Sivananda Saraswati (or Swami Sivanada) (8 September 1887

14 July 1963) was a Hi

ndu spiritual teacher and a proponent of Yoga and Vedanta. Sivananda was born Ku
ppuswami in Pattamadai, in the Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu. He studied me
dicine and served in British Malaya as a physician for several years before taki
ng up monasticism. He lived most of his life near Muni Ki Reti, Rishikesh.
He was the founder of the Divine Life Society (DLS) in 1936, Yoga-Vedanta Forest
Academy (1948) and author of over 200 books on yoga, Vedanta, and a variety of
subjects. He established Sivananda Ashram, the headquarters of the DLS, on the b
ank of the Ganges at Sivanandanagar, 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) from Rishikesh.[1][2]
[3]
Sivananda Yoga, the yoga form propagated by his disciple Vishnudevananda, is now
spread in many parts of the world through Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centres. These
centres are not affiliated with Sivananda's ashrams, which are run by the Divin
e Life Society.
Contents
1 Biography
1.1 Early life
1.2 Initiation
1.3 Travels
1.4 Founding the Divine Life Society
1.5 Samadhi
2 Disciples
3 Works
4 References
5 Further reading
6 External links
Biography
Early life
Sivananda was born Kuppuswamy in Pattamadai near Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu, Indi
a, as the third son to his parents on 8 September 1887. As a child he was very a
ctive and promising in academics and gymnastics. He attended medical school in T
anjore, where he excelled. He ran a medical journal called Ambrosia during this
period. Upon graduation he practised medicine and worked as a doctor in Malaya f
or ten years, with a reputation for providing free treatment to poor patients. O
ver time, a sense that medicine was healing on a superficial level grew in him,
urging him to look elsewhere to fill the void, and in 1923 he left Malaya and re
turned to India to pursue a spiritual quest.
Initiation
Upon his return to India in 1924, he visited Varanasi, Nashik, and then Rishikes
h, where he met his guru, Vishwananda Saraswati. It was Vishwananda who initiate
d him into the Sannyasa order, and gave him his monastic name. However, since Si
vananda spent only a few hours with Vishwananda, the full Viraja Homa ceremonies
were performed later[when?] by Vishnudevananda, the Mandaleswara of Sri Kailas
Ashram. After initiation, Sivananda settled in Rishikesh, and immersed himself i
n intense spiritual practices. Sivananda performed austerities for many years bu
t he also continued to nurse the sick. With some money from his insurance policy
that had matured, he started a charitable dispensary at Lakshman Jhula in 1927,
serving pilgrims, holy men and the poor using his medical expertise.
Travels
Swami Sivananda with disciples, 25 February 1949, Maha Shivratri Day.Rishikesh.
After a few years, Sivananda went on an extensive pilgrimage and travelled the l
ength and breadth of India to meditate at holy shrines and came in contact with

spiritual teachers throughout India. During this Parivrajaka (wandering monk) li

fe, Sivananda visited important places of pilgrimage in the south, including Ram
eshvaram. He conducted Sankirtan and delivered lectures during his travels. He v
isited the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, and met Maharishi Shuddhananda Bharati to which
he gave the title of Maharishi. At the Ramana Ashram, he had the darshan of Ram
ana Maharshi on Maharshi's birthday. He sang bhajans and danced in ecstasy with
Maharshi's bhaktas. He also went on pilgrimages to various places in northern In
dia including Kedarnath and Badrinath. He visited Kailash-Manasarovar in 1931.[c
itation needed]
Founding the Divine Life Society
Sivananda Kutir at Sivananda Ghat, and Sivananda Ashram above, Muni Ki Reti, Ris
hikesh.
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v t e
During Sivananda's stay in Rishikesh and his travels around India, many came to
him for guidance in the spiritual path. He permitted some of them to live near h
im and instructed them. Sivananda asked his students take copies of his short ar
ticles and send them for publication. Over time, large numbers of people started
coming to him and his devotees started growing in numbers.[citation needed]
Sivananda founded the DLS in 1936 on the banks of the Ganges River. The free dis
tribution of spiritual literature drew a steady flow of disciples to him, such a
s Satyananda Saraswati, founder of Satyananda Yoga.
In 1945, Sivananda created the Sivananda Ayurvedic Pharmacy, and organised the A
ll-world Religions Federation. He established the All-world Sadhus Federation in
1947 and Yoga-Vedanta Forest Academy in 1948. He called his yoga the Yoga of Sy
nthesis.
Samadhi
Swami Sivananda entered Mahasamadhi (departure of a Self-realized saint from his
mortal coil) on 14 July 1963 in his Kutir on the bank of the Ganges, in Sivanan
danagar.
Disciples

Interiors of the Sivananda Samadhi temple, Divine Life Society, Muni Ki Reti, Ri
shikesh
Sivananda's two chief acting organizational disciples were Chidananda Saraswati
and Krishnananda Saraswati. Chidananda Saraswati was appointed president of the
DLS by Sivananda in 1963 and served in this capacity until his death in 2008. Kr
ishnananda Saraswati was appointed General Secretary by Sivananda in 1958 and se
rved in this capacity until his death in 2001.
Other prominent disciples were Venkatesananda Saraswati (South Africa, Mauritius
, Madagascar, Australia), Pranavanda Saraswati (Malaysia) and Sivananda Radha Sa
raswati (Canada). Another prominent disciple was Swami Sahajananda Saraswati (So
uth Africa), who was directed by Sivananda to establish the Divine Life Society
of South Africa.
Disciples who went on to grow new organisations
Chinmayananda Saraswati, founder of the Chinmaya Mission
Jyotirmayananda Saraswati, President of the Yoga Research Foundation, Miami,
USA
Lalitananda Saraswati, Vice-President of the Yoga Research Foundation
Omkarananda Saraswati, founder of Omkarananda Ashram, Himalayas
Satchidananda Saraswati, founder of the Integral Yoga Institutes, Around the
world
Satyananda Saraswati, founder of Bihar School of Yoga
Shantananda Saraswati, founder of Temple of Fine Arts (Malaysia & Singapore)
Sivananda Radha Saraswati, founder of Yasodhara Ashram, British Columbia, Ca
nada
Vishnudevananda Saraswati, founder of the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centres, HQ
Canada
Venkatesananda Saraswati, inspirer of Ananda Kutir Ashrama in South Africa
Sahajananda Saraswati, Spiritual Head of Divine Life Society of South Africa