YOGI S.A.A. RAMAIAH (YOGIAR)
Yogiar's spiritual journey began even before his birth. While he was in his mother's womb, a Brahmin lady was engaged by his family to read the Tamil version of Valmiki's Ramayanam, one of India's greatest epics, every evening. This practice, called Parayanam, delighted many who enjoyed the story of Sri Ram. After his birth, he was aptly named RAMAIAH (S.A.A. Ramaswami) after an ancestor of the famous S.A.A. family. Yogiar was born on May 9, 1923, in 'Ananda Vilas', 29-A, Local Fund Road, Kanadukathan P.O., P.M.T. District, Tamil Nadu-630103, India. It was the year of Ruthrothkari in the Tamil 60-year cycle, during the month of Chittirai. His father, S.A.A. Annamalai Chettiar, was a very intelligent man with a modern outlook, highly influenced by Western materialism, and was the first Indian to own an airplane with a license to fly. His grandfather had extensive business interests in India and abroad, was simple in thought, word, and deed, and was a great philanthropist. His mother, S.A.A. Thaivanai Achi, came from the well-known S.N.S.S. family of Karaikudi. His maternal great-great-grandfather, Sathappa Chettiar, had a great spirit of adventure and began his business journey to Malaysia after performing his own funeral rites. Stranded in a village at night, he rested under a tree and was visited by a divine being who blessed him and initiated him into the Kali Bija Mantra. This connection to Babaji was later revealed to Yogiar by Sathguru Babaji himself, who said he had been working with Yogiar's ancestors for generations.
Yogiar suffered from polio as a child, and although physical therapy was not known then, he was rehabilitated through sesame oil massages and being buried up to his thighs in the sea sand at Marina Beach for 1 to 1½ hours daily. During this time, his first Upa-Guru, Chellaswami, entered his life. Chellaswami, a child saint, laid the foundation for the great Kriyas that he taught Yogiar with immortal love, including the secret of his physical immortality. Yogiar completed his schooling with first-class honors at Santhome Higher Secondary School in Chennai and earned a master's degree from Madras University, always excelling in his studies.
Satguru Babaji then began the next phase of his mission, bringing together two souls. In 1942, Babaji felt the need for a society in his name to propagate Kriya Yoga and selected Yogiar to assist with the groundwork for founding Kriya Babaji Yoga Sangam. In 1944, after suffering from Sacroiliac bone tuberculosis, Yogiar decided to commit suicide but was stopped by a divine voice telling him to live to realize God and practice yoga. This voice guided him throughout his life. Babaji later trained Yogiar in all aspects of Saiva Siddhantham in the Himalayas and elsewhere. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Yogiar demonstrated his yogic mastery to medical doctors, varying his breathing, heart rate, and body temperature at will, proving Kriya Yoga's efficacy for awakening latent potentialities of consciousness.
As one of the world's greatest exponents of yoga from a scientific standpoint, Yogiar wrote extensively on the subject. He held a master's degree in geology from Madras University, was a trained physical therapist, prosthetist, orthotist, and a renowned scholar of Tamil language. Since 1953, he worked on editing, translating, and explaining the deeper meanings of manuscripts by the Tamil Yoga Siddhas. His publications included thousands of verses by Siddhas like Agastiar and Boganathar. Yogiar also lectured in hospitals worldwide, demonstrating how yogic therapy, combined with allopathic medical procedures, could treat diseases like diabetes and hypertension. He developed special orthoses for treating paralyzed hands, presenting his work at international conferences. Dr. Alphonso Caycedo, president of the International Association of Psychosomatic Medicine, devoted a chapter in his book "India of Yogis" to Yogiar's work.
Yogi Ramaiah's teachings attracted thousands of students from all walks of life, establishing centers worldwide dedicated to serving humanity. In 1976, he chaired the International Parliament of Yoga and World Religions at Georgetown University, promoting religious unity. His teachings emphasized that yoga is the practical side of all world religions, and he lectured globally on this topic. Babaji chose October 17, 1952, for the formation of Kriya Babaji Yoga Sangam, and since then, Yogiar convened a parliament of all world religious yoga and holistic health annually on Babaji's Jayanthi.
Yogiar established 54 centers worldwide to spread the teachings of Kriya Yoga. He practiced what he preached, continuously researching and lecturing. He was awarded a Ph.D. in his early 80s by Columbia Pacific University, as predicted by Babaji. Yogiar's contributions bridged the gap between yoga and science, and he was honored by the World Health Organization and the World Congress for his work in alternative medicine. He initiated more than 3000 Asana sadhaks into advanced phases of Tamil Siva Yoga Siddhantham and traveled extensively to spread Kriya Yoga.
Yogiar passed away on July 12, 2006, attaining Mahasamadhi. His physical body, flown to India, was interred in the Palani Andavar Mahasamadhi Shrine, which he built in the late 1980s. Despite the week-long transit, his body remained glowing, indicating the divine presence.
Yogiar's spiritual journey, which began before his birth, continues to inspire and guide Kriya Babaji Yoga Sangam's activities, carrying forward the Master's mission. As Manikavasagar stated in Thiruvasagam, Yogiar truly sought Babaji's golden feet and gained release (eternity), with Ongaram dwelling in his soul.
