Nityananda was born in Koyilandy (Pandalayini), Madras Presidency, British India (now in Kozhikode district, Kerala).

The Nair couple were farmers, who also took care of the farms owned by a wealthy lawyer named Ishwar Iyer, who greatly trusted them.

[3] Even in childhood, Bhagawan Nityananda seemed to be in an unusually advanced spiritual state, which gave rise to the belief that he was born enlightened.

[4] Before the age of twenty, Nityananda became a wandering yogi, spending time on yogic studies and practices in the Himalayas and other places.

[5] Settled in southern India, Nityananda gained a reputation for performing miracles and curing the sick.

The Guruvan, a forest in the hills nearby where Bhagawan sat on penance, is now a pilgrim retreat.

A female devotee named Tulsiamma (Tulsi Amma) (1882-1945) wrote down some of his teachings and his answers to her specific queries.

[3] Some believe that Nityananda had the power to transmit spiritual energy (shaktipat) to people through non-verbal means.

[6] In one of his talks, his student Swami Muktananda said that Nityananda’s Guru was an unknown Siddha from Kerala.