Sivananda Saraswati

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Template:Short description Template:For Template:Distinguish Template:EngvarB Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox Hindu leader Template:Quote box Swami Sivananda Saraswati (Template:IAST3; 8 September 1887 – 14 July 1963<ref name="Ananthanarayan 1965"/>), also called Swami Sivananda, was a yoga guru,<ref name="IYA 2017">Template:Cite web</ref> a Hindu spiritual teacher, and a proponent of Vedanta. Sivananda was born in Pattamadai, in the Tirunelveli district of modern Tamil Nadu, and was named Kuppuswami. He studied medicine and served in British Malaya as a physician for several years before taking up monasticism.

He was the founder of the Divine Life Society (DLS) in 1936, Yoga-Vedanta Forest Academy (1948), and the author of over 200 books on yoga, Vedanta, and a variety of subjects. He established Sivananda Ashram, the headquarters of the DLS, on the bank of the Ganges at Muni Ki Reti, Template:Convert from Rishikesh, and lived most of his life there.<ref>Divine Life Society Britannica.com</ref><ref name="McKean 1996">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Morris 2006">Template:Cite book</ref>

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 Divine Life Society.

Biography

Early life

Swami Sivananda was born as Kuppuswami to a Brahmin family<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> on 8 September 1887. His birth took place during the early hours of the morning, as the Bharani star was rising in Pattamadai village in Tirunelveli district, Tamil Nadu. His father, P.S. Vengu Iyer, worked as a revenue officer and was a devotee of Shiva. His mother, Parvati Ammal, was also religious. Kuppuswami was the third and last child of his parents.<ref name="DLS">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

As a child, he was very active and promising in academics and gymnastics. He attended medical school in Tanjore, where he excelled. He ran a medical journal called Ambrosia during this period. Upon graduation, he practiced medicine and worked as a doctor in British 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.<ref name="DLS"/>

Initiation

Upon his return to India in 1924, he went to Rishikesh where he met his guru, Vishvananda Saraswati, who initiated him into the Sannyasa order and gave him his monastic name. The full ceremony was conducted by Vishnudevananda, the mahant (abbot) of Sri Kailas Ashram.<ref name="DLS"/> 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 at Lakshman Jhula.<ref name="DLS"/>

Founding the Divine Life Society

Sivananda founded the Divine Life Society in 1936 on the banks of the Ganges River, distributing spiritual literature for free.<ref name="DLS"/> Early disciples included Satyananda Saraswati, founder of Satyananda Yoga.<ref name="RoW IYFM"/><ref name="Aveling 1994">Template:Cite book</ref>

In 1945, he created the Sivananda Ayurvedic Pharmacy, and organised the All-world Religions Federation.<ref name="DLS"/> He established the All-world Sadhus Federation in 1947 and the Yoga-Vedanta Forest Academy in 1948.<ref name="DLS"/> He called his yoga the Yoga of Synthesis, combining the Four Yogas of Hinduism (Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Jnana Yoga, Rāja Yoga), for action, devotion, knowledge, and meditation respectively.<ref name="yogasynt">Template:Cite web</ref>

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'.<ref name="Goldberg 2016">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Van Lysebeth 1981"/> His Belgian devotee André 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 little pranayama, a little meditation and bhakti; well, a little of everything".<ref name="Goldberg 2016"/><ref name="Van Lysebeth 1981">Template:Cite journal</ref>

The 9th All-India Divine Life Convention was held at Venkatagiri on March 16, 1957, which was presided by Sathya Sai Baba and attended by Satchidananda Saraswati and Swami Sadananda.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Vegetarianism

Sivananda insisted on a strict lacto-vegetarian diet for moral and spiritual reasons, arguing that "meat-eating is highly deleterious to health".<ref>Rosen, Steven. (2011). Food for the Soul: Vegetarianism and Yoga Traditions. Praeger. p. 22. Template:ISBN</ref><ref>McGonigle, Andrew; Huy, Matthew. (2022). The Physiology of Yoga. Human Kinetics. p. 169. Template:ISBN</ref><ref>"Meat-Eating". sivanandaonline.org. Retrieved 22 January 2023.</ref><ref name="vegetarianism">"Vegetarianism". dlshq.org. Retrieved 22 January 2023.</ref> Divine Life Society thus advocates a vegetarian diet.<ref name="vegetarianism"/>

Mahasamadhi

Swami Sivananda died, described as entering Mahasamadhi, on 14 July 1963 beside the River Ganges at his Sivananda Ashram near Muni Ki Reti.<ref name="Ananthanarayan 1965">Template:Cite book</ref>

Works

Sivananda wrote over 200 books on yoga.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Many of the books are available free on the Divine Life Society's website.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

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Disciples

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. 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:

References

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Further reading

  • 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.
  • Swami Venkatesānanda (1985) Sivananda: Biography of a Modern Sage Template:Webarchive, Divine Life Society. Template:ISBN

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