There's Joy in the Heavens - Concert for Spiritual Renewal Week at Ananda Village - June 30, 2021

Concert at Ananda Village and with songs contributed by other Ananda Choirs around the world on June 30th, 2021

The theme of this year's SRW concert is joyful celebration: we've been through a difficult time, but there's great joy in knowing we weathered the storm and are able to (gradually) start singing together once again! The music of Ananda is a big part of HOW we cope with challenges, uniting us globally through the songs we share. So, it's appropriate that a number of Ananda choirs from around the world participated on tonight's concert through the magic of video.

VOCAL QUARTET (Ananda Village)

1. Come Gather 'Round

2. There's Joy in the Heavens

3. Hello There, Brother Bluebell

4.The Secret of Laughter

CHOIR (Ananda Mumbai)

5. When You Come From Napoli

6. Cherish These

KEYBOARD SOLO (Ananda Village)

7. Freedom 'Tis a Gladsome Heart

SMALL VOCAL ENSEMBLE (Ananda Sacramento)

8. Lift Your Hearts

9. Praise Ye the Lord

CHOIR (Ananda Zealand)

10. I Wander with Thee

11. Joined in Prayer

CELLO W/GUITAR (Ananda Palo Alto & Ananda Village)

12. Inner Peace

CHOIR (Ananda Portland)

13. In the Temple of Isis

14. The Song of the Nightingale

CHOIR (Ananda Camano Farm)

15. Life Is a Dream

SMALL VOCAL ENSEMBLE (Ananda Village)

16. Dark Eyes

CHOIR (Ananda Assisi)

17. O Signore mio altissimo/Make Us Channels of Thy Peace

18. When Human Hopes Toward Thee Aspire

DUET W/KEYBOARD (Ananda Palo Alto & Ananda Village)

19. The Divine Mother

ANANDA WORLDWIDE VIRTUAL CHOIR

20. Channels

Find more music at https://www.ananda.org/music

ABOUT SWAMI KRIYANANDA In 1948 at the age of twenty-two, Swami Kriyananda (J. Donald Walters) became a disciple of the Indian yoga master, Paramhansa Yogananda. At Yogananda’s request, Swami Kriyananda devoted his life to lecturing and writing, helping others to experience the living presence of God within. He taught on four continents in seven languages over the course of 65 years. His talks, his music, and his many books have touched the lives of millions. An advocate of simple living and high thinking, his more than 150 books emphasize the need to live wisely by one’s own experience of life, and not by abstract theories or dogmas. A composer since 1964, Walters has written over 400 musical works. His music is inspiring, soothing, and uplifting. His books and teachings on spiritualizing nearly every field of human endeavor include business life, leadership, education, the arts, community, and science. He wrote extensive commentaries on the Bible and the Bhagavad Gita, both based on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda.

He is known as the “father of the intentional communities movement,” which began in the United States in the late 1960s, fulfilling Yogananda's dream. He founded the first of what are now 10 Ananda communities worldwide in 1967 near Nevada City, California. Other Ananda communities have developed over the years to include Ananda Palo Alto, Ananda Sacramento, Ananda Portland, Ananda Seattle, Ananda Los Angeles, Ananda Assisi in Italy, and Ananda India near Delhi and Pune. Each community has a spiritual focus (a teaching center and temple) and a community (homes where members live). More than 1,000 people live in these intentional spiritual communities. Swami Kriyananda’s example of inspired leadership was the reason for Ananda’s success. He uplifted and encouraged people through personal example, spiritual counseling, writing, lecturing, music, and prayer. He trained the current Ananda leaders in much the same way: free from egoic motivation, always placing the spiritual needs of others foremost in all decisions. He was a patient and sensitive teacher, allowing people to learn by experience, and never placing institutional needs ahead of the needs of an individual. “People are more important than things” is one of the foremost guiding principles of Ananda. And “Where there is adherence to dharma [right action], there is victory,” is another.

Find out more at https://www.swamikriyananda.org/

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