Swami Sivananda Biography: Birth, Age, Family, Social Service, Yoga, and More About Oldest Padma Shri Awardee

Swami Sivananda Biography: Swami Sivananda is a yoga guru who has been practising and teaching yoga at Kashi's ghats. The 125-year-old has been conferred Padma Shri by the Government of India on March 21. To date, he is the oldest to receive the award. 

A video of him receiving the award has gone viral on Social media and netizens cannot stop praising his heartwarming gesture. Clad in white dhoti-kurta, Sivananda started walking on the ramp towards President Kovind inside the Darbar Hall of Rashtrapati Bhawan, stopped midway and knelt down in front of PM Modi, who was seated in the front row. The Prime Minister returned the gesture twice. 

He then continued walking towards the podium where President Ram Nath Kovind was seated, bowed twice-- once in midway, and second just before him-- before receiving Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian honour of India. 

Read | List of Padma Awards 2022

Watch the video below. 

125 Year old Yoga Guru from Kashi, Swami Sivananda receives the Padma Shri award from President Ram Nath Kovind#PeoplesPadma #SivanandaSwami #PadmaAwards2022 @PadmaAwards @mygovindia pic.twitter.com/XFQ3QPHQtf

— DD India (@DDIndialive) March 21, 2022

Swami Sivananda Biography

Swami Sivananda Biography: Birth, Age and Family

Swami Sivananda was born on 8 August 1896 in Sylhet District of Bengal Presidency, British India (now in Bangladesh) in an extreme poverty-stricken family. His parents, who were beggars, were only able to feed him boiled rice. 

When he was six, his father, mother and sister died within three months and he was left all alone. He then travelled to Kashi, received training Guru Omkarananda, mastered yoga and began serving on the ghats there. His disciplined life earned him the title of living embodiment of Yoga, Dhyan and Seva. 

Swami Sivananda as a Yoga teacher

Having experienced extreme poverty, Sivananda embarked on a mission to serve humanity. Since then, he has been teaching yoga on the ghats of Varanasi and feeding the poor and needy. He has also been serving around 600 beggars hit by leprosy by arranging meals, and other items for their survival. 

Swami Sivananda's Health

His long and healthy life without any medical complications has attracted doctors pan India who wanted to study the structural and functional health of his vital organs. For this, he has undergone numerous health checkups. He is an active supporter of the COVID-19 vaccine and among the oldest to be administered the vaccine. 

Swami Sivananda: Diet and Daily Routine

Swami Sivananda wakes up at 3 am in morning, practises yoga religiously, and serves people selflessly. He prefers eating rice and boiled lentils with a cup of green chillies. He sleeps on a mat on the floor and uses a wooden slab as a pillow.

Swami Sivananda Awards 

He has received several awards for his yogic teaching and humanitarian service to the needy. Some of these are Yoga Ratna Award, Basundhara Ratan award and Padma Shri. 

Also Read | Raghav Chadha Biography: Birth, Age, Family, Education, Career, Net Worth, and More about Delhi MLA