Māori leader Dame Nadia Glavish has endorsed the rare visit of Indian humanitarian leader Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar to Aotearoa.
Shankar is visiting Aotearoa and will be holding a talk at Auckland’s Aotea Centre on October 24.
Having met him in Bangalore India, Glavish said the humanitarian leader teachings are closely aligned to mātauranga Māori.
“There is a depth to the wisdom that Gurudev offers that aligns with our own ancient knowledge of the importance of breath to our wellbeing. It was an honour to have an audience with him in India and discuss how our traditions held much in common that can benefit both Māori and the wider population.”
Some marae across Aotearoa have been taught his course to “great success”.
Glavish stated there was an opportunity that rongoā Māori could complement other traditions and knowledge systems like those from India, China and other indigenous medicine practices.
“I and my whānau have personally experienced the breathwork from the Art of Living as well as Native American sweat lodge medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine and found these holistic healing practices greatly therapeutic,” she said.
According to his website, Shankar has inspired a wave of volunteerism and service, leading to the creation of one of the world’s largest volunteer-based organizations. These volunteers, including 30,000 teachers and over one million participants, engage in service projects across 180 countries.
He also founded ‘The Art of Living’, which runs courses in more than 180 countries, with more than 600 million people have participated in breathwork, yoga, and wellbeing programs.