Swamiji's master wanted him to learn and experience the many different methods and techniques of yoga. From his early childhood Swamiji practiced the various disciplines of yoga science and philosophy in the traditional monasteries of the Himalayas. From 1938 to 1944 he taught Hindu and Buddhist scriptures in several monasteries. Throughout his childhood and adolescence he lived and traveled with the saints, yogis, and fakirs of Garhwal, Kumaon, the Kangra Valley, Kashmir, Ladakh, and Tibet, with occasional retreats in other parts of India. He studied closely with many spiritual adepts, including Maharshi Raman, Sri Aurobindo, Anandamoyee Ma, and Rabindranath Tagore..

When he was 21 years old Swamiji journeyed to Tibet to see his grandmaster and to learn certain advanced practices, such as the technique of parakaya pravesha. This is the ability to leave one's body at will, enter someone else's body, and then return to one's own body again. He also learned a few methods of solar science, tantra, and Sri Vidya from his grandma

" For me, the Himalayas are my spiritual parents and living there was like living in the lap of a mother. She brought me up in her natural environment and inspired me to live a particular style of life... The love I received from the sages is like the perennial snows which form the silvery glaciers of the Himalayas and then melt into thousands of streams. ...Every breath of my life was enriched with spiritual experiences which may be difficult for many others to comprehend...."

" At a young age, I sat at the foot of Mount Kailasa and drank the glacial waters of Lake Manasarovar. Often I cooked the vegetables and roots grown by Mother Nature at Gangotri and Kedarnath. Living in the Himalayan caves was very pleasant, and when I was there, I was in the habit of roaming through the mountains during the day, taking notes in a haphazard manner, and returning to my cave before darkness would fall. My diary is filled with descriptions of my experiences with the sages, yogis, and other spiritual leaders of the Himalayas".

At the young age of twenty-four years he became Shankaracharya of Karvirpitham in South India, succeeding Dr. Kurtkoti to one of the highest spiritual positions in India. He renounced the dignity and prestige of this high office in 1952 to return to the Himalayas to intensify his meditative practices in the monasteries. In Swamiji's tradition it is required that the student spend a certain amount of time in isolation in a cave. He lived for 11 months in a very small cave without seeing another person or coming out of the cave. Food was left outside the cave and cleansing the body was done through vigorous pranayama practices. Only a very tiny point of light came through a hole in the ceiling of the cave. After completing this very intense, eleven-month meditation and pranayama practice in isolation, he emerged with the determination to serve humanity, particularly to bring the teachings of the East to the West, and directed his life toward the unification of science and spirituality.