Sadhguru Breaks Down as 80 Kailash Pilgrims Go Missing

New Delhi, August 27, 2026 A devastating flash flood near the Nepal-Tibet border has triggered fears over the fate of dozens of Kailash Mansarovar pilgrims. Isha Foundation founder and spiritual leader Jaggi Vasudev, popularly known as Sadhguru, became emotional while informing followers at the foundation's camp in Saga, Tibet, that 80 members of an Isha group returning from the yatra were missing. According to him, the group was inside the immigration building at Gyirong just minutes before it was washed away. "This is a terrible and an extraordinary event," he said in a video on his YouTube channel. Sadhguru said his own party had crossed paths with the group during the pilgrimage. "One of our groups, the S3 group, that we met at Saga and also met them when we were trekking up, they were coming down," he said. The foundation last received a message from the group leader only nine minutes before the flood struck. "At 9:05 (AM) he sent a message that they have arrived at the immigration. So after that, this happened at 9:14," he said, describing the leader as a full-time volunteer for more than two decades. He added that the leader's Nepal phone never became active. "If he had crossed over, his Nepal phone should have come active. It did not come. So literally the entire group was there in the building." The missing group included 34 men and 46 women from several countries. Among them were 22 people from the United States, 12 from Canada, 11 from Australia, nine from the United Kingdom, four from Germany, three each from France and Nepal, and two each from the Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore and Spain. There was also one person each from Finland, Hungary, Israel, Lithuania, the Philippines, Portugal, Russia and South Africa. Three volunteers and a doctor who were staying in nearby hotels were also unaccounted for. Speaking about the wider impact of the disaster, Sadhguru referred to Indian news reports that put the number of missing people on the Nepali side at 484. "On this side there's absolutely no information," he said, adding that the overall number "could be anywhere around 1,500 plus". The exact cause of the flash flood was still unclear, with unconfirmed reports suggesting a possible lake burst or an earthquake. "We don't know," he said as tears streamed down his face. With roads and telecommunications disrupted, reaching the affected area has become extremely difficult. "We are seeking permission through the Indian embassy and the Chinese embassy in India, and American embassy is working on this," Sadhguru said. As efforts continue to establish contact and gather information from the disaster-hit region, uncertainty remains over the fate of the missing pilgrims, leaving their families and fellow travellers anxiously waiting for answers.