18/09/2025
What's About Art Of Living
What's About GURUDEV
Which Indian Company Has More Than 10,000 Offices in 180 Countries? 🌍🇮🇳
Tata group? No. Reliance? No. Adani? Birla? Leave it.
The correct answer is: there is no such Indian company. But what even India’s biggest corporates couldn’t achieve in generations, one man has accomplished in his lifetime.
Not through business, but through love.
And that person is none other than one of India’s greatest spiritual masters, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar ji.
He founded in 1981, teaching people meditation and his transformative Sudarshan Kriya. And today, in just 43 years, more than 500 million people have experienced its benefits. The foundation runs 15+ ashrams across India, and operates in 10,000+ centers in 180 countries.
And here’s the astonishing part: this massive global movement is run not by employees, but by volunteers. It is the world’s largest volunteer-based organization.
Now you must be wondering — what is ? When did it start? What does it do? How does such a vast empire sustain itself? Where does the income come from, and how is it spent? And how has one Indian united the world with the idea of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (One World, One Family)?
Let’s break it down.
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The Beginning 🌱
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar was born in 1956 in South India. By the age of 4, he was already reciting verses from the Bhagavad Gita. He earned a degree in Physics and also studied Vedic literature.
In 1982, after a 10-day silence retreat, he received the Sudarshan Kriya — a rhythmic breathing technique that would go on to transform millions of lives. He began teaching it worldwide under the banner of the Foundation.
What began with just one course — the Happiness Program — has now expanded into 57 different programs, connecting people across age groups, cultures, and professions.
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How Did It Grow So Big? 🌍
Like any successful venture, it expanded through:
1. More Products (Courses):
Happiness Program
Advanced Meditation Programs (60 hours of silence)
Sri Sri Yoga (Level 1 & 2)
YES+ for youth
Intuition Process for children
Corporate programs
And 50+ more, addressing every age and lifestyle.
2. More Market (Global Reach):
The first international program was in Switzerland (1983), followed by the USA (1986). From the very beginning, envisioned this as a global movement, not limited to India. Today, it thrives in 180 countries.
3. More Channels (Teachers):
couldn’t reach billions alone, so he trained teachers through the TTP ( Teacher's Training Program) Program. Today, there are 35,000+ trained teachers who conduct courses worldwide.
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Volunteer-Driven Power 💪
Unlike corporates, doesn’t run on KPIs or KRAs. Volunteers work out of love and service, giving not just 100%, but 200%. At the Bangalore Ashram, even staff start their day with Sudarshan Kriya, and every evening the entire campus pauses for Satsang.
This is why is the largest volunteer-based movement in the world.
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How is it Funded? 💰
1. Course Fees: Most courses have a nominal fee, making the organization self-sustainable.
2. Products: From soaps to health supplements, adding an FMCG revenue stream.
3. Donations: Though not dependent on them, devotees worldwide also contribute.
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Where is the Money Spent? 🌿
1. Education: 1262 free schools for 100,000+ children (many first-generation learners).
2. Environment:
Revival of 70 rivers
80 million trees planted
18 waste management plants
22 lakh farmers trained in natural farming
3. Social Impact:
8+ lakh prisoners reformed through special courses (including 70,000 in Tihar Jail alone).
2500+ women rescued from ISIS captivity.
Programs for war victims and children in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon.
“Welcome Home” programs for US veterans.
Colombia’s 52-year civil war ended with ’s intervention.
700+ ULFA terrorists and 68+ militants surrendered due to peace efforts.
In short — they earn with smiles, and spend to spread more smiles.
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10 Fascinating Facts About ✨
1. Sleeps only 3–4 hours a night.
2. Travels to 40 countries annually.
3. Has shelves full of passports from decades of travel.
4. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar Day is celebrated in the US.
5. Plays the Veena, knows 7 languages.
6. Holds 26 honorary doctorates.
7. Honored with the highest civilian awards in Colombia, Mongolia, Paraguay & Suriname.
8. Received India’s 2nd Highest Civilian Award Padma Vibhushan.
9. Recognized by 55+ governments worldwide.
10. runs one of India’s mega kitchens (18,000 sq. ft., feeding thousands daily).
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Final Thought 🌸
What started with one man, one mission, and one breathing technique has now become a global movement uniting people across religions, nations, and backgrounds.
proves that an NGO can inspire, scale, and sustain bigger than most corporates — not with profit, but with love, seva, and the spirit of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam.
Jai Hind. Jai . 🙏
