Amma Woodland - Tending to the Trees

On May 29th, GreenFriends spent the day at the beautiful site of Amma's Woodland near Corrofin in Co. Clare, tending to the saplings recently planted, and which are thriving and looking wonderful!
GreenFriends cleared the land in December, then planted hundreds of bare-rooted, native Irish broadlleaves in four varieties in February: ash, oak, birch, alder, with the fifth (willow) soon to follow, using cuttings from a magnificent established willow at the woodland.
The task now is to keep the tender young saplings from being starved of light and nutrition under great swathes of fern and bramble. On May 29th, we tended to each individual sapling, treading with great caution so as not to trample any hidden ones. We 'liberated' each sapling from the encroaching brambles and bracken, flattening down the surrounding growth and opening up the area immediately around the sapling to the air and light. GreenFriends groups will do this regularly during the growing season until the trees are big enough to survive alone. It's amazing to see how sturdy and vigorous (and beautiful) the little plants are already!
We shared a delicious vegetarian lunch, had some great laughs and precious moments together in Nature, working, learning, relaxing deeply into the peace and beauty of the place. John as always opened his woodlands, his home and his kind heart to all, sharing some of his immense understanding of nature and knowledge of trees with us.
We've been imagining Amma Ireland retreat weekends at this lovely place, camping out, meditating and walking in Nature, tending to the trees, singing bhajans ... so stay tuned, more soon :)
To join in, enjoy Nature, have fun: greenfriends@ammaireland.org
For an Amma Woodland voucher (plant a tree for a friend; it's a great gift!): www.ammaireland.org/gf-amma-woodland.html

Amma Ireland Annual General Meeting - Invitation

Everyone regularly involved in Amma Ireland activities is cordially invited to attend our AGM, to be held near Maynooth, Co. Kildare on June 19th, 11.30am to 1.30pm.

For directions, or to let us know you'll be coming, contact help@ammaireland.org or 0864031156.

Looking forward to seeing you there :)

with all good wishes,
Amma Ireland Secretary

AYUDH Youth Exchange

Ferme du Plessis, France

July 24th - August 1st 2010

This year two different camps will run concurrently at the French centre. One will be entitled Embracing Life and contain workshops and talks designed to motivate young people into living naturally in order to create a bright & sustainable future. Participants will choose from a variety of workshops each corresponding to a pillar of Ayudh’s objectives: Community Service, Artistic development, Revitalisation & Ecology. Br. Shubamrita & Bri. Dipamrita will provide their great insight on these topics in a lively & inspirational manner.

60 participants between 15 and 30 years of age from 9 European countries (Austria, Ireland, Italy, France, Germany, Holland, Spain, Sweden and UK) will take part in “Embracing Life”.

The EU will refund 70 % of the travel costs and certify the participation with the EU-YouthPass.

The other, Experience Week, contains hands-on, practical, ecological projects that will be designed and presented by professionals in those particular areas. Vital skills to preserve our earth will be modelled & practiced, along with increasing our relationship with nature and the environment. Projects include restoring a traditional dovecote, seed saving & building a sustainable astronomy observatory. This exchange is for youth between 18 and 32 years of age.

Both exchanges promise to be inspiring, motivating & encouraging. The French venue provides many examples of ecological projects that are sure to participants. Some events include a visit to the famous Chartres cathedral, a party, bonfire, sports & lots of fun.

Apply now @: www.ayudh.eu

For more information contact: info.ireland@ayudh.eu

First NW Satsang Retreat Day

Seven members of the NW satsang group met on Sunday 17th May for a day of retreat. Amma recommends that each person should take time out from his/her normal schedule at least once a month to spend a day focussing on spirituality. The group gathered at 7am to do archana, including the moving ‘Ayi Giri Nandini’, which some members enjoyed hearing for the first time. This was followed by yoga & pranayama exercises.

We then shared a healthy and nutritious breakfast. Nine to twelve o’clock saw everyone participate in a range of seva activities, including cleaning, washing floors, organising items & cooking lunch, with beautiful bhajans playing all the time. At twelve o’clock everyone gathered again to repeat the mantra ‘Om Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu’. This was followed by the Ma-Om meditation. Next came a nourishing lunch and a while to chill out and enjoy each other’s company.

We practiced some bhajans after this and then watched She’s Got the Whole World in Her Hands, it’s so lovely! After that was time for bhajans and arati. We then got a visit from baby Jayden who enjoyed the drums and harmonium! We left feeling lighter, happier and ready to face another week! We’re aiming to do this once a month to rejuvenate ourselves.

Amrita Bala Kendra in Donegal

A children’s group has been meeting weekly since January in County Donegal. Each week, a small number of children meet to find and create a quiet space in their hearts. The children have so far focused on different ideas such as developing an attitude of reverence for nature, quietening the mind and the repetition of ancient mantras. The group has discussed the topic of peace and how we can cultivate peace in our lives. Short guided meditations help the children to focus their attention, as do meaningful dances created by the children themselves. The satsang group’s musical instruments have provided much fun and the children/s bhajan singing is filled with innocent devotion.

For more information on Amrita Bala Kendra in Donegal please contact Simone at satsang@ammaireland.org

Report: Spring Fundraising Holistic Weekend Donegal

The Spring Equinox saw a successful holistic-weekend fundraiser in county Donegal. Many therapists generously gave of their time to treat and revitalize all who came. The weather was fantastic and simply added to the great atmosphere. A well attended satsang on Saturday night further brightened up the spirit, preparing the volunteers for another wonderful day of seva .

Many thanks to Cecilia who travelled from Galway and Liz and Ger who came all the way from Dublin.

Tree Planting in Donegal

Twelve enthusiastic, earnest (Ayudhian & Otherwise) tree planters met up on a beautiful January Saturday morning, in the hills of Clonmany, Co Donegal. One hundred and twenty saplings had been gathered for the event. Amma advises that everyone plant 18 saplings a year, we've got ten each so far, so we'll have to get another morning in before March!

The ground we planted is very wet, so advice was sought on the trees that would thrive best in these kinds of conditions. So we had Alder, Birch, Rowan, Willow and Scots Pine. We wanted to plant trees that would provide a home for all sorts of wildlife and provide food for birds. Willow is the second best for wildlife it seems, and the birds just love the rowan pomes. We also had fast growing Scots Pine to provide some sort of shelter to give the other trees a little chance to catch up (it can get very windy in these parts sometimes!)

A great morning's fun was had outside in the fresh air. Everyone had time to connect with the earth and look around at the beautiful hills we know so well, ever changing in the snowy morning light.

So, with Amma's grace, these trees will grow strong and tall. We'll keep an eye on them.

Thanks to Gemma, Gregory, Aidan, Mike, Ronan, Mary, Bernie, Peter, Simone, Emma, David, Declan
Good job team!

Have a look at the photos.

Contact: greenfriends.irl@gmail.com to participate and have fun.