Trauma Relief and Peace Building through Yoga and Meditation

"You must not lose faith in humanity.

Humanity is an ocean;

if a few drops of the ocean are dirty,

the ocean does not become dirty."

Mahatma Gandhi

Over the past 6 years (since the age of 24), I have facilitated courses for over 1500 participants and engaged with many communities around the world about Techniques and Knowledge to eliminate stress, deal with trauma and negative emotions, improve health and wellbeing, and live more positive and fulfilling lives through Yoga and Meditation. Students have ranged from business professionals, to young adults (University of Cape Town), to primary school students, to underprivileged communities (Mitchell’s Plain, Uitsig, Manenberg), to Heads of Departments in Government institutions (Mitchell’s Plain Hospital).

Currently, I primarily focus on empowering University students to become strong and active social volunteers, and engaging in Social Development projects in underprivileged communities where drug abuse and gang violence are prevalent.

Traumas that I regularly work with include rape, suicide, drug abuse, political activist abuse and gang violence.

I do not receive any financial remuneration for this work, and spend most of my time and personal money on ensuring that these projects move forward consistently despite various obstacles.

Unfortunately, approved finance for a renewable energy company that I have been working on for the last 9 years (specialising in photo voltaic/solar electricity technologies) did not get transfered into our company account despite already passing full comprehensive due diligence and having contractual agreements. This put me under serious financial strain as I was held personally liable for contracted projects that we used to raise the finance in the first place.

This setback seriously hindered my ability to spend time investing in these Social Development projects, and has seriously reduced the resources that I had available to assist students - especially in traumatic situations. I already had to stop one of our most successful projects at Mitchell's Plain Hospital - an underprivileged area in Cape Town, South Africa known for drug addiction and gang violence. I assisted in facilitating programs for patients through the HIV chronic unit, including food, drinks and certificates for approximately 100 people every 3 weeks. This project has been put on hold.

Based on my experiences, I sincerely believe that Social Development projects rely primarily on momentum through consistent community engagement in order to achieve any form of tangible transformation. I am appealing for some support to assist me over the next year so that I am not forced to further reduce the time I spend working in these Social Development environments due to my strained financial responsibilities, and would like to reinvest in certain projects so that they can become fully self-sustainable and driven by their respective communities.

I would be sincerely grateful for any contribution that you make that can help allow me to continue spending time working in challenging environments where much support and love are needed.

Video Link: https://www.facebook.com/smileuct/videos/826129220...

All my Love and Blessings from Cape Town,

Yugesh :)

My favorite quote by Mahatma Gandhi: "You must be the change you wish to see in the world."