Fr. Joe Receives the Prestigious National Award @ the hands of Hon'ble President of India, Shri Pranab Mukerjee

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The Department of Social Justice and Empowerment, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India has bestowed the National Awards for Outstanding Services in the Field of Prevention of Alcoholism and Substance ( Drug) Abuse to eight recipients in different categories. At  a well attended function by Cabinet Ministers, State Ministers, Representatives from the United Nations and distinguish guest, The Hon'ble President of India Shri Pranab Mukherjee, gave away these awards at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.

Fr. Joseph Hilary Pereira was awarded the Prestigious National Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement by a Professional..

Before the awarded was given by The Hon'ble President of India, a Citation was read about Fr. Joe as follows:

" Fr. Joseph Hilary Pereira, who holds a Masters in Philosophy and Psychology from the University of Mumbai is a certified Counselor from Minnesota, USA, established a Non Government Organization named Kripa Foundation in the year 1981 in a church compound in Bandra, Mumbai, and has been working in the field of Drug Prevention and Demand Reduction for over 32 years.

Kripa Foundation started with three resident patients, a priest, a doctor and a recovering alcoholic. Under the guidance and mentorship of Fr. Joseph Pereira, it is now  rendering services through 18 centres in 12 states across the country for de-addiction and rehabilitation of drug addicts. Presently, Kripa Foundation has has admission facilities for 450 individuals at a time in its various centres.

Through his visionary approach, Fr. Joseph Pereira further broadened his area of activities by including other components such as Street Children Project, Employees Assistance Program, Drop in Centres, Family Therapy Programme, Comprehensive Community Projects for HIV/AIDS Care etc. Kripa Foundation also partners with United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, National AIDS Control Organization, Narcotics Control Bureau, various State Departments etc. and offers consultative services.

Fr. Joseph Pereira has to his credit 18 national and international publications and presentations on Addiction, Public and Industrial Health, Yoga and Meditation and has organized over 37 national and international workshops since 1981 related to addiction, Yoga, Stress Management and Meditation.

Fr. Joseph Pereira was conferred with the prestigious Padmashri Award for Social Services towards the Marginalized Population by the Government of India in the year 2009. He has been showered with various other awards and accolades also.

The award for Outstanding Individual Achievement by a Professional is conferred on Fr. Joseph Hilary is Pereira, Mumbai in recognition of his outstanding exemplary services in the field of Prevention of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse for the last 32 years."

To a loud applause from the audience in the auditorium Fr. Joe received the National Award at the hands of Hon'ble President of India Shri Pranab Mukherjee. Fr. Joe was accompanied by his nun sister Teresa, who was deeply moved and proud to see her brother receive this prestigious award.

It was a indeed a Red Letter Day for Kripa Foundation at this National Awards, which was held on The International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking 26th June, 2014 that Kripa's National Program Director Bosco D'Souza also received an award in the category of "Former Addict in the field of Addiction". Mr. Bosco D'Souza was accompanied by his wife Mrs. Charmaine D'Souza and his brother Milton D'Souza and sister in law Joy Assey.

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As one left the auditorium one could feel the energies of  those who witnessed this grand ceremony where The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment by bestowing these awards indeed prophetically did what Fr. Joe always practices " Empowering the Addict ".

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Fr. Joe conducts intense Kripafoundation Yoga at St. Peter' Monastery - Germany

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It’s been twenty years since 1994, that Silvia Maria Braucks has been organizing a Yoga retreat titled 

“ Pentecost Retreat “ with Fr. Joe at the beautiful monastery of St. Peter’s.

This yoga conducted by Fr.. Joe is so famous that the moment it is announced its house full.

The whole day program at the  retreat is so meaningful that the day would start with a morning walk followed, by a footbath, Yoga and Praynayam in the afternoon.

This year’s yoga retreat coincides with the 20 years of continuous yoga  workshops with Fr. Joe, Remembering the first time in 1994 where Fr. Joe conducted the first yoga retreat at the Catholic Academy  organized by Maria Silvia Braucks.

To acknowledge the practice of yoga for the past twenty years, Fr. Joe gave a certificate to Ms. Maria Silvia Braucks loving called Sima with a Kripafoundation Iyengar Yoga certificate “ Yoga for Addiction Treatment” Signed By Guruji B.K.S. Iyengar.

The retreat ended with a Satsang of song and music played  (Carmen and Traudel on the violin, Rolf on the  guitar Rolf and also a wonderful drama play directed by Ute and Harlinde specially for Fr. Joe.

One could hear the participants says “ We thank Fr. Joe – “the miracle man” who makes things so beautiful to live, an experience to love ourselves and bring us closer to one another by experiencing the Spirit of God in us."

As Narrated by

 Sima

Liebe Grüße sima

www.karuna-zentrum.de

Photographs

Sima

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Breaking News: Kripa to receive Two National Awards at the Hands of the President of India on 26th June 2014- International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking

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Dr. lance Longo conducts a tele- conference with Kripa- Mumbai Jungian Center along with Jungian Dr.Ashok Bedi, Fr. Joe H Pereira and Kripa Family

Dr Lance Longo is a Board Certified Psychiatrist and Addiction Medicine Specialists in Milwaukee. He is the Medical Director of Addiction Psychiatry at the Aurora Psychiatric Hospital and is an Associate Professor of Psychiatry with the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, as well as the Medical College of Winconsin. He maintains a busy and rewarding clinical practice treating Patients with Addictions, as well as General Health Mental Illness. He also supervises students and residents, conducts research and enjoys and enjoys the study and practice of motivation and reward.

The USA India Carl Jung Foundation organised an educational and tremendously enriching session on 'Motivational Interviewing' conducted by Dr. Lance Longo, an eminent Psychiatrist and Addictionologist and the Medical Director of the Dewey Centre for Addiction treatment, Milwaukee. The two and half hour session started at 7:30 am IST and was moderated by Dr. Ashok Bedi, IAAP Liaison Person: India Developing Groups. 

The session conducted via AdobeConnect hosting (video conference) was very widely appreciated and attended by Fr.Joe Pereira (from Germany at 4.am ) , Ms.Nirvana Crowley ( from London 3.00 am)  and most of Kripa centre representatives from across India.

Due to poor internet connections many Kripa centers could be online to be part of a such a informative session.

Dr. Ashok Bedi and Dr. lance Logon M.D., assured Fr. Joe that they would promptly send a DVD of the presentation to Kripa Mumbai Jungian Centre so as many in the field of addiction treatment could benefit. 

Inputs

Ms Krishna Iyer

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listen to Fr. Joe's message on the 79th Anniversary of AA Day

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Fr. Joe Takes you through the spine into the heart....says Sima from karuna Zentrum

A Joy of being there today as  Fr Joe conducted a yoga seminar in my centre, mainly therapeutic Yoga - Pranayama and Meditation.

It was a unique atmosphere of Indian climate without fans, but the smooth  Yoga with Fr. Joe keeps all who attended afresh

 The most beautiful feeling of one practicing yoga with Fr. Joe is to witness him synchronize by taking you through the spine into the heart.

 After adjusting the body and silencing the brain, he leads you to a inner stillness through Pranayama and ends with Meditation, leaving you with a good  understanding of  feeling one with the universe.

Every single participant became what he/she needed. Fr Joe took utmost care in addressing everyone’s needs and pains with love and compassion

On this great feast of the Pentecost one and all were happy to have him back, going home with memories of enlightening the Body, Mind and Soul.

Tomorrow many of those practicing yoga will leave for St. Peter for the 5 day yoga retreat.

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Liebe Grüße sima

www.karuna-zentrum.de

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Fr. Joe conducts Intense Kripafoundation Iyengar Yoga in Frieburg

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Photo Courtesy
Lara
Frieburg

After Every Yoga Practice Fr. Joe celebrates The Eucharist with the Group. This Eucharistic celebration was in Frieburg.

After a grand success in Poland, Fr. Joe's Kripafoundation Iyengar yoga workshops, the Meditation programs and the television Interview having a coverage of over 4 million viewers Fr. Joe continued teaching yoga in Frieburg, Germany. The whole class was soaked in the style that Fr. Joe teaches and as Fr. Joe quipped "It's not that only the yoga that they are enjoying...but also the Mumbai heat of 38 degrees Celsius"

Grateful to 
Ms.Gabriele Wilde
For Her inputs and Photographs 
Reporting from Frieburg
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"Even if 92 a Mother is always missed "- Says Fr. Joe - Condolence message

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"There is no resurrection and ascension without crucifixion" - Says Fr. Joe

Ascension with Father Pereira. Eve Strzemecka

• Wednesday, June 4, 2014
• by Eve Strzemecka

ENGLISH TRANSLATION THROUGH GOOGLE ORIGINAL SCRIPT IN POLISH

"There is no resurrection and ascension without crucifixion" the priest repeated quote EckhartaTolle Pereira during the next workshop in the school of yoga Namaste Paulina Guardian in Wroclaw, which took place from 29.05 - 01.06.2014, the

 

The workshop began on the very day of the Assumption is celebrated by Christians on the 40th day of the Resurrection (in Poland is celebrated on the seventh Sunday of Easter). St. Augustine stresses that Jesus ascended to heaven by his own power: "No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man (...) ".

" What is your crucifixion? What needs to die in you so that you can become a resurrection and ascension into heaven? '. Each of the workshop participants had the opportunity to answer these questions in asana, meditation and pranayama.

"I do not limit ourselves to that which is external" - emphasized repeatedly Father Pereira. Bahirangasadhana (external search) are just the beginning. It is not a goal in itself, but to lead to subsequent stages of development - by antarangasadhanę (internal search) until antaratmasadhany - the deepest spiritual search.

In the next sequence of asanas we try to deal with a long and intense way of annamayakośa (shell anatomy) by pranamayakośa (shell physiological), manomayakośa (shell emotional) and vijnanamayakośa (coating property) to anandamayakośa - shell unadulterated happiness.

And once again the well-known basic canon of asanas become a source of new discoveries. "Technique is important, but remember that yoga is a spiritual practice. It has lead to harmony, and not to fight with the body and breath. This work from the outside to the inside. Only then can open ourselves to the grace of God, to let go of all the fears and destroy the ego. Remember that " repeated my father while we are silencing our ego in Uttānāsana supported.

Yoga is practiced to achieve external goals, satisfy the ambition and ego leads to negative emotions and injuries. This is a great trap of our ego.

"In yoga there should be no movement only action" - the words of BKS Iyengar himself quoted by Father Pereira. And the action occurs only at full mindfulness and harmoniously flowing breath. The breath should be like a breath of wind - a harmonious flow through the body. Then the energy of kundalini is free to rise from the bottom of the spine upwards. I will not change at all levels of life - we are not at the level of vibration of the lower chakras focus on sex, food and other pleasures, but we rise towards the heart energy and higher intelligence symbolized by the Anahata chakra (heart chakra) and Adjna chakra (third eye chakra ).

However, it occurred to our spine must go through a process of "crucifixion" - long bends backwards, which practiced throughout the workshop, and that very intensively regenerate it. Viparitadandasana, catuśpadasana and urdhvadhanurasana became our "cross" over the four days. Sam Pereira priest laughs that his spine at the age of 72 years, after more than forty years of yoga practice is much younger and more flexible than in his youth. So all in front of us.

But watch out for traps ego! Many practitioners and teachers of Yoga believes that the practice of yoga makes them someone special. Father Pereira quotes here mother Teresa of Calcutta: "It is not about to do extraordinary things, but rather to do ordinary things in an extraordinary way."

So look inside yourself and try to get in touch with your real self. Because only by contact with the real, I can experience God. And then each asana becomes a prayer, every breath flow of divine energy. Then meditation just happens and mszęświętą experiencing the whole body and spirit. We experience the universal energy, God, the Absolute - the name is actually the least important.

This happens beyond words and very difficult to capture the words little bit of that state.Therefore, little can understand why the relationship in the press and on television about the workshop so little give from the essence of the process. Less understandable is the position of the Polish Catholic Church, and public criticism of the practice of yoga as contemplative prayer by persons who have no knowledge or experience in this field.

In this beautiful book, Father M. Malinski "Stories of Hope" is the story of the fourth king.He also saw a star heralding the birth of Jesus and wanted to make worship the newborn King. He set out from ogromnąświtą and a large ruby, which he wanted to give to Jesus. But on the way encountered a country haunted by drought, saw people dying of hunger. It was and helped. Then he reached the city, where there was an epidemic of bubonic plague. There he was, and he helped. For ruby ​​carried to Christ ransomed slaves. When he reached Jerusalem had nothing and came just in time for the crucifixion of Christ. He looked into his eyes and saw gratitude. For the gift more important than all the rubies in the world.

Father Pereira is the fourth king. But to appreciate his actions need to forget about Frankincense, Meir and Gold. Crucify the ego. Who of us can do that?

 Submitted by

Eve Strzemecka - lawyer, fascinated by foreign languages ​​(German, English, French, Spanish), hobby journalist and a careful observer of reality. For several years, passionate about yoga, philosophy, and Ayurveda.Participated in teaching the course conducted by Jurek Jaguckiego in Szczecin.

 Another workshop with Fr Pereira will be held 1-16 November at Goa, the organizer - Namaste Yoga school Paulina Guardian

Fr. Joe speaks to a packed audience on Meditation at a Church in Rzeszov, Poland

The crowds were mesmerized as Fr. Joe spoke on Christian Meditation at a church in Rzezov, Poland. The Dominican Fathers were so touched that they have even ask Fr. Joe to start Kripa Foundation Iyengar Yoga @ their Parish. It was estimated that there was more than 2500 people who attended this Meditation Conference to witness Fr. Joe speak.

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Photographs Courtesy
Artur Galecki OP