Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi
born Venkataraman Iyer,.in Tiruchuli, Tamil Nadu, India in 1879.
In 1895, an attraction to the sacred hill Arunachala and the 63 Nayanmars was aroused in him,
in 1896, at the age of 16, he had a "death-experience" in which he became aware of a "current" or "force" (avesam) which he recognised as his true "I" or "self",
Six weeks later he left his uncle's home in Madurai, and journeyed to the holy mountain Arunachala, in Tiruvannamalai, where he took on the role of a sannyasin (though not formally initiated), and remained for the rest of his life.