Here's everything you need to know about the famous yoga guru and spiritual leader, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, who boasts a strong fan following across the globe and is a recognised humanitarian leader.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is one of the most recognised spiritual leaders and yoga gurus in the world, courtesy of his worldwide movement for a violence-free society. The revered global leader is the one, who established a volunteer-based humanitarian and educational non-governmental organisation (NGO), Art of Living Foundation. It was back in 1981 when Ravi Shankar founded this non-profit organisation, which is now operating in over 70,000 villages in different parts of India, Africa, and South America.
Not everyone is aware of the fact that Gurudev Ravi Shankar worked as an apprentice under the iconic spiritual leader, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, who is the founder of Transcendental Meditation. It is a well-known fact that Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is one of the most followed spiritual leaders in the world. Over the years, a series of countries have bestowed him with prestigious awards for his incredible contribution to society. From the Indian government awarding him its second-highest civilian award, Padma Vibhushan, to Colombia's highest civilian award, Orden de la Democracia Simon Bolivar, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is renowned by the title of 'A figure of peace'.
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The world-famous spiritual guru, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar was born on May 13, 1956, in Papanasam, Thanjavur district, Madras State (now Tamil Nadu), to his parents, Vishalakshi and R.S. Venkat Ratnam. Right from an early age, Guru Ravi Shankar was considered as a gifted child, courtesy of his intelligence.
According to Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's official website, by the time he was four years old, he was reciting the Bhagavad Gita and a series of ancient Sanskrit scriptures. At such a young age, he also started meditating and developed a deep interest in yoga and spirituality. For the uninitiated, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's sister, Bhanumathi Narasimhan, is also a famous author who has penned a series of books on her brother.
Another interesting story about Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is related to his name. For the uninitiated, he was born on Sunday, which is why his parents chose the name 'Ravi' for him. The second half of his name, 'Shankar', was after the name of the eighth-century Hindu saint, Adi Shankara.
When we talk about Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's educational background, one of the most astonishing facts is that his first teacher, Sudhakar Chaturvedi was a close associate of Mahatma Gandhi. Moving on to his educational qualifications, as per multiple reports, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Bengaluru University's St. Joseph's College. Not only this, he also has degrees in Vedic literature and physics.
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Everyone is aware of the fact that Sri Sri Ravi Shankar shares a unique and solid bond with India's Prime Minister, Narendra Modi. Time and again, we have seen both of them heaping praises on each other's work and coming together to promote a series of policies that benefit society as a whole. From making neem-coating a 'must' for urea to adopting a village plan and popularising International Yoga Day across India, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and Narendra Modi's connection is a win-win situation for the people of this country.
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Sri Sri Ravi Shankar founded the Art of Living Foundation back in 1981, and at the moment, it has 180 centres across India. Over the years, it has played a massive role in raising the voice for nature and sustainability with several projects like Project Vidarbha, Project Green Earth, Project River Rejuvenation, and many more. With the massive success of the Art of Living Foundation in 1997, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar founded the International Association for Human Values (IAHV) with the aim of making an impact in people's lives through a series of projects.
The sister organisation has successfully reached out to more than 70,000 villages around the globe. Despite playing such a massive role in healing our planet, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is one of the most humble personalities on the planet. The spiritual guru has a massive fanbase across the world but still prefers to stay away from the media spotlight. We hope he continues to guide people with his knowledge about yoga and impact society more with his organisations, Art of Living Foundation and International Association for Human Values.
What are your thoughts on Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's massive fanbase across the globe? Let us know.
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