The Immortal Himalayan Yogi
Born as ‘Nagraj’ in Tamil Nadu around 203 AD, Sri Sri Sri Mahavatar Babaji was initiated into Kriya Yoga by Sri Sri Sri Bhognath Siddar. Still retaining his bodily form after thousands of years Mahavtar Babaji continues to guide all spiritual seekers in countless ways.
The Heavenly Creator of Sushumna Kriya Yoga
One of the 18 Siddhars of the Siddhar tradition, Sri Sri Sri Bhognath Siddar who lived 12,000 years ago designed and handed over the Sushumna Kriya Yoga process to help the modern human being achieve realization.
Spiritual Guru & Ocean of Compassion
Pujyashri Aathmanandmayi Mataji was ordained by Sri Sri Sri Bhognath Siddar and Sri Sri Sri Mahavtar Babaji in 2005, to spread Sushumna Kriya Yoga as an essential tool to overcome day-to-day challenges of modern life with ease, to attain aathmananda.
Shri Mahavatar Babaji is the legendary Eternal Master with a Unique Golden Lustre. He is a Great Master of Grace, Love, and Compassion, affectionately called ‘Babaji,’ meaning Revered Father.
Shri Mahavatar Babaji, the highest Spiritual Master, has been guiding spiritually inclined humans towards the path of Self-realization since time immemorial. Blessing and appearing before many in His immortal form, Babaji was immensely popular in the mid-18th to 19th century.
It is believed that Shri Gautam Buddha, during his last days in the 5th century BC, prophesied that His teaching would be distorted and lost within 500 years of Him leaving His mortal body. It would be rediscovered in 800 years and preserved by one whose name would be associated with the term “Naga.” On the 30th of November, in the year 203 AD, on the day of Kartika Purnima, Shri Mahavatar Babaji was born in Parangipettai, Tamil Nadu. His father, a local priest serving the temple of Lord Shiva, named Him Nagaraj, meaning the king of Serpents, to honor the Great Primordial force “Kundalini Shakti.”
In His childhood, Babaji accompanied His father to learn the austerities of the temple and follow the tradition. However, two significant incidents transformed Babaji’s life. One day Babaji’s Mother brought a jackfruit for a family feast; Babaji, who was then 4 years old, ate the whole jackfruit. Babaji’s Mother was a strict disciplinarian, and in anger stuffed a piece of cloth into his mouth and almost suffocated him. This near-death experience ignited a strong desire within him to seek the truth. Another incident occurred when Babaji was kidnapped, taken to Calcutta, and sold to a kind-hearted rich man who later set Him free. In His quest for self-realization, Babaji traveled far and wide, searching for a Master who could guide Him to the truth. At the tender age of 11, Babaji joined a group of ascetics from Benaras traveling to Katirgama, Sri Lanka.
There, Babaji met His Great Master, Shri Bhoganadha Siddhar. Moved by Babaji’s relentless quest, Shri Bhoganadha Siddhar accepted him as his disciple. After six months of rigorous penance and austerities, Babaji was initiated into the spiritual practice of Kriya Yoga.
After the strict and prolonged practice of various yogic and meditational practices under the guidance of Sri Sri Sri Bhognath Siddar, he attained oneness with God at the young age of sixteen years. He has since retained this immortal physical body for centuries. However, he remains invisible in the Himalayas and guides millions in their spiritual quest. When it is required he chooses to materialize in a suitable form for the sake of his disciples.
Shri Paramahansa Yogananda, in his book ‘Autobiography of a Yogi,’ provides insight into Shri Mahavatar Babaji and the revival of the Kriya Yoga tradition after the Dark Age. Another book, ‘The Holy Science’ by another Great Spiritual Master, Shri Yukteswar Giriji, also speaks about the Great Himalayan Master, Babaji.
Parama Guru Sri Sri Sri Boghanadha Siddar is one among the eighteen sacred Siddars. The books of the ancient ascetics show that the life of Sri Sri Sri Bhoganatha Siddar spanned for more than twelve thousand years, starting from even before the beginning of Kaliyuga.
He obtained initation (upadheysa) on all forms of Meditational practices from his revered Guru Sri Sri Sri Kalinganadha Siddar. As part of his spiritual education, he became an expert practitioner of the Kayakalpa Chikitsha (for enhancing one’s life span). With the aim of attaining Lord Subramania’s Holy grace, Sri Sri Sri Bhoganatha Siddar meditated on the hills of the Sathuragiri and Sivagiri. At the age of 14, Sri Sri Sri Boghanadha Siddar was shown the “Saakshatkara”(Apparition) of Lord Subramania at Cuttralam.
He later shifted his practice to Kandi Katirgamam in Sri Lanka, before moving onto the Palani Hills in Tamil Nadu, India where he practiced Yoga and Meditation for many years. Sri Sri Sri Boghanadha Siddar created and installed the “Navapashana” idol of Lord Subramania at Palani. At Katirgamam, Sri Sri Sri Boghanadha Siddar initiated Sri Sri Sri Mahavatar Babaji into the practice of Kriya Yoga Sadhana.
Before the start of Kali Yuga, Sri Sri Sri Boghanadha Siddar, with the aim of uplifting the common man from the darkness of the shroud of ignorance and the cloak of Maya that confounds the human being from his earthly existence, initiated the confluence of ideas through discussions with numerous spiritual masters. The result of such a massive Divine Exercise manifested in the form of Sushumna Kriya Yoga meditation that shall awaken us to our Divine Self and help us attain the state of utmost bliss – being One with God.
Pujya Guruma Aatmanandamayi Amma was born in the auspicious month of ‘Kartika’ to a Telugu family in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. Amma was named “Vasanti” and was the eldest of three children in the family. During her growing years, she would visit her grandmother’s village during vacations, where discourses on Bhagavad Gita were often held at their ancestral house. As a child, Amma silently listened to the verses of the Bhagavad Gita and felt a deep connection with them.
At school, she was a very quiet student, frequently experiencing a ‘thoughtless state.’ She spoke sparingly and had difficulty responding to her teachers immediately, feeling as if her tongue were tied or knotted. Later in life, Amma realized that this rolling of the tongue was an act of being in “Khechari Mudra,” an ancient yogic practice to attain inner silence, which came naturally to her during her childhood.
After her wedding, as a daughter-in-law, took great care of her family members, managing her family responsibilities with ease and perfection. However, a life-turning event occurred when Amma’s mother, Jayanti Amma, passed away, profoundly impacting her perspective on life. Amma’s grief led her to question why her mother, who lived a righteous life, had to succumb to cancer. A few months before Jayanti Amma’s passing, Amma experienced a divine smell, a rare fragrance, daily during the dusk hours. Along with the fragrance, Amma felt drowsy, and her eyes would automatically close. This continued until the month of July. Unaware of the impending calamity, Amma continued to experience the fragrance daily.
When Jayanti Amma fell sick, Amma’s world shattered with her mother’s death. Unable to understand why her mother, who lived a selfless and righteous life, had to die of cancer, Amma sought answers in the Bhagavad Gita. For the first time, she opened the Bhagavad Gita and heard an inner voice urging her to “become a yogi.” While reading the Gita, three verses deeply touched Amma, bringing happiness to her:
1. “UDDHARET ATMANA ATMANAM” – Every individual is capable of uplifting one’s soul.
2. “JNANAGNI DAGDHA KARMANAAM” – Karmas acquired throughout lifetimes can be burnt to ashes in the fire of wisdom.
3. “SHRADDHAVAN LABHATE JNANAM” – A faithful person absorbed in attaining supreme knowledge with reverence acquires wisdom.
Motivated by these verses and a strong urge for communion with God, Amma intensified her spiritual practice, eventually realizing Self-realization on November 26, 2001. In this state, she experienced boundless joy and a profound connection with the divine.
On September 7, 2005, Amma received the advanced technique of Kriya Yoga named Sushumna Kriya Yoga from her Master Shri Bhoganatha Siddhar and Mahavatar Babaji. Ordained to propagate the technique, she established the “Divya Babaji Sushumna Kriya Yoga Foundation” and has since been tirelessly working for the well-being of humanity in all aspects – physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual.
Amma’s perpetual bliss and deep connection with the supreme drive her continuous efforts toward the holistic well-being of the public.