(OPINION) The new “Breathe With Me” meditation Barbie has garnered criticism from a Christian influencer who says the toy is coercing children into satanic practices linked to yoga.
Manufactured by Mattel, the doll retails at $24.99, and the packaging shows the Barbie in a seated yoga pose with her legs crossed and palms facing up. Children are encouraged to press a button on the doll’s crescent moon necklace to listen to the sounds of “five guided meditations.” The product is designed for children ages 3 years old and older.
According to Mattel: “This meditation-themed doll celebrates one of her favorite ways to recharge using lights and sound — mindfulness meditation. The set comes with a Barbie doll, a puppy, and four cloud emojis. Kids simply press the button on the Barbie doll’s necklace to activate one of five guided meditation exercises that use light and sound effects to inspire their own practice.
“Her puppy helps her visualize — insert one of the cloud emojis into its head to represent a meditative thought bubble, then switch it up for new meditation inspiration. The puppy helps the Barbie doll focus with visualization: place one of the four cloud emojis — Love Rainbow, Sad Rain, Happy Sunshine, or Grumpy Red — into its head to express emotion; switch them up to express a new feeling.”
Yasmeen Suri, Christian speaker and author of the book, Beautiful Deception and The Fake God Reference Guide, took to Facebook earlier this month to warn parents that under the guise of self-care, yoga’s methods are an invitation to an unforgiving spiritual realm. Suri came across the product while shopping at Target and shared a photo of the doll she saw on the shelves.
“Satan always comes as appearing innocent. He will never come with horns and a pitchfork. This Barbie has five guided meditations. Remember, Yoga is Hinduism,” Suri wrote in the May 3 Facebook post. “You cannot separate the poses from the religion. Each pose is designed to invoke a Hindu deity in the spirit realm. I have seen children get possessed by demons.” The guided meditations are also problematic for a variety of reasons, according to Suri.
“This Barbie also teaches you deep breathing (pranayama). Her pet is also involved. Satan is after the children. He wants to use them and indoctrinate them for his glory. Then, when he is done, he will destroy them,” she declared. FULL REPORT
