ashram in northern India where the Beatles learned to meditate and wrote nearly 50 songs in 1968 has been opened to the public. canonical: https://time.com/4142308/beatles-ashram-india-rishikesh-1968-open-public/ author: Rishi Iyengar article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-12-09T08:45:50.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:56:53.307Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: Indian Ashram Where Beatles Stayed Opened to Public og:description: The British band reportedly wrote nearly 50 songs at the spiritual retreat in 1968 og:url: https://time.com/4142308/beatles-ashram-india-rishikesh-1968-open-public/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc1650180b33773c0/6988749b0a4a22088a9c7676/gettyimages-73874340.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5090 og:image:height: 2863 og:image:alt: Beatles And Maharishi og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Indian Ashram Where Beatles Stayed Opened to Public twitter:description: The British band reportedly wrote nearly 50 songs at the spiritual retreat in 1968 twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc1650180b33773c0/6988749b0a4a22088a9c7676/gettyimages-73874340.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # The Ashram in India Where the Beatles Stayed in 1968 Is Now Open to the Public > Sponsored content. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account. ## Video: A Rare Look at the Beginnings of Beatlemania [Watch (HLS stream): A Rare Look at the Beginnings of Beatlemania](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/ndxmm4Nl.m3u8) (4:34)  _Published 2014-02-07. In honor of the 50th anniversary of the Beatles' first major performance in America on The Ed Sullivan Show, here's a look at archival footage of when the British band first took the U.S. by storm._ by [Rishi Iyengar](https://time.com/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Dec 9, 2015 8:45 AM UTC  The Beatles and their wives at the Rishikesh in India with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, March 1968. The Beatles and their wives at the Rishikesh in India with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, March 1968. Hulton Archive—Getty Images by [Rishi Iyengar](https://time.com/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Dec 9, 2015 8:45 AM UTC Beatles fans no longer have to wonder what their time in India in the late 1960s — where they learned to meditate and reportedly wrote around 48 songs — was like, as the ashram in the country’s north where they stayed has been [opened](http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-35048219) to the public. The spiritual complex, located on the outskirts of a tiger reserve in India’s northern city of Rishikesh, was reopened Tuesday for paying visitors, the BBC reported. The ashram, where the iconic British band spent time in 1968, was run by self-proclaimed Indian guru Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, who abandoned it a few years later. It was taken over by the local forest authorities in 2003, five years before the Maharishi’s death. Intrigued Beatles fans over the years have made their way into the retreat by climbing its outer fence or bribing a security guard, but will now be able to roam freely for between about $2 (for Indians) and $10 (for foreign nationals), respectively. \[[_BBC_](http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-35048219)\] ## Transcript Some of the fences hold, others do not. A minor miracle is smothered by the fact that there are no injuries right among the near- hysterical crowd. This truly is a social document for our time. Forty young ladies fainted, but authorities feel that some were playing possum, so that they might be lifted over the fence and thus be nearer their idols. The Beatles, who originated as a small time act out of Liverpool, now have no rivals as the kingpins of the teenage set. You can read me fat, loud and all. Some brave volunteers among the British police elect to act with heroism above and beyond the call of duty and escort the Beatles to their car. There hasn't been this much excitement at the London Airport since man learned to fly. So, there you have the homecoming of the Beatles, the return of the heroes to their native land. They did what the redcoats put into in the American Revolution, they conquered the colonies. >> Ladies and gentlemen, the Beatles. >> Yes. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. >> Close your eyes and I'll kiss you. Tomorrow I'll miss you. Remember I'll always be true. >> Well, Sylvia and I-- first learned about the Beatles back on October 1964 at London Airport. With enormous crowd, we can't get around, but Sylvia and I asked them what is going on as the Beatles [ unk ]. Or we didn't even know who would be [ unk ] never heard of them. And that night, I brought Ringo Starr, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and John Lennon for 3 shows, for $ 10, 000. >> And hope that my dreams will come true. And then while I'm away I'll write home every day. And I'll send all my loving to you. All my loving, I will send to you. All my loving, darling I'll be true. >> Oh, I just loved all of it, you know, >> Yeah. >> Especially Miami. >> Yeah. >> The sun, you know. I didn't know what it meant till I went over there. >> Don't you get it up Liverpool? >> No, they've finished up there, you know. They've cut it out. >> Did you ever have a chance, John, to just get away on your own-- >> Yeah. >> without anybody recognizing you? >> We borrowed a couple of millionaires' houses, you know. >> Yeah. >> Well. >> Oh, no, we didn't. >> You can afford to buy a couple of millionaires' houses, couldn't you? >> No. No. >> Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. >> Yeah, we'd sooner borrow them. It's cheaper. And we did a bit of water skiing. >> What about the taste of the fans over there? Did you find the same stuff? >> Yeah. >> He never bit any. >> Yeah. If the-- we expected them to be very different, but they weren't at all. >> Yeah. Yeah. >> The accent was the only thing, you know. That was the only difference. >> Lovely. >> Did they reckon-- did they reckon you sang in a-- in an-- in an English accent or American accent? >> No, some fellow said, " How come, 'cause you're from Britain, and you still sing in American accent" or something, yeah. >> Yeah. >> We've been trying to explain it to him that it's a Liverpool accent. >> But we're all Americans. You know, I believe in that. >> What about the Beatles' styles, all these wigs and suits and things? Are they catching on over there? >> Yeah, they're selling well. >> Yeah. I hear-- I hear anyway the 4 of you are gonna be millionaires by the end of the year? >> Oh, that's nice. >> Yeah. >> Yeah, yeah. >> Close your eyes and I'll kiss you. Tomorrow I'll miss you. Remember I'll always be true. And then while I'm away, I'll write home every day. And I'll send all my loving to you. All my loving, I will send to you. All my loving, darling I'll be true. All my loving, all my loving. 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