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Celebration of the 30th anniversary of the Kriya Yoga Meditation Centre Sterksel
On Saturday August 5th 2023 we celebrated the 30th anniversary of the Kriya Yoga Meditation Center in Sterksel, during the summer program. For this special celebration, our master Paramahamsa Prajnananandaji came from India. It was a remarkable few days, providing much inspiration to all visitors who had flocked from various countries to celebrate this special occasion.
Paramahamsa Prajnanananda at the celebration in the new meditation hall
Paramahamsa Hariharananda in de tuin van Sterksel 1993
Paramahamsa Hariharananda opened the meditation centre in 1993, the first Kriya Yoga Centre in Europe. Especially for this occasion Paramahamsa Hariharananda travelled from India to the Netherlands.
At that time the centre in Sterksel was the first Kriya Yoga Centre in Europe. Paramahamsa Hariharananda travelled from India to attend the special opening ceremony that was part of a two weeks meditation program. Since that day there have been hundreds of programs and thousands of Kriya Yoga meditations.
In the years preceding the centre ‘s existence, programs took place in different locations in the Netherlands. In the several occasions Paramahamsa Hariharananda visited The Netherlands, he went on tour through the country. In 1993 Peter van Breukelen found an inspiring location in Sterksel in the south of the country.
Before opening the centre was completely renovated. At first the building used to be the home of missionaries (the white fathers), later on it became the studio and workplace of an artist; Harry Storms. The former rooms for exhibition were completely transformed into bedrooms and bathrooms; a kitchen, a dining hall and the meditation hall were installed. The renovation was completed just minutes before the opening. Sitting inside you still could smell the paint. In the following years several improvements has been made: a new fountain, a vegetable garden and so on.
In 2013 big improvements have been realized with more bedrooms, new floors in bathrooms and kitchen as a beautiful result. But the development op the property was still not to an end. In 2018 a beautiful new and spacious meditation hall was built, made the big tent for the program in the summer expendable. We are very happy with this new, spacious hall.
