John Lennon wrote The Beatles’ 1968 song ‘Yer Blues’ while in India with the band, where they were studying transcendental meditation under Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. The article presents the song as an expression of Lennon’s severe loneliness and suicidal feelings despite the group’s search for spiritual enlightenment, illustrating tensions within the Beatles’ Indian retreat and Lennon’s worsening disillusionment.

George Harrison had encouraged the group’s interest in Eastern spirituality after his own experiences in India and introduced them to the Maharishi in London in 1967. Lennon later said he was meditating for up to eight hours daily while writing “the most miserable songs on Earth”, and stated that the lyric “I’m so lonely I want to die” reflected how he felt; subsequent allegations of sexual misconduct against the Maharishi further undermined the band’s faith in the retreat.