Yajnavalkya Ashram is in Jagban village, near Jhanjharpur town in the Madhubani district of Bihar. This village lies in the historical Mithila region, which the famous King Janaka, a great patron of spiritual knowledge, once ruled.
The ashram is more of a spiritual center dedicated to Sage Yajnavalkya, one of the most important rishis of the Vedic era. A statue of Rishi Yajnavalkya is installed here for devotees and students to offer their respects. People come here to honor the sage’s spiritual wisdom and teachings. The ashram serves more like a meditative and educational space than a conventional temple.
The ashram has simple and peaceful architecture. It includes a small shrine-like structure, open grounds for meditation and satsang, and a library or hall for Vedic studies. The atmosphere is serene, with trees and natural surroundings adding to the spiritual feel of the place. Unlike traditional temples with towering gopurams or vimanas, this ashram reflects humble Vedic simplicity, focusing more on spiritual energy than grandeur.
Long ago, in the age of the Vedas, Rishi Yajnavalkya, a great sage and philosopher, undertook deep penance and Vedic learning in the peaceful region of ‘Jagban’. This land, filled with the sacred energy of the Saraswati River and surrounded by nature, became his Tapobhumi—a place of meditation, austerity, and divine wisdom.
According to legend, Yajnavalkya was once a student of Sage Vaishampayana, a disciple of Vyasa. Due to a disagreement, Vaishampayana asked Yajnavalkya to return all the knowledge of Yajurveda he had learned. Obeying his guru, Yajnavalkya vomited the Yajurveda in the form of bright energy, which was later picked up by rishis who took the form of *Tittiri birds. That part of the Veda came to be known as the **Taittiriya Yajurveda*.
But Yajnavalkya did not stop there. He went into deep meditation in Jagban and ‘prayed to Lord Surya (the Sun God)’ with great devotion. Pleased with his tapas, Surya appeared before him and blessed him with a new form of Yajurveda, now called the Shukla Yajurveda. This new Veda contained pure spiritual wisdom, untaught before.
From then on, Yajnavalkya became the foremost teacher of Vedanta and Upanishadic knowledge. It is believed that from this very ashram, he taught great disciples like Maitreyi, Gargi, and King Janaka of Mithila. The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, one of the greatest philosophical texts of India, is said to have been revealed from this sacred land.
The soil of Jagban is believed to be charged with the tapas-shakti (spiritual power) of the sage. The mystical debates between Yajnavalkya and Gargi on the nature of Brahman, which are recorded in the Upanishads, are believed to have occurred near this region.
Thus, this ashram stands as a living memory of ancient India’s Vedic enlightenment, where seekers did not worship with flowers and rituals alone, but with deep inquiry, self-discipline, and inner silence.
On Guru Purnima, special homams, prayers, and discourses are held in honor of Sage Yajnavalkya. Local scholars, students, and spiritual seekers participate in these events to celebrate his teachings.