Before you read on: both of these are living, lineage-transmitted practices — not techniques to assemble from a webpage. Isha Foundation teaches Shambhavi Mahamudra Kriya only through its Inner Engineering programme; Art of Living teaches Sudarshan Kriya only through its own certified courses. This page offers historical and comparative context so you can choose where to learn, with respect — it is not instruction in either kriya, and it isn't affiliated with either organisation.
Both involve structured breathing and should be learned live from a certified teacher, who can screen for pregnancy, epilepsy, recent surgery, or serious cardiac, respiratory, or psychiatric conditions before you begin.
Isha Foundation
Shambhavi Mahamudra Kriyaशाम्भवी महामुद्रा क्रिया
"the union that dissolves duality"
TeacherSadhguru (Jaggi Vasudev, b. 1957), teaching yoga since 1982
OrganisationIsha Foundation, established 1992, Coimbatore
Delivered viaInner Engineering — a 7-step programme, offered online, in a 4-day format, or as a residential retreat
The practiceA ~21-minute seated kriya combining posture, breath, and mantra, which Isha describes as an ancient technique Sadhguru has brought into a modern, teachable form
ResearchStudies on stress, sleep, and mood are mostly recent and largely conducted or published in partnership with Isha itself
Art of Living
Sudarshan Kriyaसुदर्शन क्रिया
"su-darshan — the right vision"
TeacherSri Sri Ravi Shankar (b. 1956)
OrganisationThe Art of Living Foundation, founded 1981, Bengaluru
Delivered viaThe Art of Living Happiness Programme, a multi-day in-person course, taught worldwide by certified instructors
The practiceA cyclical breathing sequence of slow, medium, and fast rhythms, which emerged during a ten-day silence Sri Sri Ravi Shankar kept near Shimoga, Karnataka, in September 1981
ResearchOne of the more independently studied breath practices in the literature — including depression research at NIMHANS, Bengaluru, published from the late 1990s onward
Side by Side
Where They Meet, Where They Differसमानता व अंतर
What each centres on
Shambhavi: a single integrated kriya — posture, breath, and mantra held together as one sequence.
Sudarshan: breath alone, cycled through three deliberately different rhythms.
How you first learn it
Shambhavi: a 7-step Inner Engineering programme, available online or in person.
Sudarshan: an in-person, multi-day Happiness Programme course.
Root tradition
Shambhavi: framed within the hatha and kriya yoga tradition.
Sudarshan: rooted in pranayama, India's long science of controlled breath.
Evidence base, honestly stated
Shambhavi: a growing but newer body of research, mostly Isha-affiliated.
Sudarshan: a longer independent research record, dating back to the late 1990s.
Gratitude to Both
Two different men, in two different decades, each spent time in deep silence and returned with a breath-based practice to offer a stressed world. Sadhguru brought Shambhavi Mahamudra into modern, teachable form; Sri Sri Ravi Shankar brought Sudarshan Kriya out of a ten-day silence by the Bhadra river. Both have since reached millions who never planned on meditating at all.
दो अलग-अलग व्यक्ति, दो अलग दशकों में, दोनों ही गहरे मौन में गए और एक साँस-आधारित अभ्यास लेकर लौटे, जो एक तनावग्रस्त दुनिया को देने के लिए था। सद्गुरु ने शाम्भवी महामुद्रा को आधुनिक, सिखाने योग्य रूप में ढाला; श्री श्री रविशंकर शिमोगा के पास भद्रा नदी के तट पर दस दिन के मौन से सुदर्शन क्रिया लेकर लौटे। दोनों ने ही लाखों लोगों तक पहुँच बनाई, जिन्होंने कभी ध्यान करने की योजना तक नहीं बनाई थी।
This page does not ask you to choose a side. If either path — or both — brings you steadiness, that is reason enough for gratitude: to the teacher, to the lineage behind them, and to whichever certified instructor first sits with you and teaches it properly.
नमस्ते 🙏 · From A Seeker
Independently written for the Udaya guide; not affiliated with, endorsed by, or reviewed by Isha Foundation or The Art of Living Foundation. Names, kriyas, and programmes referenced belong to their respective organisations. Educational and general in nature — not medical advice; learn either practice only from a certified teacher of that organisation.