The Great New Age Spiritual Master Sri M

Sri M was born as Mumtaz Ali Khan on 6 November 1948 in a devout Muslim family in Trivandrum, Kerala. Sri M's maternal grandmother had Sufi connections and told him many Sufi stories in his childhood. Between age of five and nine, he was exposed to Hinduism and Christianity. Even at that age, he noticed how prejudiced people belonging to one religion were about other religions. Sri M had a strange liking and urge to go to Himalayas from childhood. At the age of nine, his Guru Sri Maheshwarnath Babaji first met him. The Guru asked Sri M if he remembers anything. Sri M could not recall anything. Guru told him that he will understand it later. After many years, Sri M met the same Guru Sri Maheshwarnath Babaji in Himalayas and remembered their first meeting and the karmic link between the two.


Sri M – spiritual guide, social reformer and educationist – was born into a Muslim family on November 6, 1949 in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. His transformational journey, from a young boy to a living yogi, is a fascinating story symbolized by single-minded discipline and dedication.

Entranced by mystical stories of Sufi saints and a brief encounter with a numinous Swami at a relatively young age, he was not only drawn to the ‘truth’ but also the compelling landscape of the snow-clad Himalayas. At the age of nine, his spiritual transformation was initiated by his future Master, Babaji (also known as Maheshwarnath Babaji), who miraculously appeared under a jackfruit tree in the compound of his house in Thiruvananthapuram. Though only fleeting, this meeting definitively set the stage for their future reunion in the Himalayas at Sri M’s age of nineteen.

After the fortuitous meeting with Babaji, the next decade saw him go through a dichotomy of experiences -both material and mystical – combining the adventure of his teenage years with the esoteric magnetism of religious texts and the spiritual allure of local holy men and saints. He met Yogi Gopala Saami, Kaladi Mastan, Swami Abhedananda, Chempazhanti Swami, Swami Tapasyananda and Mai Ma during this time. At nineteen, wise beyond his years, he embarked on his journey to the Himalayas, seeking a true Master.

While traveling to Haridwar – the gateway to Badrinath and Kedarnath – his name and appearance evolved to that of a jigyasu (seeker of truth). His journey progressed to Rishikesh, where he lived in the Divine Life Society for couple of weeks. During this interlude, he practiced yoga, attended Upanishad classes, visited nearby ashrams, and interacted with seemingly enlightened holy men in search of his own Master.

He then traveled to Badrinath – a 220 km soul-seeking passage on foot – arriving famished in the town of his destiny. Assuming his search was futile, he gave up hope and was on the verge of giving up his life. About to jump into the Alaknanda River, his fortitude was rewarded by the luminous appearance of his Guru Babaji, who swiftly took him under his spiritual tutelage and initiated him into the Nath tradition.

The next three and half years, he lived and travelled extensively through the Himalayas with his Master. Maheshwarnath Babaji guided him right through his initiation, his Kundalini awakening, the grueling journey to Tholingmutt and, the eventual meeting with the Grand Master, Sri Guru Babaji also known as Sri Mahavatar Babaji.

His Master then encouraged him to return to the plains – to start a family life and prepare for his life’s mission. He was periodically instructed to visit holy places across the subcontinent – Marutwa Malai, Ajmer, Dakshineshwar, Belur Matt, Puri, Benaras, Alandi, Shirdiand Tiruvannamalai – to familiarize himself with diverse spiritual traditions. He met saints from all religions including NeemKaroli Baba and, also interacted with LaxmanJoo and J.Krishnamurti.

Few years after his Master passed away, he received the spiritual go-ahead to commence his mission. In 1998, he started his teachings, eventually leading to formation of the Satsang Foundation.

Traveling extensively unto the present day, he has quietly gone about his life’s mission – teaching and guiding people as per his Master’s instructions: “Quality, not quantity. Spiritual evolution is individual and cannot be a mass phenomenon. No meditation-technique franchises can do much good. Each individual is special. No poster blitz and poster wars when your work starts.”

In response to a query on the spiritual progress of a person and the path to that evolution, he responds, “Though, my parampara is kriya yoga, I don’t think it suits all aspirants. I propound satsang even between two people. It cuts across barriers of caste and creed. Spiritual evolution is not diverse from regular living. Intervals of solitude are necessary but you cannot shut yourself totally. The world around you is your touchstone to spiritual practice.” Conversant with teachings of most major religions, Sri M says: “Go to the core. Theories are of no use.” His message seeks to transcend the outer-shell of all religions, by exploring their mystical core to nurture the innate goodness in every human being.

In 2011, he wrote his memoir “Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master – A Yogi’s Autobiography“, which became an instant bestseller. Over the years, his mission as a spiritual guide, social reformer and educationist have given rise to many initiatives including:

The Satsang Vidyalaya – providing free, high-quality, multi-lingual education to rural children from the tribal areas of Andhra Pradesh

Peepal Grove School – a co-educational, residential school committed to providing an environment conducive to the in-depth exploration of knowledge.

Swasthya Kendra – to provide affordable yet qualitative preventive and curative health care to the people through holistic and comprehensive treatments

Manav Ekta Mission - for promoting inter-faith harmony and transcending religious, racial, geographical, cultural and ideological differences

Sarva Dharma Kendra – as a spiritual retreat to facilitate dialogue between religions and to serve as an experiment for mankind realising the essential unity of all religions

Walk of Hope, a 15-month long padayatra from Kanyakumari to Kashmir, led by Sri M, spanning 6500 kms across 11 states of India in 2015-16 for peace, harmony and tolerance

He is married and has two children. Based in Madanapalle, Andhra Pradesh (three hours drive from Bangalore), he leads a simple life – teaching and guiding the Satsang Foundation and Manav Ekta Mission. Appreciative of music, he leads the satsangs often with his mellifluous voice. He also writes and paints in his leisure time.

Why Meditation Is Important ?

Meditation is helpful for the body, it stills anxiety, and is generally beneficial. This is scientifically proven. So there are many reasons to meditate. There is no doubt that it can help stress, depression, and anxiety. It is helpful for the emotional problems of daily life, when things go wrong It opens the heart and makes you more aware. And when awareness rises, so does wisdom, and the wisdom that rises from meditation is very powerful.

Everyone can meditate, no matter who they are. You should commit to daily meditation, no matter for how long. Until you sit down on a cushion or on a chair, meditation won't start. The most important point is to take a comfortable seat. If you practice meditation every day for fifteen or twenty minutes, after a while when you look back, there will be no doubt of its effectiveness.

Why is awareness so important? Because it is the nature of wisdom. You may meditate because you want peace. All sorts of expectations can arise in your mind. It is possible that you may experience peace, but most of the time you will not? Why? It's not a problem with the meditator. At the beginning there may be a sense of calm and peace. But after a while your mind will seem even worse than before. Even though your mind may seem worse, actually it is better.

So you must keep the continuity of a practice, like a river. Regardless of whether your mind seems better or worse than before, you should continue practice, and you will improve. It's like washing your clothes or dishes. If you wash them regularly, it won't be difficult. But if you don't it will be difficult to clean them. When I was in retreat, I would wear the same clothes for a month. When I returned, I had to soak them in hot water for six or seven hours before I started to wash them. Even then I had to wash them several times.

The reason why your mind seems worse after meditating for a while is that your emotional problems are coming to the surface. It's important to let what needs to come out, come out. Try not to judge your thoughts. And do not chase after them or hold onto them. If you follow this instruction, meditation becomes very easy. When these emotions come up, hold on strongly to your mental focus. If your mind is calm, your focus can be more relaxed. All meditators experience emotional upset and crying when they practice. Let this be and afterwards there will be peace.

Breathing is the most important form of meditation practice. The breath is connected with the subtle winds, and this is connected with the heart mind. When your mind is restless, focus on the navel chakra. When your mind is sleepy, focus on the third eye. But don't forget to follow your breath.

If you keep focus on breath, in and out, naturally you will become calm. You will feel joyful and light. As you continue meditate, that feeling will stabilize. Then a feeling of love and compassion will arise. Inner peace starts from there. Why does that happen? All the emotional upset has come out, so the mind is calmed.

A gong has the potential to make a sound, but until it is struck, no sound will be heard. The striker is the cause of the sound. Similarly, we all have the potential to experience inner peace. But until the teacher explains how to practice, it will not be realized. The fundamental enlightenment is in everyone equally. We wash clothes because they have the potential to become clean. Otherwise, we would throw them away. Similarly, we meditate because we have to ability to realize our fundamental potential. This potential is there, but it is normally obscured. It is important not to push too hard. If meditation becomes difficult, get up and do something else. But practice again tomorrow, don't give up. Eventually your mind will become clear, like an empty blue sky. It is possible for the mind to be free of thoughts. But even then, there is further to go. An impartial love even for our enemies will arise. It is not easy to get to that level, but it is possible to experience that equal love for all.

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