# Sri M > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Sri_M > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Sri_M.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sri_M > Source revision: 1354921083 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) **Sri M** (born **Mumtaz Ali Khan**, 6 November 1948),[1] also known as **Sri Madhukar Nath**, is an Indian yogi, spiritual guide, orator, and educationist. He belongs to the [Nath](/source/Nath) tradition of Hinduism and is the disciple of Sri Maheshwarnath Babaji, who was a disciple of Sri Guru Babaji ([Mahavatar Babaji](/source/Mahavatar_Babaji)). Sri M lives in [Madanapalle](/source/Madanapalle), [Andhra Pradesh](/source/Andhra_Pradesh), India.[2] He received the [Padma Bhushan](/source/Padma_Bhushan), India's third-highest civilian award, in 2020.[3] ## Early life Mumtaz Ali Khan was born on 6 November 1948 to an affluent [Muslim](/source/Muslim) family in [Trivandrum](/source/Thiruvananthapuram), [Travancore–Cochin](/source/Travancore%E2%80%93Cochin) (now in [Kerala](/source/Kerala)).[4][5] In his autobiography, *Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master,* Sri M describes meeting his guru Sri Maheshwarnath Babaji in the backyard of his home in Trivandrum: a distinguished, youthful-looking stranger with matted hair, standing near a jackfruit tree. After a brief conversation, the stranger disappeared. This was a turning point in nine-year old Sri M's life, and he later said about the meeting: After the jackfruit tree incident, although outwardly I looked like any other boy of that age, my personality had undergone a profound change. A secret life went on within, side by side with the ordinary activities of day-to-day existence. The inner journey had begun and the first sign of this was that I began to meditate without even knowing the word meditation.[6] After this, Sri M made contact with a number of South Indian saints who included [Bhagawan Nityananda](/source/Bhagawan_Nityananda) of Ganeshpuri,[7] Yogi Gopala Saami, Kaladi Mastan, Swami Abhedananda, Chempazhanti Swami, Swami Tapasyananda and [Mai Ma](/source/Anandamayi_Ma).[4][8] ## Quest for self-realisation According to his autobiography,[9] Sri M left his home at age nineteen to find his master in the [Himalayas](/source/Himalayas). Exhausted by the search, he met Sri Maheshwarnath Babaji—the same person he had met when he was nine—at the Vyasa Gufa (cave) near [Badrinath](/source/Badrinath). Sri M lived with Maheshwarnath Babaji for three-and-a-half years and learned many things. Initiated into the [Nath](/source/Nath) tradition.[10] Sri M and Sri Maheshwarnath Babaji traveled to a [mutt](/source/Matha) in [Tholing](/source/Tholing), [Tibet](/source/Tibet).[11] His desire to meet Grand Master Sri Guru Babaji ([Mahavatar Babaji](/source/Mahavatar_Babaji)) was fulfilled on [Nilkantha Hill](/source/Nilkantha_(mountain)) with the help of Maheshwarnath Babaji. Sri M claimed that Sri Babaji was his master in a previous life, and Maheshwarnath Babaji reportedly had the power to materialize and de-materialize in any form on earth or beyond.[12] ## Later years After spending three years in the Himalayas as a wandering yogi with his master, Sri M said that he was asked by his master to go back and prepare for his life mission. He returned from the Himalayas and traveled throughout India, meeting gurus such as [Neem Karoli Baba](/source/Neem_Karoli_Baba), [Lakshman Joo](/source/Lakshman_Joo) and [J. Krishnamurti](/source/J._Krishnamurti). Sri M spent substantial time in the [Ramakrishna Mission](/source/Ramakrishna_Mission) and the [Krishnamurti Foundation](/source/Krishnamurti_Foundation). While associated with the foundation he met his future wife, Sunanda Sanadi; they have two adult children Roshan Ali and Aisha Ali.[13] Sri M heads the [Satsang Foundation](/source/Satsang_Foundation), which runs two schools in Andhra Pradesh: the Peepal Grove School and the Satsang Vidyalaya. The Peepal Grove School, a boarding school, was inaugurated by former President of India [A. P. J. Abdul Kalam](/source/A._P._J._Abdul_Kalam) in 2006. Satsang Vidyalaya is a free school for children in the [Madanapalle](/source/Madanapalle) area, where Sri M lives. The foundation began Bharat Yoga Vidya Kendra, a training programme for yoga teachers, in 2020. He writes in "[Speaking Tree](/source/The_Speaking_Tree)", a spiritual forum run by *[The Times of India](/source/The_Times_of_India)*.[14] A documentary film, *The Modern Mystic: Sri M of Madnapalle*,[15] was directed by [Raja Choudhury](/source/Raja_Choudhury) in 2011. In 2015, Sri M undertook a "Walk of Hope": a 7,500-kilometre (4,700-mile) *[padayatra](/source/Padayatra)* from [Kanyakumari](/source/Kanyakumari) to [Kashmir](/source/Kashmir). The walk began on 12 January, the birth anniversary of [Swami Vivekananda](/source/Swami_Vivekananda) (who had undertaken a similar journey over a century earlier). With a group of fellow travelers, Sri M walked through 11 Indian states and considered the Walk of Hope an exercise to restore the country's spirituality.[16] The *padayatra* ended in [Srinagar](/source/Srinagar), Kashmir, on 29 April 2016.[17] Sri M published *The Journey Continues*, the second part of his autobiography, in 2017.[18] It exceeds the earlier book in apparently-miraculous incidents; in the introduction, he wrote that his readers might think that he "had finally gone bonkers". Sri M detailed a number of his previous lives over a period of 5,000 years, during which he (or she; in several lives, he was a woman) was associated with Indian saints.[19] In the year 2020, Sri M was conferred with the [Padma Bhushan](/source/Padma_Bhushan) Award for the distinguished service of high order in the field of Spirituality.[20] ## Books - *Jewel in the Lotus: Deeper Aspects of Hinduism*. Sterling. 1998. ISBN 978-8120720466. - *Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master: A Yogi's Autobiography*. Magenta Press. 2010. ISBN 978-81-910096-0-6. - *Sri M: The Journey Continues: a Sequel to Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master*. Magenta Press. 2017. ISBN 978-9382585244. - *The Upanishads: Katha - Prashna – Mundaka*. Magenta Press. 2017. ISBN 9789382585206. - *On Meditation: Finding Infinite Bliss and Power Within*. Penguin Books India. 2019. ISBN 978-0143447511. - *The Homecoming and Other Stories*. Penguin Books India. 2020. ISBN 978-0143447528. - *Wisdom of the Rishis: The Three Upanishads: Ishavasya, Keno, Mandukya*. Magenta Press. 2021. ISBN 978-8191009637. - *The Friend: Mind, Body, Soul, Well-Being*. Penguin Books India. 2022. ISBN 978-0143457169. - *The Little Guide to Greater Glory and a Happier Life*. Magenta Press. 2022. ISBN 978-8195608980. ## References 1. M, Sri (18 July 2022). [*Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master*](https://books.google.com/books?id=vrB7EAAAQBAJ&pg=PT5). India: Penguin Random House India Private Limited. p. 2. ISBN 9789354926136. 1. [http://satsang-foundation.org/?page_id=80](http://satsang-foundation.org/?page_id=80) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20140110015100/http://satsang-foundation.org/?page_id=80) 10 January 2014 at the Wayback Machine Sri M — Founder of Satsang Foundation 1. ["Padma honour for eight Malayalis"](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/thiruvananthapuram/padma-honour-for-eight-malayalis/articleshow/73625843.cms). *The Times of India*. January 26, 2020. Retrieved 2020-01-26. 1. ["Sri M | Spiritual guide, Social Reformer and Educationist"](https://satsang-foundation.org/the-founder-sri-m/) 1. Sri M (2010). *Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master*. Magenta Press. Chapter 2. 1. Sri M (2010). *Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master.* Magenta Press. Chapter 2. 1. Sri M (2017). *The Journey Continues*. Magenta Press. Chapter 2. 1. Sri M (2010). *Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master.* Magenta Press. Chapters 4–12. 1. Apprenticed to a Himalayan master: a yogi's autobiography, Sri M, 2010, Magenta Press, ISBN 81-910096-0-9 1. [https://web.archive.org/web/20140220082831/http://www.ourkarnataka.com/kannada/articles/srim.htm](https://web.archive.org/web/20140220082831/http://www.ourkarnataka.com/kannada/articles/srim.htm) – Review of Sri M's autobiography 1. [http://www.haindavakeralam.com/HKPage.aspx?PageID=13702](http://www.haindavakeralam.com/HKPage.aspx?PageID=13702) – Another review of Madhukarnath's autobiography 1. [https://www.heraldofindia.com/article.php?id=554](https://www.heraldofindia.com/article.php?id=554) – Article about book 1. *Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master*, Chapter 47. 1. [http://www.speakingtree.in/srim](http://www.speakingtree.in/srim) Sri M profile in Speaking Tree 1. https://www.cultureunplugged.com/play/8173/The-Modern-Mystic--Sri-M-of-Madnapalle – Documentary – The Modern Mystic: Sri M of Madnapalle 1. ["Walk of Hope 2015–16"](http://walkofhope.in/). Retrieved 10 August 2021. 1. Ajai Kumar Singh (former DGP-IGP), former state police chief from Karnataka, also walked the entire stretch from Kanyakumari to Kashmir with his wife Tara (an ex-IAS officer).Hemanth Kashyap (10 May 2016). ["Age no bar in this walk for a cause"](https://bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com/bangalore/others/Age-no-bar-in-this-walk-for-a-cause/articleshow/52196286.cms). *[Bangalore Mirror](/source/Bangalore_Mirror)*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20190423060829/https://bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com/bangalore/others/Age-no-bar-in-this-walk-for-a-cause/articleshow/52196286.cms) 23 April 2019 at the Wayback Machine. 1. Sri M (2017). *The Journey Continues*. Magenta Press. 1. ["Sri M travels to past lives in search of human consciousness"](https://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/bengaluru/2017/may/02/sri-m-travels-to-past-lives-in-search-of-human-consciousness-1600287.html). *The New Indian Express*. 3 May 2017. 1. ["Sri M conferred with the Padmabhushan : one of India's highest civilian awards"](https://satsang-foundation.org/satsang-blog/sri-m-conferred-with-the-padma-bhushan-one-of-indias-highest-civilian-awards/). 26 January 2020. ## External links - [Satsang Foundation](https://satsang-foundation.org/The) - [Manav Ekta Mission](http://manavektamission.org/) - [Peepal Grove School](https://www.peepalgroveschool.org/) - [Blossom Foundation](https://www.blossomfoundation.com/) --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Sri M](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sri_M) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sri_M?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.