Sadhguru in tears as 80 Kailash pilgrims remain unaccounted for after Nepal flash floods

Sadhguru broke down while speaking about the fate of 80 Kailash Mansarovar pilgrims who went missing after a devastating flash flood struck the Tibet-Nepal border region.

In a video address on August 26, Sadhguru struggled to contain his tears as he described the destruction and the uncertainty surrounding an Isha Foundation pilgrimage group.

His trembling voice, punctuated by anguished cries in the background, conveyed the distress gripping the Isha community as families across several countries waited for news.

The missing pilgrims belonged to the S3 group, which was returning from Kailash Mansarovar when the disaster struck. The group comprised 80 people: 34 men and 46 women, from multiple countries.

There were 22 pilgrims from the United States, 12 from Canada, 11 from Australia and nine from the United Kingdom. Germany had four pilgrims, while France and Nepal had three each.

The Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore and Spain had two each, while Finland, Hungary, Israel, Lithuania, the Philippines, Portugal, Russia and South Africa had one pilgrim each.

Three volunteers and a doctor associated with the pilgrimage were also staying at nearby hotels, Sadhguru said.

The scale of the destruction became personal for Sadhguru when he recalled that he had passed through the same immigration building at Gyirong, near the Tibet-Nepal border, only a week earlier.

By the time the flood struck, the building had been washed away, along with part of the town. 'Looking at the scale of destruction, it looks bad,' Sadhguru said, breaking down as he spoke.

He said he had attempted to reach the disaster zone himself on Wednesday morning, but blocked roads prevented him from proceeding.

Telephone networks had failed and communication with the affected area had been severed, leaving the foundation without official information about the missing pilgrims.

The uncertainty also extended to the Nepali guides who had accompanied Isha's pilgrimage groups.

Their families were based in the flood-hit region, and there was no clear information about how many of the guides were safe.

Sadhguru said reports from the Nepal side indicated that hundreds of people were missing, while there was no official information available from the Tibet side when he delivered the address. He warned that the eventual toll and number of people affected across the wider region could be significantly higher.

Calling the disaster 'a terrible and an extraordinary event', he said the Isha Foundation was working with authorities and the Indian embassies in Nepal and China to determine what had happened and explore ways of reaching the affected area.

'We are doing everything possible,' Sadhguru said, adding that messages had been sent to families after nearly 12 hours without information.

He was again overcome with emotion while describing efforts to secure permission for himself and a team to enter the affected area and assist with rescue efforts.

For families waiting across continents, however, the central question remained unanswered at the end of the address: where are the 80 pilgrims?