about Ed and Deb Shapiro



Ed and Deb Shapiro are renown spiritual teachers of meditation, personal development and the beauty of an open heart. They are a vibrant, humourous and inspirational couple whose purpose is to serve the truth in all its forms. They travel worldwide holding workshops, seminars and retreats wherever they are asked to come, as well as teaching senior management in multinational corporations. (see www.edanddebshapiro.com). They are best selling authors and are part of the United Council on Yoga (UCY).

After over 30 years on the spiritual path, both Ed and Deb have come to realise that the most important thing any of us can do is not to take ourselves too seriously! They impart upliftment and humour to the incredible journey we are all travelling as well as greater love and compassion. “What is needed within each one of us is a compassionate revolution — a revolution that transforms our world from the inside out,” says Deb. “Life brings up many challenges for each of us to confront, but with an open heart you  can shift your perception from worry, fear and self-absorption to kindness, compassion and generosity.’”

Ed
Ed was born in the Bronx and grew up in New York in the 1960’s — as a teenager he won the New York City dance championships. In 1966 he met Sri Swami Satchidananda who had just arrived in the US, and by 1969 he was being initiated as Swami Brahmananda at the Bihar School of Yoga with Paramahamsa Swami Satyananda, a leading expert on Tantra. He later returned to the US to teach, where he also spent time with Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, a Tibetan Crazy Wisdom Master. 

 

Swami Brahmananda (Ed) with Paramahamsa
Satyananda in Central India

Deb
 Deb was born in England and grew up in the 1970’s in London. She became a meditator at the age of 15 and trained with Buddhist and Zen meditation teachers, including Jiyu Kennett Roshi, Chime Rinpoche and Tai Situ Rinpoche. She founded the Maitreya Institute in Hawaii in 1983 for Tai Situ Rinpoche, and was initiated as Swami Dharmavati by Paramahamsa Satyananda in 1987. She has also trained in numerous forms of bodywork and bodymind therapy, becoming the UK’s leading bodymind expert.

 

with HH the
Dalai Lama
 with Tai
Situ Rinpoche
  		with Swami
Satchidananda

Together
Together Ed and Deb have  studied with HH The Dalai Lama as well as working with him on two books. They began teaching together in 1988 after being empowered and encouraged by their teachers to be of service to those who were seeking guidance.

The Shapiro’s have written 14 books on stress-management, meditation, personal growth and social awareness and are published in many languages. Their best selling books include Unconditional Love, The Meditation Pack,  and Your Body Speaks Your Mind.  They are the editors of Voices From the Heart, contributors include President Gorbachev, Bishop Tutu, The Dalai Lama and Anita Roddick; and the editors of The Way Ahead, forward by Richard Gere, with contributors including Paul and Linda McCartney, Yoko Ono, Prince Philip, and Vaclav Havel.