Re: What is 3HO ?
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[learning-zone] On Harbhajan Singh 'Leader of the Western Sikhs'Date:10/10/04 6:44:09 PM Pacific Daylight TimeFrom:
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Wahe Guru ji ka Khalsa || Wahe Guru ji ki Fateh ||
Sadh Sangat ji
Like Amarprakash Singh I too joined 3HO many years ago. I was associated with the movement at first in 1972. At that time I was interested in Sikhism and had found out about 3HO from some Indian Sikhs living in the USA. Yogibhajan provided a medium for me to become a Sikh, something that would have been much more difficult or impossible without 3HO. For that I'm deeply grateful.
On several occasions I spoke to Yogibhajan about Sikhism, Kundalini yoga etc. He was quite candid, he knew I was interested in Sikh dharma and steered my seva in that direction. He admitted that Kundalini yoga had elements of Sikhism in it such as most of the mantras used and was problematic for some Sikhs, at least to me and in private.
He also said that Americans would never have accepted Sikhism unless it was explained in a yogic scientific way. Was he right on this? There are many Sikhs, gurdwaras etc in the West established by good Sikhs from India and abroad, but not many non-Indians have become Sikhs. 3HO, Radhasoami and other groups have brought elements of Sikhism to the West but the only large group of Western Sikhs are related to Yogibhajan's activities.
He in the early days encouraged people to take Amrit.
When I was at the Golden Temple with him on security he was deeply affected and had great love for Harimandir Sahib, which he often said he did seva at while on government service nearby before coming to the West.
When some of his associates/students tried to get me involved in their shady business and I complained to him, he asked me if I thought that I was more ethical than him. I replied;'this is bad business and I couldn't see Guru Nanak conducting his business in this way''. He told those business people to leave me alone. But the practices continued.
He told me once that he had many obstacles to pure service to the Guru, but that he considered himself a ''pipe'' to the Guru's teachings.
We all know that he was not perfect.
But I consider the establishment of Sikh dharma, albeit his understanding of it quite a notable achievement.
3HO Sikhism is different from what many peoples understand as Sikhism. As a long time student of the various Sikh teachers I can say that 3HO Sikhism is unique in many ways but has differences that are also evident in many Deras. Many Sikh teachers have unique aspects of Sikhism such as vegetarianism, yoga like meditation etc.
Other aspects are a stretch of gurmat such as tantricism, which even in that Yogibhajan uses Sikh mantras.
Yogibhajan had a personality that even he admitted was problematic for many. Like many spiritual teachers he alienated many as well as endeared many. He had enemies and he had friends.
I never considered myself a ''chela'' of Yogibhajan so I had far less problems with him. The closest I got to him was on a month long yatra to India in 1980.I saw him every day and spent a good deal of time on buses with him. He enjoyed life and was not an ascetic. But on this trip we went from one Gurdwara program to another. Sikhism was an important part of his life. He could have been far more successful a yoga teacher if he had dropped the connection to Sikhism.
We met Sikh groups stayed in local Sikh homes. It opened up a world of Sikhism for me. A world I still enjoy exploring.Most of my friends today are Indian Sikhs.In a recent campaign against a large government agency that discriminates against Sikhs I had the honor to fight that discrimination alongside of many indian sikhs. In that camaign there were no Eastern/Western Sikhs.
In 3HO I became a Sikh, something I'm I still working on. Despite my different understandings and dislike of 3HO business practices and acknowledgement of Yogibhajan's flaws I hope that the Western Sikhs proceed to deepen their understanding of Sikhism, a direction Yogibhajan opened up for them. The 3HO Sikh school is outside Amritsar, a good sign for future Western Sikhs.
The concept of Gurukhalsa makes it incumbent upon all Sikhs to share their understandings of gurmat and keep the sangat on the straight and narrow as far as the gGru has revealed it to them.
There are several understandings of Sikhi orthodoxy in Sikhism. Sikhism is like the Anglican Church rather fluid, but there is a core of teachings and practices nevertheless. So we must agree in advance that in Sikhism there will be some diversity of opinion. Not being from a dogmatic Western understanding of religion Sikhs can accept that. But criticism must still be there as well as the sharing of realizations. Even the SGPC understanding of Sikhism is still a work in progress.
The depth of the Guru's teachings keeps us busy widening and deepening the implementation of those teachings both individually and in society.
When Sikhs any Sikhs engage in unscrupulous practices we must point out that those are practices not condoned by Sikh rehit.
As for Yogibhajan I'm thankful he created a society I could nurture my budding Sikhi in.
It is a historical fact that whenever the Guru takes something away he gives us back something better. Sikhism is now a fact in the West and the Western Sikhs and the Eastern Sikhs must cooperate learn from each other and learn what is best about each of them and move forward to keep/give the reality of the predications of Guru Gobind Singh's that dharma would be established in the West. At the local memorial for Yogibhajan almost a 1/3 of the participants were Indian born Sikhs, with a kirtan jatha and a contingent from the local Gurdwara. This for me was a good sign of future cooperation.
Gururakha
Sathari Singh
