Double click Image for larger view Over a quarter century of service, Kripa Foundation has evolved a module of non-discriminating, supportive community living, empowering people to introspect and bring about a change in lifestyle. Rev. Fr. Joseph H Pereira is the Founder and Managing Trustee of the Kripa Foundation, which is devoted to the care, support and rehabilitation of those affected by Chemical Dependency and HIV & AIDS.
Father Joe travels the globe teaching yoga to raise funds to support the work of these rehab centres in India. There are now 64 Kripa Foundation centres that use the Twelve Step Program, yoga and meditation to help bring about necessary changes for healthy living.
Many people from Vancouver Island have studied Yoga with Father Joe. His classes, held in the Comox Valley for the past 14 years, have had wait lists for many years now. He often sings hymns from his spiritual tradition while his students practice the classical postures.
Father Joe teaches with an open hearted approach to yoga and Philosophy. The physical yoga that he teaches is challenging but tempered with a gentleness and a focus on the heart. He honours his teachers and draws on wisdom from his religion. Amongst his teachers he counts as one of the paramount influences as Mother Theresa who questioned her own religion and faith. Father Joe has studied with the Iyengar Family for over 43 years and though he has a gentle nature his methods are sometimes painfully challenging. We lay on wooden bricks for 10 -12 minutes to open our ribcage and used the edge of a chair to re-educate and stretch our cardiac muscles. This method of practicing yoga is not for everyone but has measurable benefits.
I found immediate and lasting change within my thoracic spine and ribcage after giving my trust over to this compassionate man. I can see that many conditions of our sedentary life can be reversed by this type of attention to areas of concern. The Iyengar Style of Yoga makes strong claims of rejuvenation and therapy whereas most modern yoga teachers are taught never to make claims that yoga can heal anything. I believe that faith is a component of yoga which Rev. Father Joe Pereira has integrated into his practice and teaching.
An experience as narrated by Kim LeDuc
Submitted by
Vicky Catchpole
Submitted by
Vicky Catchpole
