Our Lineage & Founder

Born in Devbhoomi

Yogi Manoj was born in Patna, a mountain village about eight kilometres from Rishikesh, in the sacred land of Uttarakhand known as Devbhoomi — the land of the gods. He spent his first seven years in the village, absorbing the simplicity of mountain life, the closeness of nature, and a living traditional culture.

A childhood turned toward the spirit

From his earliest years he leaned naturally toward spirituality. His grandfather introduced him to bhakti yoga and devotional life, and his mother played a deeply important role in shaping his inner world. As a child he was blessed with the company of saints and the recitation of sacred stories.

Growing up in Swargashram

After the age of seven he moved to Swargashram, Rishikesh, with his father, who worked in an ashram. Living in that atmosphere, he learned and matured in the presence of saints, swamis and teachers, and completed his schooling up to the tenth grade at the local Swargashram school.

Learning the dignity of labour

Struggle was his companion from the start. Because of difficult financial circumstances, he learned to work hard as a boy — selling jamun, running a tea stall, and helping in shops. He never considered any honest work beneath him, and was always the first to support his family.

Through the eleventh and twelfth grades he worked in a café and paid for his own education. He studied biology, chemistry and physics, drawn to medical science and a deep wish to understand the human body — but he came to see that a medical education would be far too expensive and slow for his situation.

Choosing the path of yoga

So he turned to the companion of his childhood — the path of yoga. He completed his first yoga certificate course at a Rishikesh ashram and kept practising under many teachers and at many institutions. In time he studied within the tradition of the Bihar School of Yoga, which influenced him profoundly and drew him deeper into spiritual sadhana.

The pull toward renunciation

There came a time when his practice grew so deep that he resolved to renounce the world and take the path of sannyas. He passed through many intense spiritual experiences and wished to surrender himself entirely to sadhana. But the grace of his guru and the love of his mother gave his life a new direction, turning him back toward society and service.

Finding balance through service

On returning to Rishikesh he went through a phase where he could not quite balance his intense inner experiences. He became very quiet and drawn to solitude, which some around him did not understand. It was his friends who reconnected him with the world and encouraged him to express what he had realised through service to others.

Learning to run a school with integrity

He then began working at an international yoga school in Rishikesh, taking on many roles from management to teaching. There he learned how a yoga institution should be run — with truth, honesty and a spirit of service.

Teaching across the world

His first international journey took him to Vietnam, where he taught yoga for four months. He went on to share yoga in many countries and cities — establishing a yoga institute in China and connecting many people to Indian culture, traditional yoga and a spiritual way of life, and holding workshops across Europe.

Yet however far he travelled, his heart stayed bound to his Himalayas, the Ganga, and his birthplace. In the end he returned to Rishikesh.

The founding of Mimamsa Yogshala

Back home, he founded Mimamsa Yogshala. Today students come from India and many countries around the world to learn yoga here, and many of his students now teach yoga abroad — so a beautiful global chain of the tradition continues to grow.

Today — Lead Teacher at Mimamsa Yogshala

At present, Yogi Manoj serves as a lead teacher at Mimamsa Yogshala, offering in-depth instruction in Hatha yoga, alignment and adjustment, Ashtanga yoga and traditional asana. His teaching is never limited to physical practice alone — it also carries discipline, awareness and a complete yogic lifestyle.

The values, discipline and the guidance of his gurus that he received in ashram life are the very tradition he now carries forward at his school. His aim is not only to train skilled yoga teachers, but to nurture aware seekers who can bring the true meaning of yoga into their own lives.