Didi Ananda Devapriya: Yoga and Meditation Teacher in Romania

Sadhana Camp in Brazil

It was a profound experience to have the honor to lead an intensive 10-day silent sadhana camp in Brazil in January 2020, at the Ananda Kiirtana MU.

It followed a powerful start to the new year with ecstatic, energetic kiirtan greeting 2020 at midnight and through the whole night. Here is a recording of the kiirtan that heralded the new year.  The natural, green setting of Ananda Kiirtana was spectacular.

The sadhana camp program had included hours of deep sadhana, beginning at 5 in the morning with 3 sessions of 45 minutes, punctuated by interludes of 15 minutes of kiirtan.   The group strictly observed maonabrata (silence) during the program, except for the kiirtan and classes.

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Meditation Marathon for Children in Romania

Join meditators from many traditions to generate a deep, peaceful vibration that will lift your spirit and nourish your heart! At the same time, you will be contributing to offer a childhood to children in Romania, living in AMURTEL Family, a children’s home run by a meditating yogic nun!
 
Is this marathon only for experienced meditators capable of sitting for hours?
 
No – not at all! You do not have to be an expert in meditation and first-time newcomers to meditation are also welcome. There will be an optional free intro to breath work and mantra meditation before the marathon for newcomers to meditation.
 

How does it work?

Decide on an amount you want to donate per minute of meditation and challenge yourself to meditate from 10 to 100 minutes!
 
Enjoy the silence and peace of meditation for as long as you can, benefitting from the collective energy of the gathering. You may surprise yourself with a new personal record! There will a soft bell chime every 10 minutes. When you are ready to quietly leave and join the herbal tea and sweets outside, your meditation marathon achievement will be recorded!
 
At the end of the 100 minutes – we will celebrate and those who reach 100 minutes will receive a special gift of appreciation from AMURTEL Romania.
 

Who will be benefitted?

 
Your meditation will bring hope, safety, and love to eleven children aged 5-16 years old from the AMURTEL Family Children’s Home in Romania. These children come from situations of neglect and abuse and are placed in the care of AMURTEL Family by child-protection authorities.
 
The home is run by Didi Ananda Devapriya, a yogic nun and meditation instructor since 2001. Besides helping spiritual seekers to find deeper meaning, peace, and bliss through teaching yoga and meditation practices, Didi has dedicated her life to serving vulnerable children and youth. She has been in Romania for the past 14 years, running AMURTEL Romania (www.amurtel.ro), a non-profit serving neglected, abandoned and abused children.
 

Would you like to organize a meditation marathon?

 Let me know, and I would be delighted to have your support in setting this fun challenge up!

Gratitude Circle – Spread Satisfaction and Joy

Join a Gratitude Circle and feed your soul while supporting vulnerable children in rural Romania!

Happiness doesn’t just happen, it is a practice. It depends on what you focus on. When we slow down and take the time to notice the beauty, love, and positivity all around us in a Gratitude Circle, it nourishes our soul. The sharing builds community and spreads happiness and positivity. Each seed shared, no matter how seemingly small and insignificant grows and multiplies through the sharing.

In the true spirit of Thanksgiving, you are invited to take the time to celebrate your life. We are often caught in doing, doing, doing, which uses up our energy. Moments of community celebration are what return and replenish energy back into that cycle.

Didi Ananda Devapriya will lead this Gratitude Circle, warming up the group first with a few simple ice-breakers. As participation in the Gratitude Circle will be by donation, you will have the opportunity to find out about the children in rural Romania that your gifts will support.

Didi will share the story of the AMURTEL Family, children’s home that she runs in rural Romania for eleven children aged 5-16 years old taken out of situations of abuse, neglect, extreme poverty, or loss of parents. You can experience a satisfying sense of abundance this Thanksgiving, celebrating the good in life with new friends and old, while knowing that you are making a concrete difference for a child like Ion.

Ion only recently came to AMURTEL in April, together with his older sister Alina, after his mother died, and leaving the children with nobody else to take care of them. In AMURTEL Family, he just experienced his first-ever birthday party! When he received a present, he was hesitating to tear the wrapping paper, afraid he would ruin it, because he had never received a wrapped gift! With some gentle nudging from a kind adult, he got over that and tore into the next gift like a pro!

Didi is traveling from Seattle to San Diego until Thanksgiving Day leading workshops to generate support for the AMURTEL Family Children’s Home. The event is donation-based, and all funds raised will support the home.

Set up a Gratitude Circle at your Center and it will be listed here!

Chanting Circle to help Children in Romania!

You can help vulnerable children living in the AMURTEL Family children’s home in Romania by joining this uplifting community event!
 
Didi Ananda Devapriya is an experienced kiirtan artist of the Ananda Marga tradition. She will lead an inspirational session of music, mantra, and bliss. All are welcome, you can choose to simply absorb the positive energy, or to participate in the music and singing!
 
Kiirtan is likened to a purifying shower of positive energy and creates a powerful, transformative, collective vibration. The experience will end with a silent meditation and then Didi will share the story of the children that she is dedicating this kiirtan to.
 
Didi has been living in Romania for the past fourteen years, where she runs a home for children in need of safety, love, and protection after being taken out of abusive, neglectful situations or losing their parents. Didi is touring from Seattle to San Diego to share bliss and raise support for the home. Join this session to feed your soul with the blissful energy of mantra and the deep satisfaction of giving eleven children aged 5-16 living in rural Romania, the unique chance to grow up in safety and love of the AMURTEL Family.
 
 
If you would like to host an event – I will list it here!
 

Off the Mat – into the Hearts of Children in Romania

You may have heard the idea of taking your yoga practice “off the mat” – and spreading the the peace, wisdom and joy gained from yoga out into the world.

Find out how you can make an transformational impact on the lives of neglected children in Romania. Join Didi Ananda Devapriya, who has been doing just that for the past 18 years to become part of a unique story.

Didi as not only dedicated her life to the mastering and sharing yoga and meditation practices as an “Acharya” or teacher, she has also dedicated her life to service. She runs the “AMURTEL Family”, a home for children from rural Romania that need safety and healing from abuse and neglect. Didi has also been involved in programs for Syrian refugee children in Lebanon, and in large refugee camps following the Haiti earthquake. In all of these service projects, she draws on the wisdom of yoga, both for maintaining personal inspiration and balance and for helping the children she serves to recover and thrive.

Didi will share her stories and experiences and about how you can also unlock greater potentials for joy by meaningfulness through “karma yoga”. Indeed, the path of “Karma Yoga” or “Seva” is a deep, integral part of the classical tradition of yoga. Find out her secrets for bringing the wisdom of yoga into serving very vulnerable children. Discover how you can also make a difference and bring more light into the world for children that deserve a childhood.

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