An interview with Vikram Singh Khalsa, former Vic Briggs

by Gursant Singh , Yuba City California USA, Tuesday, June 01, 2010, 13:29 (5296 days ago)
edited by Gursant Singh, Monday, June 13, 2011, 08:15

January 22, 2008...10:55 pm
Reflections on Sikh Dharma/3HO – Antion Vikram Singh

An interview with the former Vic Briggs of “The Animals”,

who is also the former Mukhia Singh Sahib, Vikram Singh Khalsa.

“I like the guitar playing of Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Vic Briggs”
- Jimi Hendrix 1967

Kamalla Rose Kaur: How does Sikh Dharma/3HO look to you now, years after?

Vikram Singh: It is still hard to sort. It seemed so incredibly beautiful, but it was so unbelievably awful.

Still, my wife and I feel that 3HO did save us from the 70s – disco, coke and platform shoes.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: What was 3HO Headquarters like when you joined?

Vikram Singh: They were in the Phyllis Street house in LA. Premka, Ganga Bhajan Kaur, a woman named Suzy Burns and Martha, who was the sister of Jan Wenner,who started “Rolling Stone” magazine .

Kamalla Rose Kaur: And Baba Singh lived in the garage.

Vikram Singh: Not yet. Baba was always there though, doing seva. Baba was my first friend in 3HO. He was an incredible Sevadar; absolutely amazing.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: So what was your situation back then?

Vikram Singh: Looking back I had a very manipulative girlfriend who didn’t want to be in California. She wanted to be in England. So she convinced me to ask YB to send us to England to start the first London Ashram. YB agreed immediately.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: Were you ever in “The Khalsa String Band”?

Vikram Singh: No.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: Let me get this straight. An internationally known British Rock Star, connected into the whole 60s music world, joins a fledging California yoga group and the Guru/Yogi figure sends him far away? What is wrong with this picture?

Vikram Singh: mmmmmmm

Kamalla Rose Kaur: Vikram Singh, YB must have been so threatened by you from the very first!

Vikram Singh: mmmmmmm

Kamalla Rose Kaur: Jealous, pee-green; my opinion. So what was it like in London?

Vikram Singh: It was horrible. I immediately found out that I didn’t feel British anymore. I wanted to be back in California where there was this spiritual awakening happening. Londoners weren’t interested in yoga, although nowadays it is huge business there. 3HO Ashrams have never done well there.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: How did you live? What was your source of income?

Vikram Singh: We lived off of yoga class donations.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: You went from being a Rock Star to living on yoga class
donations overnight?

Vikram Singh: Yes.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: That was humbling.

Vikram Singh: Very.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: Vikram Singh, you stopped playing guitar and did the Kundalini 3HO lifestyle full time. Yogi Bhajan actually let you stop playing guitar. He didn’t use you in the 3HO Promo Band.
Incredible!

Vikram Singh: If I had been simply willing to teach yoga in London I think I could have made enough to live but that wasn’t the game. I was after “commitment”, I needed people to move into the Ashram and join 3HO. Cult induction, in other words.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: So you failed.

Vikram Singh: Yes and I felt tremendous shame about it.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: Did Yogi Bhajan shame you about it?

Vikram Singh: Yes, he reamed me!

Kamalla Rose Kaur: Was this always your relationship with Yogi Bhajan?

Vikram Singh: No. While living in London I took a vacation back to Califormia for three months and I was treated as part of YB’s household. It was heaven, actually. He treated me with special
intimacy.

But other than that one time, YB pretty much took a heavy position with me over the years.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: I have heard this same scene from others as well.

Now, as a Rock Star in that era, you had actually experienced audiences of screaming fans, yet suddenly you only cared about the opinion of one person? Is that it? YB became our one and only ultimate audience? Thus pleasing him could give us the experience of heaven, ecstasy – even better than being a Rock Star? Is that it?

Vikram Singh: Well, yes. Until I finally saw through it and realized there was no future for me in 3HO. I didn’t have the bucks.

Anyway. just as easily YB could make your life a hell and he often did.

Actually, most of the time.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: Did you go on that first trip to India in 1970?

Vikram Singh: No, but I was there to meet them at Heathrow Airport when they
returned. There was a window where you could look down into customs at Heathrow and here was half of them returning wearing whites and half of them wearing jeans. It was 3HO’s first schism.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: Tell me about that.

Vikram Singh: Back in the beginning of 3HO YB revered a Indian Sant named Virsa Singh. YB said it was Virsa Singh who gave him enlightenment and Virsa Singh who told him to go to the USA on incredibly short notice, like 24 hours or something like that. We actually celebrated Virsa Singh’s birthday as a kind of gurpurb in March of 1970.

You used to be able to look at Virsa Singh’s website and you could see where YB got his costume and many mannerisms but they do not have all the pictures of Virsa Singh on the web site that they used to. Looking at pictures of YB before he came to the USA, he didn’t look any different from any other Indian Sikhs. Tied up beard and baggy suit. White clothes came from Virsa Singh.

Also, even though we all thought it was essentially a hippy thing, communal living in 3HO mostly was inspired, I believe, by Gobind Sadan, which was and probably still is a commune.

Virsa Singh was a big thing in the beginning. YB spoke about Virsa Singh the way we later spoke about YB. He appeared to idolize him and kept his sandals on his (YB’s) meditation altar.

http://www.gobindsadan.org/about.shtml

It was Virsa Singh who gave us the “Ek Ong Kar Sat Nam Siri Whahe Guru” mantra. That isn’t a regular Sikh thing. Story was that Virsa Singh received this mantra from Baba Siri Chand in a dream..

Kamalla Rose Kaur: Baba Siri Chand? So our Baba Siri Chand scene in 3HO came from Virsa Singh too?

Vikram Singh:
http://www.gobindsadan.org/news/

This page will explain a lot about the YB/3HO attitude to Baba Siri Chand

As for that first India trip, it didn’t turn out how it was advertised.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: How was it advertised?

Vikram Singh: Three months with the Saints, meditating in peaceful gardens – that sort of thing.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: So what went wrong?

Vikram Singh: I don’t really know completely. I have heard hearsay that YB sent $ to Virsa Singh in advance of the trip for Virsa Singh to build housing for the group and so forth. When those first 3HOers got there, however, nothing had been done. They lived in tents. But we also know that Bibi Inderjit Kaur (Yogi Bhajan’s wife) was involved with Virsa Singh and his group and, of course, there are always Sikh politics to consider as well.

For sure, Virsa Singh’s sevadars noticed that YB’s group had pictures of YB on their altars not of Virsa Singh!

Whatever the causes, the Saints, YB and Virsa Singh, got into a conflict.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: That is an understatement from what I have been told.

Vikram Singh: Yes, YB was very very pissed. Thus a bit of a war started
up between the two Masters. The 3HO group felt threatened and endangered.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: What happened?

Vikram Singh: There was a schism, a split in the 3HO group – those for YB and those against him.
Then YB started bussing the group around the countryside, from one
Gurdwara to another claiming these were “white” Sikhs. The Punjabis were stunned and amazed. They had never seen a white Sikh.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: It was a sideshow!

Vikram Singh: Yes a Circus Act.

After that Virsa Singh was written out of 3HO history. If people only knew how much YB used to talk about him and tell stories about him back in 1970, it would give a much better perspective on where YB came from. He said very clearly that Virsa Singh was his teacher and how much he owed to him. He also said that he journeyed all over India looking for a teacher and met many saints including Sai Baba. He was constantly disappointed. Finally it was Bibiji who made him go to Virsa Singh, literally in his own back yard , well at least in Delhi. As he used to tell it, Virsa Singh really put him through it making him do 40 day sadhana after 40 day sadhana of Ek Ongkar Sat Nam Siri Whahe Guru for 2 1/2 hours every day. Finally one day, when he was cleaning the bathrooms at Gobind Sadan, Virsa Singh came, touched his third eye and he was enlightened. I heard him say this myself.

Not long after that Virsa Singh told him to leave everything and go to the US on very short notice. YB also told the story of how some friend was having a garden party and, because there was rain threatening, YB literally stopped the rain. Virsa Singh knew immediately and reprimanded him, making him water the plants at Gobind Sadan for some weeks after as a penance for having denied the plants their water from the rain.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: By 1973, when I joined, 3HO Virsa Singh was conveniently forgotten.

Vikram Singh: Yes but I believe this stuff is too important to be written out of 3HO history. Obviously I don’t know how much was true but, if Yogi Bhajan was telling this stuff as true in 1970, it was an important part of the beginning of 3HO.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: So half the folk from that first India trip in 1970 came back from India as Sikhs and half were not happy about what had happened.

Vikram Singh: Yes.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: How about you?

Vikram Singh: I was already a Sikh by then. The two good things that came out of my trial by ordeal in London was that I met my wife and I was blessed with Gurbani Kirtan. I took amrit because I wanted to, not because YB told me to, in November of 1971 and took the name Vikram because it was like Vic.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: You didn’t get your name from YB? You put yourself under the influence of Sikhs who were not YB, and under the influence of Sri Guru Granth Sahib, without asking him?

Vikram Singh: I thought it would please him, but that was not why I did it. Sikhi spoke to my soul. Gurbani still speaks to my soul. I just prefer not to be involved much with Sikhs, Indian or American, because of the political considerations that are always present.
.
Kamalla Rose Kaur: And the Punjabi’s, what did they think of you?

Vikram Singh: Oh they were always very kind to me, but I learned very quickly that many Sikhs had a hidden agenda in their kindness which was often political. It didn’t take may months in London before I developed a very sensitive BS detector that served me very well over the years; although I was obviously selective where I applied it. Or perhaps I just went along with a lot of stuff because I thought it was the right thing to do.

…But back to the Indian Sikhs. Generally they seemed to have an easier time enjoying the kirtan of 3HOers who were less trained in India music; like Ganga and Ram Das Kaur. It was like when they were selling the little American Kaur (not Singh, you might notice) dolls in white clothes and turbans at the gift store near the Harimandir. It was all very sweet and non-threatening.

I learned Gurbani Kirtan very quickly. So quite suddenly, there I was, this white guy, doing this totally “Kick Ass Kirtan”! It seemed to disturb them somewhat. They didn’t quite know what to make of me. One ragi I was close to told me that another ragi, very well known, said I was “haaneekarak” (dangerous).
Kamalla Rose Kaur: Ha! I love it!

So did Yogi Bhajan ever encourage you in your Gurbani Kirtan performing?

Vikram Singh: Not really. I’d call him and let him know that I was off to this Gurdwara or that. After a while I simply got tired of it. What good was I doing? I wasn’t making that much of a difference for Sikhs or anyone else.

Kamalla Rose Kaur: You were a sideshow too.

Vikram Singh: Yes, I was a sideshow. Actually we were all a Sikh sideshow.

I remember once when YB came to San Diego. He met with Punjabi Sikhs and you know the scene. We were hanging around, bored and eating, while he socialized in Punjabi.
Well one of the Punjabi Sikhs was a friend of mine and he later took me aside and said, “Do you know what he was saying about you?”

I replied “You know I don’t know Punjabi that well yet.”

“He was calling you idiots and XXX.”

Do you know what XXX means in Punjabi? It means someone who has sex with his sister.

The next year it is the same thing. YB is in San Diego meeting with Punjabi Sikhs and we are just sitting there bored and eating. So my wife and I decide to get up and leave. YB notices and has someone go and call my wife back.
She returns to see what YB wants and he ignores her.
It was that petty towards the end.

Questions From Audience

Question: Judging by your website, you are still Sikh. Have you modified your practice having left 3HO?

Vikram Singh: Yes, I still try to be a Sikh. I leave it up to Guru Sahib to judge if I am or not.
Mostly my spiritual practice is Gurbani. I recite Japji, Shabad Hazare and 7 Jaap Sahibs every day, plus simran. I got the 7 Jaap Sahibs idea from Virsa Singh’s website. He recommends it. It seemed like a good idea so I did it and I love it. I have been doing it for almost two years, every day.

Question: Could you talk in detail about the episode at Darbar Sahib, Amritsar, when you assisted breaking the rule that women should not perform kirtan there?

Vikram Singh: Well, it didn’t seem like any big deal to me at the time. This was in October of 1980. We were up in the Gumbad (dome) which is a small gurdwara within itself. You can “book” akhand paths, which are performed by volunteers by paying a fee. I have no idea how much. As I remember, we “booked” an akhand path for YB. This goes on all the time. One finishes and another starts immediately. There is just time for a little kirtan.

I think it was at the beginning of the Path. Krishna got on the harmonium and just simply sang a shabad. We had Baba Nihal Singh (I still think about him with utmost love and respect) and some of his Nihungs with us. I do not remember any kind of protest from the sevadars, but then Babaji tends to have that kind of effect on people. They remain calm or at least appear to when he and his boys are around. I would love to see him again.

Anyway, I don’t remember any incident and, as I already said, to me it seemed no big deal. I didn’t even think of it as having historic implications. I knew about the no-women rule, but I thought it only applied to within the Darbar Sahib itself.

I am pretty close with Jodha and Gurukirn Kaur, much to the chagrin of certain people. I think that it was great that Guru Kirn managed to get in to wash the floors of Harimandir. I would like to see women take their rightful place in Sikhi. Why should there be any discrimination?

Question: What precipitated your (and your wife’s) leaving 3HO, and when?

Vikram Singh: It was in September of 1990. I don’t want to say too much at this time but I do want to say this. It has been suggested that I left 3HO over my equity in a piece of property. Not true. I left over a six figure equity that belonged to the San Diego Sangat. I was sick of those hard working and dedicated people in SD being bled dry by the leadership both at a national and regional level.

Question: What did the bogi do, say, about your leaving?

Vikram Singh: Amongst other things that I would “lose my soul”.

Question: Do you sing with a particular group of folks now?

Vikram Singh: (LOL) No, I sing by myself and I have some great computers that accompany me.

Question: Live in any kind of community?

Vikram Singh: So far, no. We sometimes think about community but, if so, it would be a very loose association.

Question: Thanks…you and your wife were always kind to me, and I loved listening to you both talk (accent and such) and laugh…and, of course, sing.

Vikram Singh: Thank you.

Question: I am glad you both seem so happy and at peace.

Vikram Singh: We still have our moments and are still healing but we love Hawaii. I have become much more loving and gentle since living here.

Question: I just wanted to comment to Vikram Singh that after listening to some of his kirtan on sikhnet.com that imo he has a true sikhi soul; it has been a long time since I’d heard any kirtan – but that of Vikram Singh Khalsa immediately transported me to the place where kirtan should transport listeners. WOW!

Vikram Singh: Thank you, I feel very humbled by your kind words. I have always tried to make my kirtan, in fact all music that I do, transcendent.

For many years, I have believed that my life purpose is two fold:

First to inspire and empower others spiritually with the sound of my voice.

Second, to help others to inspire and empower themselves with the sound of their own voices.

Recently, I have been inspired to add a third:

To bring through my music and presence a sense of aloha and healing to all I meet.

As I work on my book, which is mostly autobiographical, I am trying to explain in words, amongst other things, the effect I experienced when I first heard Gurbani Kirtan. It was so stirring and exciting and I was enormously moved by it. Every time I sing, whether Gurbani or other music, I try and recreate that experience for others. Believe it or not, I am even able to make it work with Hawaiian music.

Question: Vikram Singh, do you still have copies of Asa di Var that you can sell? I would rather not purchase from Siri Ved’s company.

Antiom: Sorry, but I do not. I will talk to Liv Singh and see what the status is.
I can tell you that my Jaap Sahib, that was recorded in 1986, is going to be re-released soon on CD. It has only been available on cassette up to now.

I have mixed feelings because I know I could do it so much better now, butit is somewhat of an historical document so I am just going to let it be released with a new cover. It will be released as being by Vikram Singh Vikram Singh.

Question: Did Yogi Bhajan give any hints as to where the yoga side of 3HO came from?

Vikram Singh: Very interesting question. It seems that he studied with Swami Dhirendra Acharya, but for how long I do not know. He was Indira Gandhi’s yoga teacher and politically VERY heavy in Delhi. Obviously someone that YB would be interested in. (I also had the experience of taking him to Disneyland, but that’s another story, albeit a good one).

Also, a man named Gurcharan Singh Journalist, who was a good friend of mine and had gone to college with YB, was Swami Dhirendra’ manager for a few years. See, it’s not only rock stars that need managers, swamis do too. That may not be germane to the question, but it’s interesting.

Anyway, Swami Dhirendra wrote two yoga books. I have one. The other ShaktiParwha has in her personal library and I have looked through it.

Particularly in the book Shakti has, there is a lot of stuff that we used to do back in 1970. But not much of the ‘classic’ Kundalini Yoga stuff: Breath of Fire, spineflex, cat & cow. I have no idea where these things came from.

YB did use to talk about Swami Dhirendra positively, but not in the same glowing terms as Virsa Singh. In 1975, Swami Dhirendra came to visit LA for a few weeks. Gurcharan Singh journalist was also there, although he lived in London. When they put the Swami on the plane to leave, YB and Gurcharan Singh both got down and kissed the ground, they were so happy to see him go. True story. That was probably the end of Swami Dhirendra’s chance of being in the 3HO history books.

Both Swami Dhirendra and Gurcharan Singh have since died.

So, that was a long winded way of saying I really don’t know much about the source(s) of YB’s Kundalini Yoga.

Question: I found the stories about Baba Virsa Singh very enlightening, as I has heard Bibiji as well as YB’s family credit him with a lot of the ideas for 3HO. Seems like he was a big influence, who as you say, was dropped from the history. I am curious then, if YB ever spoke of Sant Hazara Singh, who seems to have taken over in 3HO lore as YB’s main teacher.

Vikram Singh: He did. I wish I could remember more of it but I had no frame of reference. It seemed as though he was purposefully even more vague than usual talking about Sant Hazara Singh.

The only story that I remember was that, after YB finished his training Santji said that he was not to see him again. YB said that later he was traveling near a village and he heard that Santji was there. YB sent a message saying that he was passing nearby and the answer came back “I know, let him continue on his way”.

There was more, always about how hard it was but I just don’t remember.

Question: I appreciate you taking the time to re-hash this stuff for us, as it very healing an enlightening to have this past stuff cleared up. Thank You Vikram Singh

Vikram Singh: Thank you.

5 Comments
Filed under Fighting Authoritarian Groups, Sikhi

5 Comments

Gurmit Singh
January 26, 2008 at 8:22 am Thanks for this half-baked stuff but wonderful !

I have neither seen/met an White Elephant nor
YB or Virsa Singh. Very costly to maintain without any utility or I would say like White Parasites
sucking the blood of others. They have nothing to spread/convey the message of Guru Sahib except their own ego, property and unaccounted wealth.

It is good to note that S. Vickram Singh had left
him much earlier.

meditator
March 21, 2009 at 4:27 pm YB was very corrupt, greedy, unethical ; 3HO business principals to this day quite corrupt; you could say YB was a pathological narcissist, control freak, with amazing charisma – the cover for other errant behaviors; he took advantage of people seeking spiritual discovery & lifestyle; if 3HO-ers weren’t already tinged with a corrupt side he cultivated corruption and sometimes criminal behavior for his personal financial benefit; did get good results with the yoga though!

meditator
March 21, 2009 at 4:44 pm NM political culture provided fertile ground for YB’s ambitions;
have you kept up with Gurujot Singh’s international company and Akal Security’s millions of dollar government contracts; they blossomed under the Clinton & Bush years wonder how they will fair in the next eight or so years;


Satyajit Singh
April 12, 2009 at 12:19 am very inspiring…Vickram Singh ji..your love for gurbani is felt through these letters words written on the screen of my computer.. Thank you.


babbar
February 25, 2010 at 6:41 am just think before you speak . especially describing a person coz u dun know him personally and u cant make assumptions based on some one elses opinion

See more photos and discussion on facebook at:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=108156&id=1214270541&l=5a22781e63

“Amid the legal infighting following Yogi Bhajan’s death, critics are offering another portrait of the Sikh leader.”

3HO Sikhs are now fighting amongst themselves in a lawsuit over the millions of dollars in profits made from using the sacred Sikh religious symbols and scriptures for their own personal gain.3HO Sikhs, who follow Yogi Bhajan, funnel the money to support Yogi Bhajan's tantric cult church which 3HO Sikhs have deceptively camouflaged using names like "Sikh Dharma International", "3HO foundation", "Sikh Dharma Stewardship","SikhNet.com","Sikh Dharma Worldwide", "Unto Infinity Board","Khalsa Council" and "KRI(Kundalini Research Institute)". See "Sikhnet's" and "Sikh Dharma International's" slick new websites which were produced with the millions in ill-gained profits using the name of the Golden Temple, names and images of the Sikh Gurus, and sacred Sikh shabads for profit in commercial enterprises.

Read the full front page article about Yogi Bhajan's lust for power and greed of his 3HO Sikhs in Today's Eugene Register-Guard:

""Yogi's Legacy in Question"".[/link]

"New lawsuit hits Golden Temple with fraud!"

Read about the infighting in 3HO and Sikh Dharma--
Today's Eugene Register-Guard:

""Rift in 3HO Sikh community threatens business empire""

LETTERS IN THE EDITOR’S MAILBAG: Friday’s paper
Appeared in print: Friday, May 28, 2010

"Bhajan was a leader ‘by fluke’

Recently, a friend sent me articles from The Register-Guard on litigation involving Yogi Bhajan’s organizations in Oregon. The letters to the editor that followed, critical of the reporter, prompt me to throw some light on the subject. Bhajan was extremely good at what he did, but propagation of Sikhism he was not. Criticism of Bhajan’s cult cannot be construed as criticism of Sikhism.

Trilochan Singh, a distinguished Sikh scholar, in his 1977 book “Sikhism and Tantric Yoga,” describes Bhajan devastatingly: “Yogi Bhajan is a Sikh by birth, a Maha Tantric by choice but without training, and a ‘Sri Singh Sahib’ and self-styled leader of the Sikhs of the Western Hemisphere by fluke and mysterious strategy.” There was no mystery to his strategy. He ingratiated himself with the Sikh religious leadership in Punjab, which was more corrupt than the Vatican during the time of Martin Luther.

According to the Tantrics, the best form of worship is the fullest satisfaction of the sexual desires of man, therefore sexual intercourse is prescribed as a part of Tantric worship. In the annals of abuse of women, some had harems, others had concubines and Bhajan had secretaries. The Sikh gurus condemned the Tantrics and their practices. All the cases mentioned in The Register-Guard had merit.

Humility is the hallmark of a Sikh, and Bhajan had none of it. Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, describes people such as Bhajan succinctly: “Those ... who have no virtues but are filled with egotistical pride.”

Hardev Singh Shergill President, Khalsa Tricentennial Foundation of North America Editor-in-chief, The Sikh Bulletin El Dorado Hills, Calif.

"Sikhism and Tantric Yoga"
by Dr. Trilochan Singh (Link to entire book)

"The book Sikhism And Tantric Yoga is available at: www.gurmukhyoga.com.This website which is operated by a genuine White Sikh is highly recommended. Gursant Singh was a member of the Yogi Bhajan Cult (3HO and the Sikhnet Gora Sikhs or White Sikhs) for over 30 years and has intimate knowledge about the inner workings of this cult which attempts to miscegnate Sikhism with Hindu idolatry. I downloaded the book from Gursant’s website and found it to be absolutely compelling. I read it in one compulsive and sustained draught. It is a study not only about cults in Sikhism but about the miscegenation of the Sikh Religion by Hinduism. It is a classic work rendered in beautiful English prose and it is patently the work of a profound intellectual scholar with a deep knowledge of Sikhism."
Quotation taken from: http://www.sikharchives.com/?p=5513&cpage=1#comment-2011

You may also view individual chapters to "Sikhism and Tantric Yoga" at these links:

Sikhism & Tantric Yoga A Critical Evaluation of Yogi Bhajan
http://www.gurmukhyoga.com/forum/index.php?id=192

Sikh Doctrines and Yogi Bhajan's Secret Science
http://www.gurmukhyoga.com/forum/index.php?id=193

Yogi Bhajan's Adi Shakti Shaktimans and Shaktis
http://www.gurmukhyoga.com/forum/index.php?id=194

Yogi Bhajan's Clap Trap Theories of Kundalini Yoga
http://www.gurmukhyoga.com/forum/index.php?id=195

Yogi Bhajan's Ego Maniac Utterances
http://www.gurmukhyoga.com/forum/index.php?id=205

Yogi Bhajan's Seven Years in America and His Tinkling Titles
http://www.gurmukhyoga.com/forum/index.php?id=206

Yogi Bhajan's Arrest and Release on Bail
http://www.gurmukhyoga.com/forum/index.php?id=207

Yogi Bhajan Becomes the Only Maha Tantric in the World
http://www.gurmukhyoga.com/forum/index.php?id=208

Sikh Leaders without Conscience
http://www.gurmukhyoga.com/forum/index.php?id=209

Call to Truth and Authentic Sikhism
http://www.gurmukhyoga.com/forum/index.php?id=210

Please read an Excerpt below taken from "Sikhism and Tantric Yoga"

The Name of Golden Temple and its Murals

"In England last year a firm advertised some blue jeans as Jesus Jeans. The whole religious world of England rose in one protest and stopped the manufacture of these jeans. The word Golden Temple has become an instrument of commercial affairs of Yogi Bhajan He has now even named shoe stores as Golden Temple. I was given a "Wha Guru Chew.""

"Yogi Bhajan is using the sacred Sikh mantras and the sacred name of Guru Ram Das as a mantle for his Tantric Sex Yoga which will inevitably lead to mental and physical debauchery of those who take his brand of Sikhism contaminated by crazy sex-energizing asanas seriously."

Read about the "war between 3HO Sikh's Unto Infinity Board and Yogi Bhajan's Sikh Dharma". Yogi Bhajan set up all these organizations and installed their leaders. Decide for yourself if the Tantric Sex Yoga which Yogi Bhajan taught inevitably leads to mental and physical debauchery.

Many of these 3HO profiteers have cut their hair and renounced Sikhi! See these pictures below of Kartar Khalsa CEO of Golden Temple Foods and chairman of Yogi Bhajan's "Unto Infinity Board" who has cut his hair and is no longer a Sikh.

(Is it any wonder that Kartar and Peraim, Controlling members of Yogi Bhajan's "Unto Infinity Board",are wearing circus masks in the above photo?)http://cirrus.mail-list.com/khalsa-council/Kartar-Peraim.2-10.jpg

See these articles in today's Eugene Register Guard which shows the greed surrounding this dispute:

"Money trail at heart of Sikhs’ legal battle."

Wha Guru being used sacriligiously for huge profits by 3HO Sikhs
"Five flavors and they're all nuts!"

"What did the magician say to the Wha Guru Chew? Open sesame."

Yogi Bhajan used the sacred name of the Golden Temple, names and images of the Sikh Gurus, and sacred Sikh shabads for commercial enterprises to make millions of dollars. Wha Guru is even used as the name of a candy bar by Golden Temple Foods!Links appearing on the internet advertise Golden Temple along with wine and alcohol such as in this Google search link: "Golden Temple Granola - Food & Wine - Compare Prices" Other internet links associate Golden Temple massage oil with sex and sensual massages as in this Google search: "Sensual Soothing... Golden Temple Soothing Touch Massage Oil."

See for yourself the pictures below of the Darbar Sahib(Golden Temple) in Amritsar and Guru Tegh Bahadar featured on yogi tea boxes:

3HO Sikhs are associating yogis, ashrams, tantric sex yoga rituals,drinking of wine and magicians of the occult with the Sikh Gurus and the Golden Temple See the Rare Photo (above) featuring the Harimandir sahib in 1908 when it was under the control of the Pundits or mahants. Sadhus and yogis felt free to sit wearing only a dhoti and no head coverings.The Gurdwara Reform Movement stopped such practices in India and gave the Gurdwaras back to Gursikhs.

Tantric Asanas taught by Yogi Bhajan for transmuting sexual energy:Reprinted from Yogi Bhajan’s official magazine “Beads of Truth” 11, p. 39

Yogi Bhajan illustrated here controlling tantric shakti "energy". Notice the depiction of Shiva,above Yogi Bhajan's head, Shiva is the god of yoga for Hindus. The illustration also shows Kundalini Yoga Asanas taught by Yogi Bhajan for transmuting sexual energy

Yogi Bhajan's students are intstructed to meditate on Yogi Bhajan's picture everyday which you can see displayed in the 3HO Espanola Gurdwara in the photo above.

Idolatry is forbidden in sikhism....why does an 8-foot high statue of the Hindu god Ganesh, adorn the entranceway to the Siri Singh Sahib (yogi bhajan) lane in espanola. This is the hindu god of "prosperity", as in the 3HO publication "prosperity pathways".Adi Shakti Chandi 3HO Tantric Deity worshipped by 3HO in songs and prayers(shown above). Read about Yogi Bhajan's Shaktiman and Shakti women.

Read these shocking fire pujas and occult numerology,(below), practiced and advertised in the latest newsletter published by 3HO Sikhs. These "kriyas" or pujas are complete rubbish,only adding to the destruction and dissolution of the Sikh faith and should not be practiced by Sikhs of the Guru. The object of these practices is to combine the Sikh faith with Hinduism; to defang, neuter and completely destroy Sikhi. The strategy is to introduce idolatry and a stratified priesthood into the Sikh Religion. Yogi Bhajan and his 3HO shakti cult followers are introducing idolatry and Hindu practices of pujas and tantra mantra into the Sikh religion. The Bhajan movement is attempting to shift Sikh worship from the commonwealth of Gurdwaras to private estates controlled by 3HO priests of Yogi Bhajan's Tantric sex cult church.

Idolatry is forbidden in Sikhism....why does a golden statue of a yogi adorn the entranceway to the 3HO Gurdwara in Espanola. This is a Hindu practise.
3-HO Sikhs demonstrate(in the photo above)their complete subservience to false worldly material power by exhibiting the Flag of God (The Nishaan Sahib) at an even level with the flag of the United States in front of the 3HO Gurdwara in New Mexico. The Nishaan Sahib, (The Respected Mark of God under the shadow of the Sikh Broadsword) should always fly higher than the flag of all the false materialists. The Flag of the Khalsa should occupy a place of exaltation above any government's flag that temporarily inhabits the material world.

Tantric Yoga asanas (above) taught by Yogi Bhajan
and practised in 3HO Gurdwaras

"Tantric doctrines involving sex-poses or physical contact poses are extremely repulsive to Sikhism. The Sikh Gurus repeatedly ask the Sikhs to shun Tantric practices because they are based on a mentally perverted outlook of life. The Sikh Gurus ask the Sikhs to shun the very presence and association of Shakti-Cult Tantrics." Dr. Trilochan Singh "Sikhism and Tantric Yoga"

Tantric Asana taught by Yogi Bhajan for transmuting sexual energy:Reprinted from Yogi Bhajan’s official magazine “Beads of Truth” 11, p. 39

See how Hindu gods and yogis are displayed in 3HO Gurdwaras, (see link in blue).

See this post which exposes the most shocking relationship Yogi Bhajan had with Jagjit Naamdhari who is considered by his disciples as the 11th Sikh Guru. The Naamdhari Sikhs keep the Siri Guru Granth in a closet while they bow to Jagjit and refer to him as "SatGuru Ji" as you can see in the photos at this link.

Read these comments by traditional Sikhs. "What better way to make money: add a religious tone to the product. All of a sudden, it seems legit."

If you want to stop these degrading and sacriligious practices by Golden Temple Foods and Yogi Bhajan's cult followers; Post a letter of support on this website or write your local food stores and demand they stop selling Golden Temple Food's products. Some of the major stores which carry these products are Trader Joes, Whole Foods Market and Wild Oats but there are many many other stores who sell millions of dollars in Golden Temple Granola, Peace Cereal, Yogi Teas, massage oil and Wha Guru Chews.

Yogi Bhajan's sacrilegious teachings in the name of Sikhism are illustrated quite distinctly by pictures of Yogi Bhajan's portrait, hindu idols being displayed in and around 3-HO Gurdwaras and the practice of kundalini and sex energizing tantric yoga asanas inside 3-HO Gudwaras by Yogi Bhajan's students.

Idolatry is forbidden in Sikhism. Why does an eight foot high image (above) of Yogi Bhajan controlling the tantric shakti "energy" adorn the 3HO Gurdwara in Espanola? You can see the menacing image of Yogi Bhajan overshadowing the Sangat on the right side of the entire Espanola Gurdwara in the photo above.

Idolatry is forbidden in sikhism....why does a golden statue of a yogi adorn the entranceway to the 3HO Gurdwara in espanola. This is a hindu practise.

Yogi Bhajan's students are intstructed to meditate on Yogi Bhajan's picture everyday which you can see displayed in the 3HO Espanola Gurdwara in these photos.


In a painting at the New Mexico 3HO Gurdwara(above)you can see the sacrilegious misrepresentation of our sacred Khalsa symbol "Khanda" with two swords around it. You may also observe in this painting how Yogi Bhajan is depicted on an equal level with Guru Ram Daas(the 4th Sikh Guru): Dr. Trilochan Singh recounts this observation in 1977 when he writes, "The other picture was the Khalsa symbol Khanda with two swords around it. The Khanda (double-edged sword) within this symbol was replaced by a picture of an American woman with Sari-like robes. The woman is called Adi Shakti. I saw this published in the Beads of Truth in London and have already commented on it in my book, The Turban and the Sword of the Sikhs. I told Shakti Parwha that this is the most sacrilegious misrepresentation of our sacred symbol. As usual she dismissed my opinion as unimportant."

The sikh code of conduct says food offerings to the GURU are forbidden, but there is a 'testimony' page over at sikhnet.com, a 3HO run site loaded with volumes of Yogi Bhajan nonsense talks. Yogi Bhajan instructs 3Hoer's to prepare meals as offerings at the gurdwara and calls this "a dish for a wish". This is nothing more than the Hindu practice of puja. The testimony states "a dish for a wish".
Please read an Excerpt below taken from

"Sikhism and Tantric Yoga"
by Dr. Trilochan Singh (Link to entire book)

"Yogi Bhajan is using the sacred Sikh mantras and the sacred name of Guru Ram Das as a mantle for his Tantric Sex Yoga which will inevitably lead to mental and physical debauchery of those who take his brand of Sikhism contaminated by crazy sex-energizing asanas seriously."

Yogi Bhajan studied and taught at the Sivananda Ashram in Delhi. This, in addition to his first Kundalini Yoga teacher Sant Hazara Singh. In the mid-1960s, Harbhajan Singh took up a position as instructor at the Vishwayatan Ashram in New Delhi, under Dhirendra Brahmachari. This yoga centre was frequented by the Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, his daughter, Indira Gandhi, and diplomats and employees from a host of foreign embassies.

Here's an article on Sivananda's approach to Kundalini Yoga:

www.dlshq.org/download/kundalini.htm

These are all Hindu practices.

You can also read about the Gurdwara Reform Movement which stopped such practices in India and gave the Gurdwaras back to Gursikhs.

Gurdwara Reform Movement

A Rare Photo of Harimandir sahib in 1908 when it was under the control of the Pundits or mahants. Sadhus felt free to sit in meditation wearing only a dhoti.The Gurdwara Reform Movement (Gurdwara Sudhar Lehr) is the Legislation passed by the Punjab Legislative Council which marked the culmination of the struggle of the Sikh people from 1920-1925 to wrest control of their places of worship from the mahants or priests into whose hands they had passed during the eighteenth century when the Khalsa were driven from their homes to seek safety in remote hills and deserts.

When they later established their sway in Punjab, the Sikhs rebuilt their shrines endowing them with large jagirs and estates. The management, however, remained with the priests, belonging mainly to the Udasi sect, who, after the advent of the British in 1849, began to consider the shrines and lands attached to them as their personal properties and to appropriating the income accruing from them to their private use. Some of them alienated or sold Gurudwara properties at will. They had introduced ceremonies which were anathema to orthodox Sikhs. Besides, there were complaints of immorality and even criminal behavior lodged against the worst of them. All these factors gave rise to what is known as the Gurudwara Reform movement during which the Sikhs peaceful protests were met with violence and death and ended with them courting arrest on a large scale to gain the world's attention. Before it was all over many would fall as martyrs with some being literally blown apart while they were strapped to cannaon barrels.

‘During the Gurdwara Reform Movement, the Sikh leaders started a publication that was named Akali. From this paper and its policy the leaders began to be called Akalis, in view of which they formed the present Akali party. These Nihang Akalis should not be confused with the members of the Akali party.’ The Turban And The Sword’' , by Dr. Trilochan Singh. (Page 402)

I found this post at SikhSangat.com It exposes the most shocking relationship Yogi Bhajan had with Jagjit Naamdhari who is considered by his disciples as the 11th Sikh Guru. The Naamdhari Sikhs keep the Siri Guru Granth in a closet while they bow to Jagjit and refer to him as "SatGuru Ji" as you can see in the photos below.

The 'Namdhari' cult has been excommunicated from the Khalsa Panth. See for yourself the pictures of Yogi Bhajan depicting his close relationship with Jagjit Naamdhari.

"However their are several instances which I find questionable about Yogi Bhajan. One includes the relationship they had with Jagjit Naamdhari (http://satguruji.blogspot.com/), and the other about an occurance that occured in the late 70's between Yogi and AKJ, where Yogi criticized Jatha for trying to "steal" members."

Yogi Bhajan wore huge gemstones for their so called “yogic energy and power". Yogi Bhajan adorned himself with these yogic rings and precious gems for different days of the week. Yogi Bhajan covered up the fact that these days are represented by different Hindu deities and the practice of wearing these yogic rings is really only the Hindu idea of pacifying the various gods and goddesses. Not only this, Yogi Bhajan used astrology and numerology in choosing these yogic rings. Yogi Bhajan believed the gemstones had "energy affects" and influenced our destiny, thinking and actions.

Yogi Bhajan shown here on Sikhnet wearing a yogic ring for power

Around the year 2000, Yogi Bhajan tried to personally sell me a yogic ring for several thousand dollars. We were at Hari Jiwan Singh's house in Espanola where HJ keeps a vast collection of gems worth millions of dollars. Yogi Bhajan told me. "You're naked." And he stated I needed a ring with a particular stone to protect me.

Yogi Bhajan’s wearing and promoting yogic rings is yet another Hindu practice camouflaged in the sheep’s clothing of "Aquarian or New Age spiritual thinking”. These things should not be practiced by Sikhs of the Guru. As Sikhs we should rely on the Guru alone for strength as Guru Arjan so beautifully states:

I have learnt the technique of true Yoga from the divine Guru. The True Guru has revealed this technique with the Light of the divine Word. Within my body He has revealed the Light that pervades all the regions of the earth. To this Light within me I bow and salute every moment. The initiation of the Guru are my Yogic rings and I fix my mind steadfastly on the One Absolute God.i,

A. G. Guru Arjan, Gaudi, p 208

The following is taken from "Sikhism and Tantric Yoga" by Dr. Trilochan Singh.

We quote Yogi Bhajan on Precious Stones and rings, which for him are his status symbol, and for possessing which he expends quite a lot of his energy and ingenuity. He says in Beads, Summer 1972, "Precious stones are not precious because the rich wear them and the poor do not. Rather, they are precious because when cut in the proper way they concentrate sun energy and can transmit to the individual through the skin. Hence most rings are worn on the ring finger. The quality of energy channeled by each stone differs and so does its effect on the individual. Stones also correspond to the planets and serve in mediating the scattered energy which comes from retrograding planets."
Yogi Bhajan has given the following comments on stones.
Ruby (Sun) concentrates the heart of the sun's rays.
Moonstone and Pearls (Moon) help balance out too much sun energy. They are commonly worn by Libra.
Diamond (Venus and practically everything) can concentrate miles of sun rays into one beam. Recently in Los Angeles someone was robbed of 100,000 worth of jewel within 72 hours.
Emerald (Mercury) has wonderful effect on the brain and is a cooling stone. Good luck for everyone.
Coral (Mars) is for balancing positive and negative forces.
Topaz (Jupiter) is a good luck stone.
Blue Sapphire (Saturn) can give so much energy to a person that he becomes negative. Those who are interested in details can read the Journal Beads, Summer 1972, p. 16. I do not know what is the opinion of the Jewelers on these statements but from the point of Sikhism these notions are worthless absurdities.
Yogi Bhajan does not wear the earrings of the Nath Panthi Yogis, but he wears precious gold rings (sometimes two and sometimes three) heavily studded with jewels, and cannot help displaying them ostentatiously, probably as a symbol of wealth acquired through the techniques of Tantric Yoga, which he sacrilegiously identifies with the techniques of Sikh mysticism. Bhai Gurdas, however, makes it clear to all Sikhs of all ages that Yoga asanas and yoga techniques are absolutely useless and unnecessary for Sikh meditations and the spiritual path of Sikhism:
jog jugat gursikh gurs am jhay a
The Guru has himself explained to the Sikhs the technique of true Yoga, and it is this: A Sikh must live in such a moral and spiritual poise that while hoping and waiting he ceases to aspire or crave for low ambitions and remains unconcerned and detached. He should eat little and drink little. He should speak little and never waste time in nonsensical discussion. He should sleep little at night and keep away from the snare of wealth. He should never crave avariciously after wealth and property.
Bhai Gurdas, Var 20 / 15

We still have very eminent scholars and saints who practice and live according to the Essentials of the Sikh Path with utter humility and devotion. They do not wear long robes. They do not wear gold and diamond rings. They do not contaminate Sikh doctrines and practices with practices of creeds and cults which are repulsive to Sikhism and strictly prohibited. There are piles and piles of correct interpretations of the Sacred Writings of the Sikhs written first by the great contemporaries of the Gurus like Bhai Gurdas, Bhai Mani Singh, Bhai Nand Lai, and our own contemporaries like Bhai Sahib Randhir Singh and Bhai Vir Singh. They not only interpreted it but lived it and suffered for it like living martyrs, never seeking anything but the Grace of God and the Gurus as a reward.
See an excerpt from a meditation taught by Yogi Bhajan listed on one of his student's websites promoting yogic gems at "YogaGems.com".

"Each finger represents a planet, whose energies we imbue with grace within ourselves and through our projection:

The little finger is Mercury, enhancing communication.

The ring finger represents the sun, empowering our physical bodies with healing and grace of motion.

The middle finger stands for Saturn. We strengthen virtues of patience and self-discipline.

The index finger is for Jupiter. We enshrine the light of wisdom within us.

The thumb represents the earth, ego, “dragons head and dragons tail.” We bring grace to the ego, so it supports our spirit.

I brought this realization of grace through the beautiful Light that had descended with me, wherein I experienced each finger’s cosmic connection—to the planet Mercury, the shining Sun, ringed Saturn, luminous Jupiter, and lastly, Earth—wherein dragons symbolize the spiraling DNA of creation, all these energies equally a part of my soul."

See these links by Yogi Bhajan's students promoting "Power necklaces".

Please read an Excerpt below taken from

"Sikhism and Tantric Yoga"
by Dr. Trilochan Singh (Link to entire book)

"Yogi Bhajan is using the sacred Sikh mantras and the sacred name of Guru Ram Das as a mantle for his Tantric Sex Yoga which will inevitably lead to mental and physical debauchery of those who take his brand of Sikhism contaminated by crazy sex-energizing asanas seriously."

The Register-Guard
http://www.registerguard.com/
Yogi’s legacy in question |
Former followers say he abused his position for power, money and sexBy Sherri Buri McDonald

The Register-Guard

Posted to Web: Sunday, May 9, 2010 12:14AM
Appeared in print: Sunday, May 9, 2010, page A8

A slow, painful awakening led Premka Kaur Khalsa, a top secretary in Yogi Bhajan’s Sikh organization for almost 20 years, to leave the religious group in 1984, she said.

Premka Khalsa, 66, said she could no longer participate because of the inconsistencies she said she had witnessed between the yogi’s behavior and his teachings — the deception and abuse of power.

In 1986, she sued Yogi Bhajan and his Sikh organizations, settling out of court. In court papers, she alleged that the married yogi had sexually and physically assaulted her, that he was sexually involved with other secretaries and that, as the head of his administration, she worked long hours for little or no pay.

The organization’s religious leaders vehemently deny those allegations. Its business leaders did not respond to requests for comment for this story.

Kamalla Rose Kaur, 55, another former member of Yogi Bhajan’s 3HO (Healthy, Happy, Holy Organization) who wrote for a grass-roots newsletter in the community, said a light switched on for her when she was researching and writing about religious groups and thought, “Hey, we’re acting a lot like a cult.”

Former member Guru Bir Singh Khalsa, 60, who had been appointed a “lifetime minister” by Yogi Bhajan, said he received a wake-up call in the early 1990s, when Sue Stryker, then an investigator with the Monterey County District Attorney’s office, laid out evidence linking members of his spiritual community to criminal activity. Stryker, now retired, said a member of Yogi Bhajan’s Sikh community pleaded guilty and served time in prison for a telemarketing scam that bilked seniors out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

These and other ex-members of Yogi Bhajan’s organization say they aren’t surprised by events unfolding now, six years after his death. Legal disputes threaten to splinter the community. Allegations of the yogi’s past wrongdoing are resurfacing. And the future of the Sikh organization’s businesses are in question.

The outcome will ripple far beyond the religious group, whose companies have become intertwined with the local economy and business community.

In Multnomah County Circuit Court, the group’s religious leaders are suing the group’s business leaders over control of the community’s multimillion dollar businesses, including Golden Temple natural foods in Eugene and Akal Security in New Mexico.

“Organizations/cults that have charismatic leaders and their followings, once their charismatic leader dies, this is generally the kind of thing that occurs,” Premka Khalsa said.

“It’s the meltdown of a cult,” said Kamalla Kaur, who spent nearly 20 years in 3HO, and now runs an Internet forum for ex-members. “They actually kept it together longer than we expected.”

Steven Hassan, a Massachusetts-based author, counselor and former leader of the Moon cult in the 1970s, said he has counseled about two dozen former 3HO members, including leaders, over the years.

“The group, from my point of view, was always about power and money,” he said. “(Yogi) Bhajan is the consummate … cult leader. By not specifying someone to take over, there often are these kinds of political battles and meltdowns — people basically being greedy like Yogi Bhajan was and wanting more of a slice for themselves.”

Attorney John McGrory, who represents the religious leaders in the Multnomah case, said his clients strongly disagree with the description of their organization as a cult. They “believe very strongly that it’s a religion,” he said. “They practice and follow it, and they are ministers.” The proof, he said, is in the thousands of adherents who still practice it.

McGrory said the real source of the discord in the community appears to be that the assets Yogi Bhajan built up over the years are being taken for private use, with the blessing of the managers the yogi appointed to safeguard them.

Gary Roberts, attorney for the business leaders, has said they’ve done nothing wrong and have acted in the interests of the Sikh community.

When a founder of an organization, or the head of a family, passes away, disputes among successors are common, said Krishna Singh Khalsa, a Eugene Sikh for 40 years.

“There’s nothing spiritual or charismatic or cultlike about that,” he said. “It’s simply where interests clash.”

Religious leaders voice concerns

A year before he died, Yogi Bhajan established the “Unto Infinity” board to oversee the network of businesses, property and educational and spiritual nonprofits. Members include Golden Temple CEO Kartar Singh Khalsa and three of the yogi’s former secretaries: Sopurkh Kaur Khalsa, Siri Karm Kaur Khalsa, and Peraim Kaur Khalsa. Kartar Khalsa and Peraim Khalsa are domestic partners.

In the years leading up to the Multnomah lawsuit, the group’s religious leaders expressed concern that the business leaders, the Unto Infinity members, had abandoned the group’s orthodox beliefs, which include not cutting one’s hair, eating a vegetarian diet and abstaining from alcohol.

In court documents, the religious leaders allege that the Unto Infinity members acknowledged in 2008 that they no longer practiced those core beliefs.

Unto Infinity members did not respond to Register-Guard interview requests. But in March 2009, when the Khalsa Council, an international group of Sikh ministers, asked them whether they had cut their hair, were no longer vegetarians, and drank alcohol, the business leaders responded by letter, according to the Khalsa Council.

The letter said, among other things: “The questions raised are irrelevant to our roles and responsibilities in the organization. We are not the religious leaders of the organization; we were given administrative and financial authority and responsibility.”

The Unto Infinity members wrote that they had made many sacrifices while the yogi was alive and that now they’re applying “more kindness into our personal lives.”

“We have learned the importance of factoring back into our lives more joy and balance as we continue to serve this mission for the rest of our way home,” they wrote.

The Unto Infinity members wrote that if the religious authorities decided to narrowly define what a Sikh Dharma minister is, “we may not continue to qualify.”

However, they noted, “many current ministers in Sikh Dharma have broken their Sikh or minister vows, marital vows, and the laws of our country and have remained ministers,” adding that that had been true even while Yogi Bhajan was alive.

Watching the business leaders back away from the group’s religious practices, some former members said, reminds them of what they experienced when they decided to leave the group.

“You go through stages of discovery of how you gave away you