Swami Nischalananda Saraswati
‘May your eyes be open to the Wonder and Mystery of life.’
A Life Dedicated To Yoga
Swami Nishchalananda is the founder of the ashram and author of several classic texts on the spiritual sciences of yoga and tantra. He combines a rare depth of insight with a wonderful humility and down-to-earth quality that allows him to convey the profoundest spiritual teachings in a highly accessible and grounded way. His teachings are both practical and inspiring, accessible to those who live a modern lifestyle and are scientifically orientated. On this page you’ll find details of his life, books, online courses and free teachings.
Swamiji also has his own websites containing previously archived recordings and articles, which you can access, free of charge, by clicking on the buttons below. These two blogs are a veritable mine of his teachings over the last 20 years.
Born and raised in the UK, Swami Nishchalananda took a degree in engineering before embarking on the spiritual path in his early 20’s. His need and aspiration to know on a deeper level took him to India for what would be a long and profoundly transformative spiritual training.
For 14 years he lived and breathed the life of a disciple to his guru, Swami Satyananda, with whom he received extensive training in all aspects of yoga, tantra and Advaita. He was initiated into the heart-essence of these teachings and was later recognised by his guru as a yoga acharya – Master of Yoga.
During his training he underwent long periods of seclusion and mouna (silence), in which he deepened his spiritual understanding and realisation. This reflects so much in his teaching today.
Whilst in India, he wrote a number of books under the name of his guru (see later). These are still published by the Bihar School of Yoga and are considered classics in the yoga world. During his last seven years in India, Swamiji travelled all over India giving seminars on yoga in villages, towns and cities – becoming a sought-after teacher in his own right in the land which is the birthplace of yoga.
In 1985 he returned to Europe and continued to pass on the profound teachings he had received to fellow Western seekers, emphasising meditation and yoga-related subjects. In 1986 he established Mandala Yoga Ashram at a remote and semi-derelict Welsh hill-farm belonging to his family. Courses began almost immediately. Gradually a spiritual community grew up around him, buildings were renovated and expanded to accommodate more people. Since then Swamiji has carefully nurtured the Ashram into the internationally renowned centre of yogic studies that it is today. He has also written further books on yoga, tantra and spiritual science in his own name (see below).
He combines warmth, practical thinking and profound spirituality, enabling him to communicate the deeper meaning of yoga with great insight and humanity. Without diluting the teachings, he is able to transmit the ancient, time-tested spiritual science of yoga in terms that are accessible to the modern mind.
Swami Nishchalananda is not some austere yogi talking in spiritual riddles. Those who have spent any time with him describe him as a joy and an inspiration to be around, an example of wisdom and compassion in a wonderfully down-to-earth, accessible form.
Having retired from day-to-day activities at the Ashram, Swami Nishchalananda continues to give invaluable input on subjects such as Kriya Yoga and the Chakras. During the pandemic, Swamiji gave free online satsangs (which became fondly known as Zoomsangs), consisting of a discourse, a short meditation and Q&A. These practical, inspirational and still very pertinent teachings are accessible in the Zoomsang Library (button below).
If you would like to attend live sessions with Swamiji, he still features regularly in our online community, the Ashram Sangha, along with other teachers from the Ashram.