Author: Pamela Saharah Dyson Publisher: ISBN: 9780578621883 Category : Biography & Autobiography Languages : en Pages : 204
Book Description
Premka: White Bird in a Golden Cage is a compelling and beautifully unfolding tale, offering a haunting look into a teacher/student relationship. This intimate memoir, written by one of Yogi Bhajan's prized teachers and exalted students, is full of devotion, love, dedication, betrayal, loss and the healing unification of the self. It also reads as a love letter to a unique time in history-the '60s in Los Angeles and New Mexico, where love, music, art, spiritual exploration, often led to self-transformation. As a historical treatise and a spiritual mystery, this book offers unique insight into the origins of the Western Sikh movement and the proliferation of Yogi Bhajan's kundalini yoga.
Author: Gursant Singh Publisher: Createspace Independent Pub ISBN: 9781481172752 Category : Religion Languages : en Pages : 428
Book Description
Arriving in India to get his teeth fixed, Gursant Singh decides he needs a Punjabi wife and becomes embroiled with Dadaji, Amritsar's notorious marriage broker. When their search for the perfect bride gets them both thrown into Amritsar's Central Jail, Gursant has to look deep within himself and question everything he has been taught about the Sikh path - Sikhi. Gursant's encounters with crooked lawyers, corrupt cops and the enigmatic Indian legal system lead him from the radiant spirituality of Amritsar's Golden Temple, through labyrinthine back streets, chaotic lawyers' offices and the Amritsar Police station to the tranquility of an isolated yoga ashram in the foothills of the Himalayas. On the way, we meet an exotic cast of characters. Some venal and manipulating, others compassionate and generous; all of whom bring to life the contradictions, idiosyncrasies and excitement of 21st Century India. Gursant chronicles his adventures in a fast-moving, warts-and-all style to give the reader a searingly honest picture of his own spiritual loss of innocence. It was during my time in the Amritsar Central Jail that I thought of writing this book. As soon as I had Internet access, I began to research what it might take to create a written record of my experiences. In effect, this book was created as it happened and certainly before I knew how it would finish. My hope was that I could help others to learn from my experiences; not only those in India, but also those within the 3HO spiritual organization to which I devoted thirty years of my life. India can be fun, entertaining and spiritually inspiring; at the same time it can be harsh and unforgiving, especially if you fall foul of the law, as I did. The spiritual path of the seeker can provide endless inspiration and satisfaction. But, like India, it can bring you face to face with your deepest fears and weaknesses. It is my fervent hope that others will learn from my mistakes and perhaps deepen their own spiritual experience by reading about what I had to go through. Thus this book is the story of my spiritual coming of age; my loss of innocence, if you will. I wish to offer my deepest gratitude to Akal Purkh, Waheguru, the Creator and Sustainer of the incredible universe in which we live. Let me also give thanks to Guru Nanak Sahib and his nine illustrious human successors. It is the grace of Guru Nanak that brought me to his teachings and it was his kindness that enabled me to find the true path of Sikhi. Finally I humbly offer obeisance to Siri Guru Granth Sahib, the word of God and living Guru for all Sikhs. Gursant Singh
Author: Els Coenen Publisher: Izzard Ink ISBN: 9464752149 Category : Body, Mind & Spirit Languages : en Pages : 354
Book Description
Let’s face and share the pain. This groundbreaking exposé, Under the Yoga Mat, lifts the veil on the underexposed dark side of the history of Yogi Bhajan’s Kundalini Yoga and his revered 3HO Healthy, Happy, Holy community. This is the first book presenting the multifaceted character and extent of the wrongdoings and the tactics used by 3HO leadership to keep the horrific abuse hidden for five decades. This meticulously researched non-fiction work delves deep into the disturbing tragedies that unfolded when Harbhajan, a 39-year-old Sikh-born Indian customs officer, arrived in Los Angeles in 1968, posing as a master of Kundalini Yoga. Through a thoughtful selection of testimonies, historical records, and expert insights, this work unravels the captivating rise of Yogi Bhajan, as disillusioned American youth eagerly embraced him as the Eastern guru they believed they needed. As his following grew rapidly, he wove a narrative of destiny, proclaiming that his devotees were predestined to guide humanity in the transition from the Piscean to the Aquarian Age. Yet, behind the facade of spiritual enlightenment, Bhajan cunningly manipulated, controlled, exploited, and abused his followers and their children. He was involved in drug and arms smuggling and fraudulent businesses. Throughout his reign, Yogi Bhajan hobnobbed with the powerful, including encounters with presidents, popes, and the Dalai Lama. The governors of California and New Mexico became his confidants, unaware of the web of deception he spun. Under his leadership, billion-dollar enterprises like Yogi Tea and Akal Security flourished. Such was the influence of this enigmatic figure that upon his passing in 2004, the American Congress honored him with a two-page resolution, while New Mexico inaugurated the “Yogi Bhajan Memorial Highway.” However, it wasn’t until the early 2020s, when a former leader of the 3HO community came forward with her testimony, that the truth began to emerge from decades of silence. Under the Yoga Mat reveals the harrowing experiences of hundreds of ex-3HO members, shedding light on the isolation, neglect, hunger, and abuse they endured in schools in India from a tender age. Shockingly, it is estimated that Yogi Bhajan sexually abused approximately 100 women, justifying his actions with the chilling statement, “Rape is always invited.” At the heart of this extraordinary book lie the stories of these courageous 3HO survivors. Coenen’s masterful narrative not only exposes the crimes themselves but also explores why a culture of silence persisted for so long, engendering fear and obedience among the followers. As the shadows of the past give way to the truth, their accounts serve as a rallying cry for justice and healing. With its compelling blend of investigative research, personal testimonies, and historical context, Under the Yoga Mat challenges our perception of spiritual leaders, champions the resilience of survivors, and sparks a critical conversation about power, manipulation, and the darker side of spiritual movements.
Author: Brian Phillips Publisher: Macmillan + ORM ISBN: 0374717702 Category : Literary Collections Languages : en Pages : 255
Book Description
The acclaimed journalist’s New York Times–bestselling essay collection: “hilarious, nimble, and thoroughly illuminating” (Colson Whitehead, author of The Underground Railroad). In this highly anticipated debut collection, Brian Phillips demonstrates why he’s one of the most iconoclastic journalists of the digital age, beloved for his ambitious, off-kilter, meticulously reported essays that read like novels. The eight essays assembled here—five from Phillips’s Grantland and MTV days, and three new pieces—go beyond simply chronicling some of the modern world’s most uncanny, unbelievable, and spectacular oddities. They explore the interconnectedness of the globalized world, the consequences of history, the power of myth, and the ways people attempt to find meaning. Phillips searches for tigers in India, and uncovers a multigenerational mystery involving an oil tycoon and his niece turned stepdaughter turned wife in the Oklahoma town where he grew up. Dogged and self-aware, Phillips is an exhilarating guide to the confusion and wonder of the world today. If John Jeremiah Sullivan’s Pulphead was the last great collection of New Journalism from the print era, Impossible Owls is the first of the digital age.
Author: Kelly Brogan, M.D. Publisher: Hay House, Inc ISBN: 1401956858 Category : Self-Help Languages : en Pages : 353
Book Description
New York Times best-selling author presents a radical alternative to psychotropic meds: discerning the meaning in your symptoms and your struggle as a way to reclaim your health and your self. For years, we've been telling ourselves that our difficult feelings-sadness, rage, shame, intensity, worry-are somehow "not okay." And, all too often, we've relied on the promise of pharmaceuticals to tamp them down. The fact is, though, that these feelings are a vital part of our experience. They are real. And those of us who feel them most strongly are the canaries in the coalmine-sensitive to things that are seriously wrong in the world today. In a book that's both provocative and promising, holistic psychiatrist Kelly Brogan, M.D., author of A Mind of Your Own, shows us that we don't have to medicate our mental, emotional, and physical pain away-that the best way out is through. She explodes the mistaken belief that our symptoms-from mood changes to irritability to fogginess and fatigue-are evidence that we are sick or broken. Then she charts a new path to get real, get well, and get free. The journey includes: • Coming to a new appreciation of the meaning behind symptoms, and whether you are a canary in the coal mine • Learning the 2 major risks of medication that most doctors are not trained to disclose • Exploring the 5 reversible physical drivers of so-called mental illness • Starting the process of radical physical healing with inclusive details of Dr. Brogan's history-making 30-day protocol • Taking an emotional inventory of energy drains and toxic relationships • Taking a deeper dive into the spiritual awakening and expansion that comes when you reclaim your real self from conventional medicine • Identifying the most likely places you have given your power away • Understanding what the science has to say about psychedelics as a tool for awakening • Navigating health challenges with curiosity and the proper tools • Guidance, support, and many Travel Tips shared from the trenches! Our experiences, Dr. Brogan argues, aren't problems or pathologies; they reflect what we need to accept, acknowledge, and transform in order to truly become who we are. Own Your Self is a journey of healing, and also something more: a journey of coming home to ourselves.
Author: Els Coenen Publisher: Els Coenen ISBN: Category : Religion Languages : en Pages : 223
Book Description
Let’s face and share the pain. Under the Yoga Mat lifts the veil on the underexposed dark side of the history of Yogi Bhajan’s Kundalini Yoga and his revered 3HO Healthy, Happy, Holy community. This is the first book presenting the multifaceted character and extent of the wrongdoings and the tactics used by its leadership to keep horrific abuse hidden for five decades. This meticulously researched non-fiction work delves deep into the tragedies that unfolded when Harbhajan, a 39-year-old Sikh-born Indian customs officer, arrived in Los Angeles in 1968, posing as a master of Kundalini Yoga. Through a thoughtful selection of testimonies, historical records, and expert insights, this work unravels the rise of Yogi Bhajan, as disillusioned American youth embraced him as the Eastern guru, they believed they needed. As his following grew rapidly, he proclaimed that his devotees were predestined to guide humanity in the transition from the Piscean to the Aquarian Age. Yet, behind the facade of spiritual enlightenment, Bhajan cunningly manipulated, controlled, exploited, and abused his followers and their children. He was involved in drug and arms smuggling and fraudulent businesses. Under the Yoga Mat challenges our perception of spiritual leaders, champions the resilience of survivors, and sparks a critical conversation about power, manipulation, and the darker side of spiritual movements.
Author: Peter Blachly Publisher: Sheep Island Press ISBN: 9781737228004 Category : Languages : en Pages : 308
Book Description
Peter Macdonald Blachly takes us on a unique adventure, documenting the seventeen years he spent in a spiritual cult, while providing candid insights into the circumstances and conditions that set him up for manipulation by a charismatic and malevolent narcissist posing as a spiritual teacher. He provides a colorful and spellbinding description of adventures in India where he travels extensively with a group of fellow converts performing the sacred music of the Sikhs for audiences of tens of thousands. Back in the US, he forms a "spiritual" rock band that tours the country from Maine to Vancouver, weaving his travel adventures together with his own journey of spiritual awakening and his gradual disillusionment and eventual break from his Guru. Blachly's understanding of psychology and human frailties, make the lessons he draws from his own experiences universal and highly relevant today, when personality cults have infected both the political and religious life of the nation. While he pulls no punches about the moral failings of his Guru, the book is not an expose. Instead, while acknowledging that most people who started studying yoga with him in the late 1960s and early '70s did not join the cult, he writes with humor and introspection about his own vulnerabilities and the misplaced idealism that set him up for exploitation. Regarded by his fellow Sikhs as a powerful personality and pillar of the community, he is unflinching about acknowledging his own fractured sense of identity that he struggles to overcome. Most of all, "The Inner Circle" is an entertaining and compelling read about his journey into and back out of a cult that remains active today.
Author: Pamela Saharah Dyson
Author: Gursant Singh
Author: Premka Kaur
Author: Els Coenen
Author: Brian Phillips
Author: Kelly Brogan, M.D.
Author: Els Coenen
Author: Rakita Nanda
Author: Peter Blachly
Author: Guru Rattana