Ascension Making A Difference
Ascension brings peace to everyone
Ishayas’ Ascension works for everyone, of any background or life experience. We have taught Ascension to children in schools and teens in youth programs, to people in homeless and family violence shelters, to victims of crime and to people in prisons, to people who are surviving economic hardship and civil war.
No matter what challenges you have experienced in life, the impact of Ascension is the same: use an Ascension technique and you are returned instantly to a state of stillness and presence. With consistent practice, any habit of holding on to past experiences dissolves, leaving you free to experience life at its fullest.
Are you interested in what we can do for your organisation or community? Do you have an idea that you wish to share? We love to hear from you! Contact us to discuss the options available.
"Today I feel free... I am a new person"
– Jeanne Françoise (Rwanda)
Ascension in schools
Children as young as four or five can learn to Ascend, and the practice can make a significant difference to their lives. The Ascension techniques – or ‘magic words’ – return children to a natural state of calm and joyful play, and support them to let go of any stresses or challenges they face. Children experience the practice as fun – almost like a secret power.
Many hundreds of children and teens have learned to Ascend as part of Bright Path courses in schools in Venezuela, Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, Spain and other countries. Children can also learn individually, or with family or friend groups. Parents notice that their children become more peaceful and resilient when they use the Ascension techniques. School teachers say that children’s behaviour improves after they learn to Ascend. Playground violence declines, and so does playground disruption.
Ascension in prisons
Most people in prisons have had difficult lives. Many have experienced serious violence. Many have issues with substance abuse and mental illness. Being in prison exacerbates feelings of fear and isolation.
Ishayas’ Ascension is offered in 28 prisons around the world. About 7000 prisoners and 500 prison staff have learned. Prisoners say Ascension changes their lives for the better. They become less reactive, calmer, more connected, more positive, more at peace. With continued support and practice, past conditioning dissolves. Officials say that, as a result of this simple meditation practice, prisoners' behaviour improves and violence declines after Ascension is introduced.
“I choose true peace, Freedom from illness, stress, anger. A complete new life.”
- Ed (New Zealand prisoner)
Ascension in hospitals
Serious injuries and illnesses have physical effects – loss of mobility, loss of control, intense pain. They can also have significant mental and emotional effects arising from loss of control over the body and life, and from fears about the future and dying.
We offer Ascension programmes in hospitals and hospices. People with significant health concerns are also welcomed into community courses. Many Ishayas work in the health sector and dedicate themselves to serving and healing others.
Ascension provides a means of returning attention to the present moment. In the present, physical pain demands less attention and causes less suffering. Anxieties and fears fall away while the Ascension techniques are being used.
Ascension in youth programmes
Early life experiences have lasting impacts. Children and young people who experience loss and abandonment, or trauma, often carry those experiences throughout their lives.
We have worked with vulnerable young people in orphanages, homes for abandoned children, schools for children at risk, and recreational programs for youth – in Brazil, Venezuela, and New Zealand.
People in these programmes say the Ascension techniques have allowed them to let go and find a calm space during challenging circumstances. They experience less fear and anger. They get on better with others, and they find it easier to cope with the demands of schooling and training.
Ascension in homeless shelters
People find themselves homeless for many reasons – poverty, trauma, relationship breakdown or to escape abuse, drug and alcohol addiction, mental illness, and many other causes.
Despite their circumstances, homeless people want the same things as the rest of us – to have peace, hope, joy, love, freedom, and a sense of agency over their lives. To this end, We have begun teaching Ascension in homeless shelters in the United States, with positive responses.
Ascension works by dissolving stuck patterns of thinking, feeling and acting, including those arising from past trauma. The Ascension Attitudes bring calmness, healing, hope, self-acceptance, and peace irrespective of external circumstances.
Ascension in family violence shelters
People who experience violence (including sexual violence) often carry the effects for many years afterwards. After physical scars have healed, mental and emotional anguish can continue, including feelings of fear, shame, and re-traumatisation.
We have taught Ascension in shelters for women who have survived serious violence. And many people who were victims of violence have attended First Sphere course in their communities.
The Ascension techniques calm the mind, bringing it to a state of still awareness which is beyond all physical experience. With appropriate support and continued practice, these techniques help those who Ascend to accept and move on from the past, finding an experience of calmness, acceptance and serenity.
Ascension in Cuba
Since 2007, many Ishayas have travelled to Cuba at their own cost to share the practice of Ascension. Consistently, they are struck by the Cuban people’s extraordinary passion for life, generosity of spirit, and love of the Ascension practice.
Ascension has grown at an extraordinary rate in Cuba. The first Ascension meditation class taught there had eight people attending. Within months, classes of three or four hundred were taking place.
Ascension in Africa
Many African nations have experienced civil war, causing divisions and experiences of trauma that can take years or decades to heal. Poverty and other social and economic issues also combine to cause considerable stress and challenge in everyday life.
Ishayas have taught Ascension to community groups, women leaders, and school teachers and children in Rwanda, Congo and Mali – all nations that are in stages of peace-building and recovery from civil war. Ascension offers opportunities to move on from the past. Those who have learned say the practice brings them serenity, calmness and a sense of peace amid the challenges and turbulence of their outer lives. We have also taught Ascension to aid workers, helping to alleviate the stress of working in challenging and war-torn countries.
