It is both an emotional clearing and a statement of sovereignty from him’. She said that she and her team were now ‘removing him from our various websites and social media. Yogi Bhajan may have been the vessel that carried these teachings to the west, but I believe it is time for me to remove him from the Kundalini Yoga shared at Spirit Voyage, Sat Nam Fest and Kundalini Yoga U,” she adds.
I will no longer be responsible for sharing his name and likeness with the world. “After learning of these allegations, I can no longer connect to Yogi Bhajan when I practice. Truth is truth and can be uncovered no matter how much time has passed,” she said.
More women are now rising up to support truth by sharing their stories. Pamela’s book started this, but this is not about her story alone. “I believe most of them would never have shared their stories in order to protect those they loved. Having been raised in this Kundalini Yoga community, many of the women who have come forward are my childhood friends. “In the last 2 weeks, I have personally heard from 7 women whose stories of being abused by Yogi Bhajan have been heartbreaking. “My prayer is that the work of this committee is not only a source of truth, but also of healing for my friends, and for anyone effected by these actions.”Ī few days earlier, Spirit Voyage CEO Karan Khalsa, who own multiple businesses that share Kundalini Yoga teachings, wrote an ‘ open letter’ to the CRT. She said that did not have any such encounters with Bhajan, whom she described as her ‘spiritual teacher’. I have been deeply affected and shaken to the core in hearing their stories, and I believe them,” she wrote in a lengthy Facebook entry on 5 March. “I have dear friends that I grew up with who have in the past few weeks, conveyed to me varying degrees of sexual abuse that they experienced with Yogi Bhajan. The latest follower to add her voice to the investigation is Snatam Kaur, an American Kirtan singer raised in the Kundalini Yoga tradition, the primary teachings of Bhajan. The development surrounding the charismatic spiritual leader is coming at a time when the #MeToo movement – a movement against sexual harassment and sexual assault – is making headway globally with the conviction of the likes of film producer Harvey Weinstein.
When did yogi bhajan die update#
In its initial step, the CRT has engaged a third party to conduct an independent investigation into the allegations.Īn Olive Branch, the appointed third party, is now gathering background information and is expected to begin speaking with individuals on March 11, according to the latest update at the CRT website. owned security service providers to the U.S. The website carries five names: Sahaj Singh Khalsa from Siri Singh Sahib Corporation, Nirvair Singh Khalsa (Kundalini Research Institute), Gurujot Kaur Khalsa (Sikh Dharma International, Siri Singh Sahib Corporation), Pritpal Kaur Khalsa (3HO Foundation International) and Shanti Kaur Khalsa (Dharmic Office of Public Affairs).Īmong others, the organisations are connected to a multi-billion dollar private military and security company called Akal Security, which its website claims to be one the largest U.S. The 3HO Foundation, Sikh Dharma International and Kundalini Research Institute have formed a so-called ‘collaborative response team’ (CRT) to ‘officially represent our community organizations’ in dealing with the allegations. In ‘ Premka: White Bird in a Golden Cage (My Life with Yogi Bhajan)’, Bhajan’s former staff member Pamela Sarah Dyson alleges that he coerced her and other staff members into sex. The letter, dated and made public recently via a dedicated website, comes on the heels of a newly released book detailing Yogi Bhajan’s alleged sexual and other abuses. “Credible allegations concerning sexual misconduct by Yogi Bhajan have come forward,” declared a statement by outfits connected to the yoga master Harbhajan Singh Puri who left India for the US in 1968. The sexual exploits of Yogi Bhajan are being investigated by his followers, 16 years after the death of the Los Angeles-based yoga guru famous within the Sikh community as the person who brought Sikhi to the westerners.