The organisation
The Art of Living
Founded in 1981 by Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, the Art of Living is one of the world's largest volunteer-based humanitarian organisations — present in over 180 countries and touching hundreds of millions of lives through yoga, breath, meditation and community service.
The foundation
What is the Art of Living?
The Art of Living began with a breath — the Sudarshan Kriya, a uniquely powerful rhythmic breathing technique that Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar developed after ten days of deep silence in 1982. He shared it first with a small group in Karnataka; within a decade it had spread to six continents.
Today the Foundation operates educational, cultural and humanitarian initiatives across 180+ countries, supported by millions of volunteers and thousands of teachers. Its work ranges from post-trauma relief programmes in conflict zones to clean-water projects in rural India, from prison rehabilitation initiatives to environmental drives that have restored degraded riverbanks across the country.
At the core of all of it is a single conviction: a person who is at peace within themselves is a force for peace in the world. Everything the Art of Living does — the yoga, the meditation, the service, the education — is in service of that aim.
In practice
Programmes that change lives
From energetic youth workshops to deep meditative retreats, every Art of Living programme is rooted in breath and tailored for where you are right now.
ART Excel — Utkarsh Yoga
YES! — Youth Empowerment Seminar
Know Your Child / Know Your Teens
Global reach
A movement without borders
- 180+Countries
- 800M+Lives touched
- 10,000+Schools served
- 40+Years of service
The approach
Science meets ancient wisdom
What distinguishes the Art of Living is its insistence on bridging tradition and evidence. Sudarshan Kriya has been studied by institutions including NIMHANS, Harvard Medical School and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, with research demonstrating measurable reductions in cortisol, anxiety and depression, alongside improvements in immune function and sleep quality.
The youth programmes follow the same principle: every exercise, breath technique and discussion format has been developed and refined over decades of classroom delivery, and adapted by age band so that an eight-year-old and a sixteen-year-old each receive something genuinely suited to where they are developmentally.
This is why Shreya's work, embedded within the Art of Living tradition, carries a reliability that goes beyond any individual teacher. The framework is tested. The tools are real. And the results — calmer children, steadier teenagers, more present parents — are there in every group that has passed through these programmes.
"Spread love, happiness and positivity everywhere you go."
— Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Let the breath find you.
Curious whether this is right for a child you love — or for you? There's no booking here, just a conversation. Reach out any time.