Ravi Shankar, commonly known as Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, was born on 13 May 1956 at Papanasam, Tamil Nadu to Smt. Visalakshi Ratnam and R. S. Venkat Ratnam, who was then active in the automobile business. He belongs to the Iyer Brahmin community. He was named “Ravi” (a common Indian name meaning “sun”) because his birth was on a Sunday, and “Shankar” after the eighth-century Hindu saint, Adi Shankara. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Bangalore University.
After graduation, Shankar traveled with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, and was invited by Maharishi to give talks on Vedic science, arrange conferences on the Vedas and science, and set up Ayurveda centers. He was with the Maharishi at the inauguration of the first of the Golden Domes at Maharishi International University. The 1980s saw Shankar initiate a series of practical and experiential courses in spirituality around the globe. Shankar says that his rhythmic breathing exercise, Sudarshan Kriya, came to him in 1982 “like a poem, an inspiration” after a ten-day period of silence on the banks of the Bhadra river in Shimoga, state of Karnataka, adding, “I learned it and started teaching it”.
Shankar says that every emotion has a corresponding rhythm in the breath and regulating breath could help relieve personal suffering. After realizing Sudarshan Kriya, Shankar started sharing it with others through the Art of living course, first held in Shimoga, Karnataka. Shankar inspired his father and several other prominent citizens of Bangalore to found Ved Vignan Maha Vidyapeeth, an educational and charitable trust. Under the auspices of this trust, he opened a school south of Bangalore for local rural children. The school now provides free education for 2000 such children.
In 1983, Shankar held the first Art of living course in Europe in Switzerland. In 1986, he travelled to Apple Valley, California in the USA to conduct the first course to be held in North America.
According to him, science and spirituality are linked and compatible, both springing from the urge to know. The question, “Who am I?” leads to spirituality; the question, “What is this?” leads to science. Emphasizing that joy is only available in the present moment, his stated vision is to create a world free of stress and violence. His programs are said to offer practical tools to help accomplish this. He sees breath as the link between body and mind, and a tool to relax the mind, emphasizing the importance of both meditation/spiritual practice and service to others. In his view, “Truth is spherical rather than linear; so it has to be contradictory.”
Vocabulary
Emphasizing—laying stress; Stress—tension
