We serve society by empowering the individual
"The Art of Living is more than just a principle, but rather a philosophy for living as fully as possible. It is more of a movement than an organization. The core values are finding peace with oneself and uniting people in our society - from different cultures, traditions, religions and nationalities, reminding us that we all have a common goal to elevate human life everywhere."
- Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
In October 2006, the Art of Living Foundation launched the Healthy and Happy Bulgaria project by holding a series of high-level meetings at the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy, the State Agency for Youth and Sports, the State Agency for Child Protection, and a large number of municipalities and universities. These meetings discussed opportunities for the Art of Living Foundation to work together with these institutions, and as a result, hundreds of municipal employees, including those from the Sofia Municipality, as well as prison employees, went through the Art of Living anti-stress programs.
To date, over 20,000 people, including children, schoolchildren and university students, have participated in the courses of the Art of Living Foundation in 51 Bulgarian cities. Graduates of the courses have the opportunity to organize and participate as volunteers in the humanitarian actions of the Art of Living, which include: volunteer assistance in nursing homes, specialized programs to stimulate human values in children in homes for children deprived of parental care, with the Childhood Without Aggression programs, cleaning parks, repainting playgrounds and planting trees.
The Childhood Without Aggression program of the Art of Living Foundation is conducted free of charge in schools and homes for disadvantaged children. Its goal is to teach children between the ages of 8 and 15 how to effectively free themselves from stress and negative feelings and emotions such as fear, anger, aggression, etc. The program stimulates the development of self-esteem, confidence and tolerance towards others, and aims to prevent outbursts of violence in children. To date, over 4,000 children have completed this program of the Art of Living Foundation.
A. Personality development – interactive exercises and games that build trust between children and help them better understand themselves and others.
B. Stress and tension reduction – relaxation exercises (breathing and physical exercises), laughter, fun games that help concentration, techniques for dealing with anger and other negative feelings.
C. Human values – conversations with children, telling instructive stories in order to nurture human values and motivate children to apply them in life.
The program consists of 6 astronomical hours, divided into three classes of two astronomical hours each. After the end of the Childhood Without Aggression program, the instructors of the Art of Living Foundation hold subsequent regular meetings with the children once or twice a month for 3 - 6 months, in which knowledge is consolidated and experiences are shared. Then the program is evaluated through surveys for the children and the educators.
Over the past 3 years, the Art of Living Foundation has implemented hundreds of courses for over 4,000 children in the following educational/educational institutions:
Correctional home, town of Boychinovtsi; Children's home "Asen Zlatarov", city of Sofia; Children's home "Detelina", city of Shumen; Educational boarding school, town of Rakitovo; Home for children with disabilities "Angel Kanchev", village of Plachkovtsi; Center for public support "Usmivka", city of Yambol; Children's home in Stara Zagora; Center for people with disabilities, town of Kazanlak; Center for children and elderly people with disabilities, town of Shumen; Trade technical school, town of Varna; Primary school "Svetlina", village of Topolitsa, municipality of Aytos; 119 secondary school and 13 secondary school, city of Sofia; Sports acrobatics club "Orel", city of Aytos; 51 secondary school, city of Sofia; Children's home "P. Dimitrov", village of Parvomay, municipality of Petrich; Children's home Doganovo, municipality of Elin Pelin; and others
“Expand your consciousness and understand that every criminal is a victim crying for help. If we heal the victim, we will eliminate crime from the world. Be compassionate.” - Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
The program has been running since 1992, and to date it has changed the lives of more than 350,000 prisoners around the world, allowing them to take control of their destiny and regain their confidence. The program is running in hundreds of prisons in the USA, Russia, UK, South Africa, India, Cameroon, Malawi, Namibia, Dubai, Kosovo, Croatia, Poland, Denmark, Singapore, New Zealand, Australia, Bulgaria and others.
In October 2006, with the support of the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Bulgaria, the Art of Living Foundation launched a humanitarian project “Freedom Behind Bars” by teaching the anti-stress program of “The Art of Living” to employees and prisoners in Bulgarian prisons and probation services. The project goal is to improve the physical and mental health of employees and prisoners in prisons. After the prison in Stara Zagora, the course was held in all other Bulgarian prisons. Over 1,000 employees and prisoners participated in the 60 courses held.
Yordan Hadzhihristev, one of the instructors of the Art of Living Foundation, shares the inspiration, motivation and joy of the experiences after each successive Freedom Behind Bars course: " We are currently focusing our attention on the Stara Zagora prison, as we have created lasting relationships there and we hold a monthly "Freedom Behind Bars" course there. The men who go through the course become more responsible, responsive and problem-free, voluntarily participating in the activities organized by the prison. We have created lasting relationships with the prison management, they see the progress and positive change, and this is why they trust us every time. The progress that occurs after each passing day of the 5-day course motivates and inspires me to continue with the same energy and enthusiasm every time. The goal we have at the moment is for this prison to become an example for the others."
"This is exactly the kind of activity I have always wanted to do. To draw attention to people who are invisible to others, but at the same time are part of our society. The changes that prisoners undergo after the "Freedom Behind Bars" course are incredible. The practices they learn make them more aware, look deep into themselves and be better people. The facts and observations we have are from Sofia, Varna, Pazardzhik and Stara Zogora prisons." - Yordan, host of the program -
During the project, a group of Slovenian professors and psychologists conducted a psychological study with the trained prisoners and found statistically significant improvements in measurements of emotional distress, depression, satisfaction, aggression, indifference, and self-confidence.
Other international studies, mainly in the USA, report the following benefits and improvements among prisoners who have completed the course:
In Bulgaria, graduates of the "Art of Living" programs organize and participate as volunteers in the foundation's social initiatives.
Every year, on the occasion of the "Forest Week" in April, hundreds of volunteers across the country plant thousands of trees with the support of the Executive Forestry Agency of Bulgaria. Volunteers in various centers across the country regularly carry out clean-up actions in parks.
Volunteers from the foundation's various centers across the country visit social homes for the elderly, people with disabilities, and children deprived of parental care to deliver collected food, clothing, shoes, school supplies, and other items for the homes' material needs.
