Featured Wisdom Keeper
Baba Ivan
Video Credits
Narrator: Elitsa Stoichkova
Video Producers: Elitsa Stoichkova and Boyan Nikolov
Background music: Jason Stephenson / https://www.jasonstephenson.net
Song at the end: Tiniye / Letting go made it all mine | Tiniye (bandcamp.com)
Shared by Gene Keys Bulgaria
About Baba Ivan
Baba Ivan was born in Novi Pazar, a small city in the northeast of Bulgaria, on the 11th of September, 1954. Close to the Holy Cliff – the Madara Plateau and close to the sea – Ivan has always been in nature and grew up deeply immersed in the natural world. With a strong connection to his ancestors, he grew up around animals, honoring them. When he was a young boy he lived in a little shelter close to a forest taking care of beehives, surrounded by many of the forest inhabitants that became friends with him, living in harmony and silence. He had a deep love for creating things and became a designer of porcelain cups and pots. His talent was recognized and he was awarded with two gold medals.
Once Ivan got the opportunity to embark on a traveling adventure, taking him far from Bulgaria and exploring the African continent. This journey deeply touched him, as apart from the magical new animal world, he met so many foreign faces, kind hearts, and human purity. He was deeply touched by the humanity and the kindness of the people that he met there, their purity, and the magical animal world. This journey and its meetings greatly infused Ivan’s storytelling and energized his love and care for all animals.
Nowadays during winter Ivan lives in his small house, and on a wild beach during the summer times. He continues as an ever-greater lover of the animal world, living close to nature. He is one of those people that is rarer and rarer to find nowadays: A true inspiration on how to live in harmony with nature.
