The Community at World Peace Ashram

Donna, the Founder & Director, has traveled to India on pilgrimage three times since 1992, and has experience and training in the Hindu and Vedic traditions for spiritual advancement and realization of the Divine, particularly through the 'bhakti' or devotional yoga of mantra, japa and meditation.  However, do not expect to see any Hindu temples or find a 'traditional' ashram when you come!

This area hosts a melange of spiritual traditions: from the tribal peoples of the Navajo-Dine', the Zuni, the Hopi and the Apache, to the immigrant Mexican Catholics and pioneering Mormons/LDS, this area is rich in religious heritage.  More modern times have seen the addition of Wiccan, Earth-Gaia and Goddess traditions to those more ancient and conventional, as people continue to find this area conducive to the expansion of the heart and soul, even while seeming stark or climatically challenging.  There is a spirit of the area beyond any human overlay.

In this vein, it seemed unnecessary to develop a Hindu-expressing appearance or rituals as yet one more 'religion' - the land has Her own energies, and we'd do well to connect to that, rather than impose anything man-made here, so this is what you will find.  We walk and attune to the land, we work with the weather, we enrich the soil so that we can grow our food, and we develop shelters that have minimal impact on the environment.  That seems good enough for us, for now.

Guest Options:

day use, with meal  -  $5

overnight, with 2-3 meals  -  $25

weekend, with 5-6 meals  -  $50

5+ days/week, with meals  -  $125

2 weeks, with meals  -  $200

1 month, with meals  -  $400

all season, with meals (up to 6 mos)  -  $1,200

Note:  our 'season' runs from mid-April (Earth Day) through October, yearly

Karma yogis & work-exchange volunteers are welcome any time, with advance notice, for stays of at least a week (shorter times not available) - room & board provided for 5 hrs work a day, 6 days a week, depending on weather conditions

Community Residents:

Longer stays require a guest to have already come and lived among us for more than a month, and worked with us on the property for more than a week - you can then make a request & application to the Community for conditional residency, and you must be prepared to winterize a living space for yourself, since your use thereof will extend beyond our normal guest season.

We are seeking up to six couples or individuals who want to live with us in this place as Community in Spirit, and who will share in the fiscal and maintenance responsibilities for the land.  While it is not necessary to make a substantial financial contribution to become a partner with us, Donna & Kevin have made the investments which will keep them as primary decision makers until such time as others accept co-responsibilities with them.  One way this can be done is to come onto the Board of Divine Tools, Unlimited, our 501(c)(3) educational & charitable non-profit, as a Trustee.  In any case, each community resident will be expected to provide their own long-term housing and to assume the Apache County zoning & tax responsibilities for their constructions.

Sound interesting?  Please contact Donna at 928 337 2492 or email her at donna@desertmonastery.org - and thanks for your interest!