He was born as Ram Krishna Yadav to Gulabo Devi and Ram Nivas Yadav in the village

Ali Saiyad Pur (Alipur) of Mahendragarh district in Haryana state of India. He was
inspired by the portraits of Ram Prasad 'Bismil' and Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose that
were hung in his room. According to his statements in an open Yog Shivir at
Shahjahanpur, when he grew up and read the autobiography of Ram Prasad 'Bismil', his
mind was totally cleansed. After completing his middle education of eighth standard from
Shahjadpur Haryana, he joined Aarsh (Arya) Gurukul, Khanpur and studied Sanskrit and
Yoga under the guidance of Achary Pradumn.

After he received teachings from Achary Baldevji, believed by many to be a saint[citation

needed]
, he renounced worldly life, entering into Sanyas and changing his name from Ram
Krishna to Swami Ramdev.[2] (Note: The Hindi word swami means master).

In Kalva Gurukul of Jind district in Haryana India he offered free training of Yog to
villagers for some time. Then he moved to Haridwar and spent several years studying
ancient Indian scriptures at Gurukul Kangari. This included a rare book of Aurobindo
Ghosh- Yogik Sadhan, translated from Bangla into Hindi by Ram Prasad 'Bismil'.[3] After
reading this small booklet he went to the caves of Himalaya and practiced intense self-
discipline and meditation.

Contemporary life and fame

He shot into prominence when he started the Divya Yog Mandir Trust with the company
of Achary Bal Krishna. In 2003, Aastha TV began featuring him in its morning yoga slot.
Within a few years, he had gathered a huge following.[4] He is known for his efforts of
popularizing yoga. The New York Times called him "an Indian, who built Yoga Empire,
a product and symbol of the New India, a yogic fusion of Richard Simmons, Dr. Oz and
Oprah Winfrey, irrepressible and bursting with Vedic wisdom".[5] His yog-camps are
attended by a large number of people in India and abroad.