Narayanan Ramasamy learned Vedic chanting and rituals, and daily religious practices from his father, who led a life of strict adherence to Vedic rituals. From his teen years Ramasamy had a deep interest in Indian spiritual practices and philosophy.
He studied Sanskrit for eight years during school and college. After receiving his PhD in chemistry from the University of Madras in 1970, Ramasamy moved to the United States and worked as a researcher in a university medical school in Brooklyn, New York. His desire to study Indian spirituality was reawakened in 1972 when he met Swami Chinmayananda in New York City.
In 1976 he left his research position to study Vedānta, Sanskrit, and meditation full time at Swami Chinmayananda’s gurukula in Mumbai where Swami Dayananda Sarasvati was the resident teacher. While there he also taught Sanskrit to his fellow students. Shortly after completing the Mumbai course and returning to the United States, Ramasamy resigned his job again at the request of Swami Dayananda in order to join him as a member of the teaching staff of a three-year course in Vedānta and Sanskrit at a gurukula in Piercy, California. There Ramasamy designed and taught a curriculum that enabled students to study Sanskrit texts on their own. He also taught Vedānta texts and sections of Śrīmad Bhāgavatam when Swami Dayananda was on trips to India.
In 1982, at the end of the course, Ramasamy married and moved to Palo Alto, California. From 1982 to 2000 Ramasamy worked for a company that developed an implantable heart assist device. During this time he also taught Vedānta, meditation and Sanskrit to interested students.
Since retiring in 2000 he has continued this tradition of sharing knowledge free of charge by teaching Vedānta, meditation and Sanskrit at his home; giving seminars on Hinduism and how to help Hindu patients to hospital chaplaincy training programs; participating in monthly discussions of Patañjali’s Yogasūtra-s and Vyasa’s commentary on them; and answering questions on Vedānta, meditation, Sanskrit and the meaning of Hindu rituals and sacraments.
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