“Yoga was a blessing this morning. I don’t even have words to describe how I feel. It was so good.”
What we offer:
Mindfulness:
Mindfulness is present moment awareness. Mindfulness means maintaining a moment by moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, and surrounding environment. These practices are encouraged through a gentle, nurturing, and accepting lens.
Yoga, breathing, movement, guided meditation, and journaling are just a few examples of tools to practice mindfulness. Mindfulness, yoga, and meditation have been practiced for thousands of years as means of healing and liberation. We honor these tools and believe they should be available to all especially vulnerable populations.
Trauma Informed Lens:
Dr. Bessel Van der Kolk defines trauma as anything that impacts the nervous system in a way in which we are unable to cope or respond. There are various levels and types of trauma: acute, chronic, complex, individual, historical. We know that trauma is hard to define on so many levels but has the ability to disrupt all aspects of a person's and community’s health and wellbeing.
Karuna Community MN believes that providing compassion based mindfulness tools such as yoga and meditation through a trauma informed lens is the safest and most sustainable for the populations served. Our facilitators* have an understanding of types of trauma, signs and symptoms, as well as a basic understanding of the criminal legal system, incarceration, and re-entry/recovery. We instruct using invitational, safe, and straightforward language. It provides awareness, control, grounding and autonomy for individuals. Our programs* can help participants create a sense of release from cycles of trauma, the feeling of stuck and lost of sense of self. Offering these tools in a controlled group setting creates community and connection providing another avenue for healing from trauma.
*We use the term program/programming instead of “classes” and facilitator instead of “teacher” or “instructor” to limit a hierarchical structure and separation with participants and provide a more welcoming and community connection.
Karuna
Karuna is a Sanskrit and Pali word and is a concept in the spiritual paths of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. Karuna is generally translated as compassion, compassionate action an action to alleviate suffering, and much more. We believe this is a concept for all.
A letter of intent from founder, Mike
I started Karuna Community MN to help people who are incarcerated connect to innate wellness tools like meditation and yoga. As a criminal defense lawyer, I often feel discouraged trying to help people in an unjust system. I can’t control what the system does but I can offer people access to their own innate tools that help with anxiety, sleep issues, pain management, and overall wellness.
People in jail and prison often get treated like non-human numbers. These facilities lack basic compassion that no human deserves. We have significant problems with mass incarceration, lack of mental health treatment, and rehabilitation options. Offering compassion based mindfulness tools is an area where I can offer growth and connection in an unjust system.
Tools like yoga and meditation have helped me with physical and mental health issues from my time in the Army and working in the system. Years ago, I started offering my clients informal meditation techniques and reading materials to help with sleep, physical discomfort, and anxiety. Motivated by my friend, Jenilee, who was teaching yoga and meditation to women in the Ramsey County jail, I asked her to start an organization with me to offer compassion based mindfulness tools in correctional facilities. In 2019, we became an official nonprofit, Karuna Community MN. We’ve shared mindfulness tools with hundreds of people who are incarcerated or formerly incarcerated and have offered workshops to the legal community. Our mission continues and we look forward to work with you to expand our mission and programming.
