Swami Kuvalayananda

Born: 30 August 1883

Died: 18 April 1966

He was a researcher and educator who is primarily known for his pioneering research into the scientific foundations of yoga.
He started scientific research on yoga in 1920 and published the first scientific journal specifically devoted to studying yoga, Yoga Mimamsa, in 1924.
Most of his research took place at the Kaivalyadhama Health and Yoga Research Center at Lonavla which he founded in 1924.
His influence on the development of yoga as exercise has been “profound”.
He started the first journal devoted to a scientific investigation into yoga, Yoga Mimamsa.
The journal has been published quarterly every year since its founding and was scheduled to be indexed by EBSCO in 2012.
It has covered experiments on the effects of asanas, kriyas, bandhas, and pranayama on humans.
In 1943, he opened another branch of Kaivalyadhama in Rajkot, Saurashtra, with spiritual practices as its main focus.
The Gordhandas Seksaria College of Yoga and Cultural Synthesis was established in 1951 at Lonavla to prepare young people spiritually and intellectually for selfless service to humanity.
In 1961, he opened the Srimati Amolak Devi Tirathram Gupta Yogic Hospital for the treatment of chronic functional disorders with the help of Yogic techniques.
Some of his pupils, like Krishnamacharya and the Padma Shri awardee, S. P. Nimbalkar, became known yoga teachers in their own rights.