SwamiSivananda Saraswati (IAST:Svāmī Śivānanda Sarasvatī; 8 September 1887 – 14 July 1963[1]), also calledSwami Sivananda, was ayoga guru,[2] aHindu spiritual teacher, and a proponent ofVedanta. Sivananda was born inPattamadai, in theTirunelveli district of modernTamil Nadu, and was namedKuppuswami. He studied medicine and served inBritish Malaya as a physician for several years before taking up monasticism.
He was the founder of theDivine Life Society (DLS) in 1936,Yoga-Vedanta Forest Academy (1948), and the author of over 200 books onyoga,Vedanta, and a variety of subjects. He established Sivananda Ashram, the headquarters of the DLS, on the bank of theGanges atMuni Ki Reti, 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) fromRishikesh, and lived most of his life there.[3][4][5]
Swami Sivananda was born as Kuppuswami to aBrahmin family[6] on 8 September 1887. His birth took place during the early hours of the morning, as theBharani star was rising inPattamadai village inTirunelveli district,Tamil Nadu. His father, P.S. Vengu Iyer, worked as a revenue officer and was adevotee ofShiva. His mother, Parvati Ammal, was also religious. Kuppuswami was the third and last child of his parents.[7][8]
As a child, he was very active and promising in academics and gymnastics. He attended medical school inTanjore, where he excelled. He ran a medical journal calledAmbrosia during this period. Upon graduation, he practiced medicine and worked as a doctor inBritish Malaya for ten years, with a reputation for providing free treatment to poor patients. Over time, a feeling developed in Dr. Kuppuswami that medicine was healing only on a superficial level, urging him to look elsewhere to fill the void, and in 1923 he left Malaya and returned to India to pursue his spiritual quest.[7]
Upon his return to India in 1924, he went toRishikesh where he met hisguru, Vishvananda Saraswati, who initiated him into theSannyasa order and gave him his monastic name. The full ceremony was conducted by Vishnudevananda, the mahant (abbot) of Sri Kailas Ashram.[7] Sivananda settled in Rishikesh and immersed himself in intense spiritual practices. Sivānanda performed austerities for many years while continuing to nurse the sick. In 1927, with some money from an insurance policy, he ran a charitable dispensary atLakshman Jhula.[7]
Sivananda travelled extensively on a major tour in 1950, and set up branches of the Divine Life Society throughout India. He vigorously promoted and disseminated his vision of yoga, adopting modern techniques to such an extent that he gained the nickname 'Swami Propagandananda'.[12][13] His Belgian devoteeAndré Van Lysebeth wrote that his critics "disapproved of both his modern methods of diffusion and his propagation of yoga on such a grand scale to the general public", explaining that Sivananda was advocating a practice that everybody could do, combining "some asanas, a littlepranayama, a little meditation and bhakti; well, a little of everything".[12][13]
The 9th All-India Divine Life Convention was held at Venkatagiri on March 16, 1957, which was presided bySathya Sai Baba and attended bySatchidananda Saraswati and Swami Sadananda.[14]
Sivananda insisted on a strictlacto-vegetarian diet for moral and spiritual reasons, arguing that "meat-eating is highly deleterious to health".[15][16][17][18] Divine Life Society thus advocates a vegetarian diet.[18]
Life and Works of Swami Sivananda, by Sivānanda, Divine Life Society (W.A.). Fremantle Branch. Published by Divine Life Society, Fremantle Branch, 1985.ISBN0-949027-04-9
All About Hinduism
Amrita Gita
Bhagavad Gita (transliterated and translated by Sivananda, with chapter summaries)
Brahma Sutras, 1949
Conquest of Anger
Conquest of Fear
Easy Steps to Yoga
Essence of Yoga
God Exists
A Great Guru and His Ideal Disciple (letters from Sivananda to Prananvananda)
Guru-Bhakti Yoga
Guru Tattva
Gyana Jyoti, Wisdom Light, 1950
Hindu Fasts & Festivals
How to Become Rich, 1950
How to Get Vairagya (Dispassion)
Ideal of Married Life
Karmas and Diseases
Kingly Science Kingly Secret
Life and Teachings of Lord Jesus
Life and Teachings of Swami Sivananda, 1964
Light, Power and Wisdom
Lord Krishna, His Lilas and Teachings
The Master Said... (1954 speech)
May I Answer That?
Mind, its Mysteries and Control, 1946
Parables of Sivananda, 1955
The Philosophy and Significance of Idol Worship
Philosophy of Dreams
Practical Ayurveda.
Practical Lessons in Yoga
Radio Talks, 1951
Saints and Sages, 1951
Satsanga and Svadhyaya
Sayings of Swami Sivananda, 1947
Self-Knowledge
Sivananda Upanishad. A universal scripture in the Sage's own handwriting, (Vishnudevananda (ed.)) 1955
Sixty-Three Nayanar Saints
Swami Sivananda. His Life, Mission and Message, in pictures, 1953
Temples in India
Thought Power
Thus Awakens Swami Sivananda
Thus Inspires Swami Sivananda, 1962
Thus Spake Sivananda
Vedanta for Beginners
Waves of Bliss, 1949
What Becomes of the Soul After Death, 1950
Yoga in Daily Life
Yoga: Your Home Practice Companion. DK Publishing, 2018
Sivananda's two chief acting organizational disciples wereChidananda Saraswati andKrishnananda Saraswati. Chidananda Saraswati was appointed president of the DLS by Sivananda in 1963 and served in this capacity until his death in 2008.Krishnananda Saraswati was appointed General Secretary by Sivananda in 1958 and served in this capacity until his death in 2001.
Disciples who went on to grow new organisations include:
^abcAnanthanarayan, Sri N. (1965).I Live to Serve – A Promise and A Fulfilment(PDF). Sivanandanagar, Tehri-Garhwal, U.A. India: Divine Life Society.Intimate Glimpses into Gurudev Sivananda's Last Days Ë How the Holy Master Lived a Life of Unremitting Service to the Very End
^Morris, Brian (2006).Religion and anthropology: a critical introduction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 144.ISBN978-0-521-85241-8.OCLC252536951.
Fornaro, Robert John (1969)Sivananda and the Divine Life Society: A Paradigm of the "secularism," "puritanism" and "cultural Dissimulation" of a Neo-Hindu Religious Society.Syracuse University.
Ananthanarayanan, N. (1970)From Man to God-man: the inspiring life-story of Swami Sivananda, Indian Publ. Trading Corp.
Gyan, Satish Chandra (1979)Swami Sivananda and the Divine Life Society: An Illustration of Revitalization Movement.
