The Tradition
“The Himalayan sages taught me the gospel of nature. In everything lies the evidence of the beautiful.”
- Swami Rama -
“I can give only a glimpse of these beautiful mountains. Their beauty is splendid and beyond description. The morning environment in the Himalayas is so calm and serene that it leads an aspirant spontaneously to silence. That is why the people in the Himalayas become meditators”.
- Swami Rama -
For thousands of years, the Himalayan mountains have been the home of sages who lived according to the teachings of Yoga and transmitted their wisdom to disciples, who in turn became masters and carried the teachings forward. The Himalayan Tradition of Yoga traces its origins back many thousands of years to the first Rishis, the seers and transmitters of Vedic and Tantric knowledge.
Within this tradition lie the origins of Yoga meditation and of all the paths that later emerged from it.
The Masters
Swami Rama
A disciple of the Himalayan adept, Sri Bengali Baba, Swami Rama (1925-1996) was born and raised in the legendary Himalayan mountain caves where countless generations of yogis have been trained and initiated into the deepest mysteries of yoga. Throughout his childhood and adolescence he lived and travelled with many saints and yogis. At the young age of 24 years he succeeded the great spiritual leader Dr. Kurtkoti as Shankaracharya of Karvirpitham. He renounced the dignity and prestige of this high office to return to the Himalayas to intensify his meditative practices. After completing an intense, eleven-month meditation practice in isolation, he emerged with the determination to serve humanity, particularly to bring the teachings of the East to the West, and directed his life toward the unification of science and spirituality. He began his synthesis of eastern and western traditions with his research work at the Menninger Foundation in the United States and helped to revolutionize scientific thinking about the relationship between body and mind.
Swami Veda
Mahamandaleshwar Sri Swami Veda Bharati (1933- 2015), was a rare Sanskrit scholar of our time, unsurpassed in his profound depth of knowledge, philosophy and practice of Meditation. He was born in a Sanskrit-speaking family and raised in the centuries old Vedic tradition. He taught the Patañjali’s Yoga-sūtras for the first time at the early age of 9 and the Vedas from age 11. Having never attended any school, he received his M.A. from the University of London and a D.Litt. from the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands. From 1952-1967, he spread the Yogic and Vedic teachings in many parts of the world, including Africa and the West Indies. In 1969, he received the highest initiations into the mysteries of Meditation from his Guru Swami Rama of the Himalayas who linked him to the sacred lineage of the Himalayan Yogis. Thereafter he established and guided Meditation groups and centers in all parts of the world. Swami Veda Bharati emphasized the universality of yoga as a science, which transcends chronological time, geographical boundaries, religious discrimination, and manmade sectarianism.
Swami Ritavan
Swami Ritavan Bharati has lived a life dedicated to serving Swami Rama and Swami Veda Bharati since 1970. After having been initiated at the age of 20, he transited through all the three Ashrams of Vedic life (Brahmacharya, Grihastha, and Vanaprastha) under the direct guidance of Swami Rama and Swami Veda Bharati. He was then initiated into Sanyasa in 2007. He holds master’s degrees in Management, Education, Holistic Philosophy, and Eastern Studies. A highly experienced yoga meditation practitioner, he has conducted and guided numerous silence and meditation retreats throughout the world and has been instrumental in guiding the international Himalayan Yoga Tradition – Teacher Training Program (HYT-TTP). He is also a Mantra Initiator within the Tradition of the Himalayan Masters. Swami Veda Bharati chose Swami Ritavan Bharati as his successor; as the Ashram Pramukha and Spiritual Guide of SRSG and the AHYMSIN community, before he took Mahasamadhi in 2015. A man of few words, his primary focus is on the inner life.
The Teachings
Yoga is a practical science that teaches us how to balance body, breath and mind, preparing us for meditation, the core practice within the Himalayan Yoga Tradition.
Body
Joints & Glands movements
Hatha Yoga
Contemplative walking
Breath
Breath awareness
Pranayama
Mind
Subtle body practices
Meditation & Japa
Contemplation
Satsanga seminars
Body
From movement to stillness. From stillness to silence.
A healthy body provides the foundation for the spiritual journey, yet yoga extends far beyond physical exercise. Through the mindful practice of asana, we move from the gross to the subtler dimensions of our being, cultivating awareness of body, breath, and mind.
Each posture begins and ends in stillness, inviting us to observe the quality of our inner awareness. Guided by a smooth, even breath, effort gradually gives way to ease as the complementary energies of Ha (solar) and Tha (lunar) come into balance.
In this way, Hatha Yoga becomes a path towards inner harmony, leading from movement to stillness, and from stillness to silence.
Breath
"Breath is life and life is breath."
-Swami Rama-
The breath is a bridge between the body and the mind.
When we allow the breath to flow freely and naturally, gently smoothing each inhalation and exhalation, we nourish the body, soothe the nervous system, and cultivate emotional balance.
The practice of breath begins simply with becoming aware of it, without trying to change or control it. As this awareness deepens, the practices of prāṇāyāma gradually refine and expand the breath, bringing clarity, steadiness, and one-pointedness to the mind. In this state, meditation unfolds with greater ease, becoming natural and spontaneous.
Mind
"Yoga is the mastery of the modifications of the mind."
- Yoga Sūtra I.2-
Having established an equal, smooth beathing pattern and prepared the body to sit still, our mind is ready to dive into the deeper layers of our personality.
The method to knowing yourself is called meditation. Meditation is a process of purifying the mind and making it one-pointed, inward and tranquil. In meditation you pay attention to dimensions of yourself which are seldom known - your deepest, innermost levels.
The subtle practices of meditation, contemplation and mantra recitation (japa) provide direction and clarity on the journey of the self, through the self, to the Self.