Sadhguru | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Jagadish Vasudev (1957-09-03)3 September 1957 (age 67) |
| Alma mater | University of Mysore (BA) |
| Organization | Isha Foundation |
| Notable work |
|
| Spouse | [1] |
| Children | 1 |
| Honors | Padma Vibhushan (2017) Indira Gandhi Paryavaran Puraskar |
| Website | isha |
Jagadish "Jaggi" Vasudev (born 3 September, 1957), also known asSadhguru, is an Indian guru and founder of theIsha Foundation, based inCoimbatore, India. The foundation, established in 1992, operates anashram and yoga centre that carries out educational and spiritual activities. Sadhguru has been teachingyoga since 1982. He is the author of theNew York Times bestsellersInner Engineering: A Yogi's Guide to Joy andKarma: A Yogi's Guide to Crafting Your Destiny, and a frequent speaker at international forums.
Sadhguru also advocates for protecting the environment againstclimate change, leading many initiatives like Project GreenHands (PGH), Rally for Rivers, Cauvery Calling, and the Journey to Save Soil. In 2017, he received thePadma Vibhushan, India's second-highest civilian award, for his contributions to spirituality and humanitarian services.
Sadhguru has been criticized for promoting a number ofpseudoscientific claims.[2][3]
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Vasudev was born into aTelugu family[4][5] on 3 September 1957, inMysore,Mysore State (now inKarnataka, India). He was the youngest of five children to Susheela Vasudev (mother) and B.V. Vasudev (father). His father was an ophthalmologist at the Mysuru Railway Hospital and his mother a homemaker.[6][7]
After completing his formal education, Vasudev was uninterested in post-secondary schooling. One year later, however, he enrolled at theUniversity of Mysore, where he studied English literature. While studying literature, Vasudev received second rank.[7] Although his parents wanted him to continue his education with postgraduate studies, Vasudev disagreed and began a career in business.[8]
After graduating from the University of Mysore, Vasudev went on to build his first business, a poultry farm, in Mysore.[9] Vasudev explained that his motivation to start a poultry farm was driven by the serenity it yielded in the hours he was not working.[7] The business required minimal attention throughout the day, so Vasudev was able to pursue other interests during his time off, like writing poetry.[7] The business grew profitable, but his family repeatedly criticized and opposed his decision to work with poultry.[7] This led Vasudev to enter the construction industry with a company named Buildaids.[7] He started the company in partnership with a friend, who was a civil engineer. Though Vasudev had no formal engineering training, he used the experience gained from building his poultry farm in his new endeavour.[7]
At the age of 25, after a series of spiritual experiences, he shut down his businesses and began to travel and teach yoga.[7][8]
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In 1983, he taught his first yoga class, in Mysore. He began travelling acrossKarnataka andHyderabad on his motorcycle, conducting his style of yoga classes, known as Sahaja Sthiti Yoga, subsisting on the income from his poultry farm rental and donating the funds received from his students.[8]
Also in 2017, Sadhguru consecrated theAdiyogi Shiva statue, the world's largest bust, in Coimbatore, India.
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Although Vasudev was not brought up in a spiritual household, he recollects one of his first spiritual experiences occurring after he turned 25.[8] On 23 September 1982, he drove upChamundi Hill, and as he sat on a stone, Vasudev had his first spiritual experience.[7][8] He explained that, "All my life I had thought, this is me...But now the air I was breathing, the rock on which I was sitting, the atmosphere around me — everything had become me."[7][8] After about six days, Vasudev had another similar experience at home.[7][8] Six weeks later, he left his businesses and travelled extensively, in an effort to seek insight into his spiritual experiences.[8] After about a year of meditation and travel, he decided to teach yoga to share his inner experience.[8]
In his earlier years, Vasudev had a love for driving motorcycles.[7][10] One of his favourite places to drive was theChamundi Hills in Mysore, though he sometimes drove much further, including to Nepal.[7][10] Vasudev advocatesvegetarianism, but whilst traveling with no vegetarian food sources available, he eatsseafood.[11] He practices theSun Salutation for 40 minutes a day.[11]
Vasudev married his wife, Vijaykumari, in 1984.[12] In 1990, Vijaykumari and Jaggi had their only child, Radhe.[12] Vijaykumari died on 23 January 1997.[13] A complaint from Vijaykumari's father alleged that Vasudev killed her,[13][14] but was later dismissed by police.[14] Radhe trained inBharatanatyam at theKalakshetra Foundation inChennai.[15] She marriedIndian classical vocalist Sandeep Narayan in 2014.[16]
In 1992, Sadhguru established theIsha Foundation[17] as a platform for his spiritual, environmental, and educational activities.[18][19][20] In 1993, he began searching for a location to establish an ashram to cater to the growing interest in his yoga classes.[7] In 1994, he purchased land near the Velliangiri mountains in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, and inaugurated the Isha Yoga Center.[7] Since establishing the Isha Foundation, he remains its head. The foundation's activities are run mostly by volunteers.[21] The organisation offers yoga programmes, known asIsha Yoga.[22] The foundation aims to improve the quality of education in rural India through an initiative called Isha Vidhya.[23]
Through the Isha Foundation, Sadhguru has launched several projects and campaigns focused on environmental conservation and protection, including Project GreenHands (PGH), Rally for Rivers, Cauvery Calling, and Save Soil.[24][25][26][27] Sadhguru established PGH to address water and soil issues inTamil Nadu through reforestation efforts.[28] Launched in July 2019, the "Cauvery Calling" campaign focused on planting trees along theCauvery river's 0.65-mile wide area to replenish water levels in the river and the groundwater table.[26][29][30] In 2017, Sadhguru launched "Rally for Rivers", a campaign intended to build widespread support for river revitalization efforts across India, similar to the "Cauvery Calling" campaign.[28][31] In 2022, Sadhguru completed a 100-day motorcycle journey from London to India to bring attention to his "Journey to Save Soil" campaign, which focuses on raising awareness aboutsoil degradation issues and the benefits of using organic matter in farming.[27][32]
In May 2022, he addressed the leaders of 195 countries at theUnited Nations Convention to Combat Desertification to speak about "Journey to Save Soil".[33][34] BothTrevor Noah, host ofThe Daily Show, and podcast hostJoe Rogan, have invited Sadhguru to discuss this movement.[27][5] OnWorld Environment Day 2022, Indian prime minister,Narendra Modi, attended an event with Sadhguru to discuss efforts to improve soil health.[35]
TheUN FAO has stated that "90% of the Earth's precious topsoil is likely to be at risk by 2050".[36] However, views have been divided on whether the "Save Soil" campaign is addressing this issue.[3]Maria Helena Semedo, deputy director-general of FAO, opined that "Organic [farming] may not be the only solution but it's the single best [option] I can think of."[37] Meanwhile, one environmental watchdog has characterized Sadhguru's approach as "greenwashing".[38]
Sadhguru has authored over thirty books, including theNew York Times bestsellersInner Engineering: A Yogi's Guide to Joy[39] andKarma: A Yogi's Guide to Crafting Your Destiny.[40][41][42]
Sadhguru is a frequent public speaker who has been invited to address many prestigious forums and conferences across the globe, such as theUnited Nations'Millennium World Peace Summit, the BritishHouse of Lords, theMassachusetts Institute of Technology, and theInternational Institute for Management Development.[43] He has also spoken at the annualWorld Economic Forum in 2007,[44] 2017 and 2020.[45][46]
In 2017, Sadhguru was awarded thePadma Vibhushan, the second-highestcivilian award from theGovernment of India, in recognition of his contribution to the field of spirituality and humanitarian services.[47][48][49] The same year, Sadhguru consecrated theAdiyogi Shiva statue, built by the Isha Foundation, in Coimbatore, standing at 34 metres (112 feet) tall.[50] This was declared as the world's largest bust byGuinness World Records.[51][52]
He stood 92nd inThe Indian Express' list of 100 most powerful Indians in 2012 and 40th inIndia Today's list of fifty most powerful Indians in 2019.[53][54]
WhenAyushmann Khurrana asked him how to choose the "correct political stance", Sadhguru responded by saying that he does not subscribe to a political party, and others should not either.[55] He stated that, "party membership should be cancelled because this is becoming a tribe."[55] Accordingly, he encourages individuals to vote for a given party after evaluating their performance in office to "see who makes more sense".[55] However, his views are occasionally perceived as Hindu nationalist and thus close to theBharatiya Janata Party.[5][56][57][58]In 2019 he referred to a Muslim student in London as a "Taliban," for which he apologized after heavy criticism.[59]After recognizing the failure in the "government's communication" of the2019 Citizenship Amendment Act in India, Sadhguru spoke in support of the act.[60][61][62] In 2018, he accused liberals of being fanatics.[63]
Sadhguru has made a number claims that are inconsistent with scientific consensus.[3][64][2] Although India approved the ratification of the internationalMinamata Convention on Mercury to ban its usage, Sadhguru advocates for the use of mercury in the context of traditional Indian medicine such asSiddha medicine.[65][66][2][67] He has also repeatedly stated he can solidify mercury at room temperature; a claim refuted by Australian scientist Sumaiya Shaikh.[3]
Sadhguru has been criticized for statements about the negative effects that alunar eclipse can have on the body's energy.[68][64]
Media from Commons
Quotations from Wikiquote
