Biography of Yogi Amrit Desai

A Pioneer of Yoga in the West

Gurudev, Bapuji and Mataji in 1971

Gurudev, Yogi Amrit Desai, is recognized as one of the pioneers of the authentic teachings of yoga. In the ‘60s, a handful of gurus came to the U.S. from India and thus began the yoga craze that has grown year after year into the massive and diverse yoga communities we have today. He is one of the earliest arrivals and is the last living Guru from that initial wave.

He arrived in the U.S. February 1960 and began spreading the ancient teachings of his Guru, Swami Kripalu. Gurudev has been repeatedly honored for following in the footsteps of many of the great spiritual Masters such as Paramahansa Yogananada and Swami Vivekenand. After addressing an audience of 7,000 at the World’s Parliament of Religions in1893 in Chicago, Swami Vivekenand returned to India and founded the World Religious Parliament. This esteemed organization bestows recognition to only five eminent spiritual teachers who have played significant roles in disseminating the ancient heritage of India worldwide. This prestigious organization honored Gurudev with the title of Jagadacharya, World Teacher, in New Delhi in 1986.

Establishment of Centers for Personal Growth and Transformation Gurudev began teaching in the U.S. at a time when yoga was virtually unknown. His practical presentation of authentic yoga was so well received that the Yoga Society of Pennsylvania, which he founded in 1966, turned into one of the largest yoga centers in America. By 1970, more than 2,500 students participated weekly in his in-depth teachings of yoga and trainings.

In 1971, he opened the Kripalu Ashram Program Center in Sumneytown, Pennsylvania, which offered deeper teachings and lifestyle training for resident staff and guests. In response to an ever increasing interest in yogic teachings and ashram lifestyle, Gurudev opened a third center in Summit Station, Pennsylvania. Five years later, in 1983, it had grown into the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Massachusetts. This unique facility became an expansive holistic health program center, offering a wide range of personal and professional trainings with a fulltime volunteer residential staff of 350 personnel.

In conjunction with the main Kripalu Center were approximately 75 Kripalu-Affiliate Centers, covering most of the U.S. Along with these program centers, he continued to travel throughout the U.S. and the world (Canada, Europe, Japan, South America, China and Russia) bringing this message of yoga and holistic living through conferences, seminars and workshops. Gurudev was repeatedly invited by the European Yoga Teachers associations to train more than 700 yoga teachers annually in Switzerland, providing authentic inner teachings of yoga.

In 1991, the late prime minister of India, Shri Chandra Shekhar wrote to India’s then Prime Minister, Shri Narasimha Rao: “I visited the Kripalu Center during my recent visit to America and was deeply impressed by the dedication of the Yogacharya in his programs by which teachings are being disseminated…(he is an) internationally renowned authority in the field of yoga and an exponent of the spiritual heritage. He has dedicated his life, not only to the in-depth study and practice of yoga, but to spreading the ancient wisdom of India and its universal teachings throughout the world. I feel Yogacharya Shri Amritji deserves honors for his work, therefore, I recommend Padma Vibushan for him as a special case.” This request received a positive response from Prime Minister Rao. Gurudev has been repeatedly recognized both in the U.S. and abroad with rare titles such as Doctor of Yoga, Maharishi and the Vishwa Yoga Ratna awarded by the President of India.

Today, Gurudev continues to travel extensively and has taught leadership training sessions for doctors and nurses of Hinduja Hospital in Mumbai, executives at Micro Incs in Vapi, and to the Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce and Induslnd Bank at Amby Valley in Sahara City (outside of Mumbai). In Dubai, Gurudev was invited to teach at The Young Presidents’ Association and at Amerax International Shipping Company, presenting a weekend seminar with department heads and employees and at, The ‘One’ Company.

Gurudev’s Unique Contribution to the Authenticity of Yoga

Gurudev’s legacy is his work of restoring the authentic practice of Patanjali’s classical Ashtanga Eight Limbed Yoga. He has revealed its hidden, core principles and secrets of Kundalini Yoga and built them into a holistic practice of Eight-Limbed Yoga. The body of Eight Limbed Yoga is represented in the Amrit Methods of Yoga, Yoga Nidra and Quantum Breath Meditation as the combined practice of Hatha and Raja Yoga thus creating a holistic practice. These concepts have been published as Kripalu Yoga, “Meditation-in-Motion”, and later as Amrit Yoga: Explore, Expand and Experience the Spiritual Depth of Yoga. These writings have completely changed the popular notion of the practice of the Eight Limbed Yoga as a step-by-step linear model to one of integration of physical, mental and spiritual disciplines missing in the popular practice of yoga today.

The Integrative Amrit Method (I AM)™

Those who practice Gurudev’s Integrative Amrit Methods, I AM, can experience the spontaneous transformative power of I AM within, returning to the Source, and truly experiencing “I AM THAT I AM.” These I AM techniques are powerful tools that instantly and effortlessly connect you to the inner most core of Being. This is where all healing miracles happen through synergistic merging with the Presence that is carried within.

The Amrit Yoga Institute is an experiential learning center dedicated to the ancient Yogic tradition of discovering the truths and mysteries of life through study, practice, service and direct perception. In the past decade, Gurudev has re-emerged as a powerful spiritual master. His presence has an even more powerful transformative impact on all who enter this synergistic energy field.